Written by British Poet William Blake, "A Poison Tree" serves as both a reminder and a warning to each and every human being of the dangers of our nature. This simplistic poem speaks of anger and the way we should deal with it. Using unpretentious yet powerful language, Blake delivers a strong message to all his readers.
He speaks through metaphors- comparing his wrath to a growing plant. He says "I watered it in Fears. Night and Morning with my tears". The metaphor remains constant through the short poem, and readers understand that Blake only refers to his wrath as a plant. As his wrath grows, the plant blossoms into a large tree.
Towards the end of the poem, Blake speaks of encountering his foe in his own garden. Apparently the "apple" that grew on the tree was evidently his. Should anyone stumble upon these lines, they would be enchanted with their various literal meanings. However, their metaphorical meaning does not disappoint either.
As Blake speaks of the "apple" growing from his wrath, we can see a connection between the apple Blake writes of, and the apple Eve picks from a forbidden tree. In both cases, the apple is used as a metaphor for feelings considered negative. Although expressing different emotions, there is a slight inter-textuality between both texts.
The poet's originality in this poem shines through, and is one of the things that I love the most. It wouldn't occur to many people to compare their anger to something so delicate as a blossoming plant. Blake has taken two opposing elements of nature and brought them together with his writing.
Neither the theme nor the intent of this poem are concealed by the poet, giving the poem a very honest and blunt tone. The themes of friendship,enmity, anger and human nature are all evident in Blake's writing. The themes help to create a pensive mood, which contrasts greatly with the simple words that seem to convince us that we are reading very light material.
Although simply written, it feels as though immense thought has gone into each word of the poem. I'd love if all of you could read the poem and let me know if you agree or disagree with my review in the comments. You can find the poem here.
He speaks through metaphors- comparing his wrath to a growing plant. He says "I watered it in Fears. Night and Morning with my tears". The metaphor remains constant through the short poem, and readers understand that Blake only refers to his wrath as a plant. As his wrath grows, the plant blossoms into a large tree.Towards the end of the poem, Blake speaks of encountering his foe in his own garden. Apparently the "apple" that grew on the tree was evidently his. Should anyone stumble upon these lines, they would be enchanted with their various literal meanings. However, their metaphorical meaning does not disappoint either.
As Blake speaks of the "apple" growing from his wrath, we can see a connection between the apple Blake writes of, and the apple Eve picks from a forbidden tree. In both cases, the apple is used as a metaphor for feelings considered negative. Although expressing different emotions, there is a slight inter-textuality between both texts.
The poet's originality in this poem shines through, and is one of the things that I love the most. It wouldn't occur to many people to compare their anger to something so delicate as a blossoming plant. Blake has taken two opposing elements of nature and brought them together with his writing.
Neither the theme nor the intent of this poem are concealed by the poet, giving the poem a very honest and blunt tone. The themes of friendship,enmity, anger and human nature are all evident in Blake's writing. The themes help to create a pensive mood, which contrasts greatly with the simple words that seem to convince us that we are reading very light material.
Although simply written, it feels as though immense thought has gone into each word of the poem. I'd love if all of you could read the poem and let me know if you agree or disagree with my review in the comments. You can find the poem here.
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