In Blake’s poem `Songs Of Innocence` shows that the little boy’s mom has died so he is left all on his own with his father who then later sells him as chimney sweeper, “And my father sold me”. The boy was small and young and barely could speak properly like when he says “Weep!weep!weep!weep!” and he was meant to say “Sweep!sweep!sweep!sweep!”.
In stanza 2 of `Songs Of Innocence` the little boy is shown to have blonde hair which is going to be shaven off. The little boys hair is being shaven off because nothing then can destroy the white hair like all the dirt and dust from the chimneys, “That curled like a lambs back, was shaved” said the little boy. This means that the little boy’s hair was shaven off and also is telling the reader how innocent the little boys is and all of the innocence is being shaven off him.
Stanza 3 shows dark and sad moods for all the chimney sweepers `were all of them locked up in coffins of black`. This means all the chimney sweepers are locked up and left to die. `thousands of sweepers, Dick, Joe, Ned and Jack`. These are some of the little boys friends that are locked up in the coffins with him to die.
`And by came an angel, who had a bright key`, in stanza 4 the bright key and the angel is shown to be freedom and new life. `And opened the coffins` this shows the thousands of chimney sweepers are being let free by a angel and going to start a new life. `And wash in a river, and shine in the sun` this is telling the reader the chimney sweepers are washing all the dirt from the chimneys away and also the cruelty away and starting a new life.
In stanza 5 the stanza is all about happiness of the chimney sweepers, `Then naked and white, all their bags left behind. ` This shows the chimney sweeper are back to being kids happy and cheerful and also left all their chimney sweeping tools behind and started to play. Also in this stanza it shows that the children are not alone they have God as their father that will look after and care for them, `have god for his father.`
`We rose in the dark` this shows the little boy is back working as a chimney sweeper and has hardship and sadness again in his life. `Through the morning was cold`, this shows the chimney sweeper has to go back to work and go throw all the cruelty and sadness all over again and work through any cold or hot weather and get the job done.
However in `Songs Of Experience` it is much shorter with only 3 stanzas. In this poem it is much sadder and darker than in the last poem `Innocence` like when the little boy says `Weep!weep!weep!weep!` when he was crying at the same time. The little boy is lost and scared looking for his parents `where are thy father and mother? `
In stanza 2 of `Experience` the children have a different new life to start, and are also happy and cheerful. `I was happy up the heath`. The season is white and also clear for their life `And smiled among the winter snow: ` This means white and white means clear and freedom. However in the last two lines of this stanza the owners of the chimney sweepers are getting ready to kill them, `They clothed me in the clothes of death. And taught me to sing the notes woe. `
The boy is showing happiness and laughter outside but inside him is sadness and full of fear, `And because I am happy & dance and sing. They think they have done me no injury;` At the end of this stanza the little chimney sweeper is blaming God, kings and the Priest for all of the cruelty his facing, `And are gone to praise God and his priest and king, who made up a heaven of our misery!`
The similarities between the two poems are that both poems are about little kids as chimney sweepers facing cruelty and sadness in their life. The differences between the two are that in `Songs Of Experience` the children have a lot of freedom and fun in their childhood, but in `Songs Of Innocence` the children have no freedom or fun but they have sadness instead. The teqniques in the poems are the moods which the poems is written in like when the chimney sweepers are happy and have freedom the writer uses the word white meaning clear and happy, but when the chimney sweepers are sad and lonely the writer uses black.