A Comparison of 'London' and 'Composed upon Westminster Bridge'

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A Comparison of 'London' and 'Composed upon Westminster Bridge'

The poems 'London' by William Blake and 'Composed upon Westminster Bridge' written by William Wordsworth both explore the city of London although the two poems portray the city differently.

The poem 'London' describes the depth of London from the backstreet alleys to the palaces and churches. This poem I feel was written in order to highlight the hardships in London. The poem 'Composed upon Westminster Bridge' is a petrachan sonnet and as is with most sonnets is written in celebration. Wordsworth has written this poem in celebration of London. The title has a double meaning; 'composed' as in written by and composed as in 'calm' which is much like the poem of itself. Wordsworth was obviously in awe of London, because he is admiring everything around him. He has centred his poem on the success and beauty of the city, whereas William Blake's poem describes the horrid and dirty scenes that are to be seen in London.

Blake's poem has a set rhyme scheme of a b a b and 16 lines with eight syllables in each. Blake's lexical choice is an overuse of contracted words