“The mind-forged manacles I hear”
Wordsworth focuses on the scenery of London, whereas Blake tends to pay most of his attention to the people of London.
Wordsworth uses personification. He personifies the sun, river and the city.
“…this city now doth, like a garment, wear
The beauty of the morning;”
This gives the impression that the city is alive. This could mean that the city takes the beauty of the morning to disguise its dirtiness and ugliness.
“…the river glideth at his own sweet will:”
This is a personification giving the river a “will”, something which is unique to people.
“Never did sun more beautifully steep”
Blake uses many symbols to signify his strong feelings towards London. He mentions the hypocrisy of the church. He uses the image of a church to criticise religious establishments and a palace to signify the state, and authorities who control it.
“Every blackening church appalls;
…Runs in blood down palace walls.”
The blood is outside, not inside. The walls are used as a symbol for the screen or barrier separating rich and poor people. The church is being blackened literally by pollution, also metaphorically with crimes it allows to happen. This is referring to the death of the church. In this context, appalls is a double entendre. It means the church is horrified but also a pall is a cloth that is draped over a coffin.
The church is dying because of the Harlots, who devalue marriage. This is shown in the last line of Blake’s poem:
“And blights with plagues the marriage hearse”
This uses the image of a marriage hearse being destroyed by sexually transmitted disease. Marriage is supposed to be a happy occasion, although here it is shown to be an institution that carries people to their deathbeds.
People die soon after they are married because of venereal disease and the presence of prostitutes destroys the concept of marriage. This disgraces and mocks the church.
Blake, like Wordsworth, also uses personification. The harlot, baby and soldier are thought to personify London. The harlot is cursing the next generation. There is an image of the soldier’s sigh running in blood down the palace walls. Here he is attacking the monarchy and government for condemning young men to death by sending them to fight in foreign wars. The baby is seen to be diseased literally with venereal disease or cholera.
Wordsworth’s poem is less melodramatic in its outlook as it simply describes London at one moment in the morning. It does not contain anything that could be interpreted as relating to London’s people or what the future holds for them. The picture presented in Wordsworth’s poem is an exaggerated tribute to the beauty of London. It praises both nature and humankind’s achievements.
Wordsworth feels so overwhelmed by the calmness of London that he feels the need to call upon God’s name. This is seen in line 13:
“Dear God! The very houses seem asleep;”
In contrast, Blake uses symbolism to intensify any of the emotions. His poem is more emotionally stimulating than Wordsworth’s.
Blake’s poem “London” brutally describes a dark, dirty, disease ridden and deprived place unlike in the Wordsworth poem. It leaves you in no doubt as to the author’s feelings on the subject.
Blake uses repetition to emphasize certain words and his emotions towards London. Wordsworth does not seem to find the need to use repetition. Both of the authors use enjambment.
The message or intentions of the poems are absolute opposites. Wordsworth’s poem from the beginning gives the reader the impression of London being an amazing site and the best place on Earth. His poem gives us a strong and positive opinion about London’s scenery. Blake’s poem is showing agitation. This is obvious to the reader because of Blake’s continuous repetition of the word “every” especially in the second verse.
“every cry”
“every infant’s cry”
“every voice”
“every face”
The repetition of the word “every” stands out and shows emotions from Blake. It implies that no one is exempt from the pain and horror experienced while living in London. Blake comes from a lower middle class background and the tone of his poem expresses his awareness of the poverty around him. This is why he feels it is important to project a message in his poem about the people of London and why London is not a place to be fond of.
Wordsworth’s poem is a sonnet and he uses alternate line rhyming. All line endings either rhyme with “fair”, “by” or “steep”. This presents a loose rhyming pattern, the effect of which is to let the poem flow and sound pleasant, while making sure not to control its structure too rigidly. The flowing structure is especially exemplified because of lack of verses. His poem is written in verse using iambic pentameter which emphasizes the meaning of the rhyming words. This shows the contentment he is experiencing.
“London” is written in four, four line stanzas. Each line of each verse generally has the same number of syllables. He uses alternate line rhyming, which presents a rigid structure to show how harshly London’s people are controlled. Every verse ends with a full stop to signify each topic of his poem coming to and end.
I think both poems have strong, emotional views and opinions towards London. I prefer Blake’s poem because it gives me a greater outlook on London. It gives me a different attitude towards London and its people than I previously had. Blake’s poem is more appealing to me because it contains interesting symbolism and comparisons. Both poems are similar with their potential to inform the reader of author’s sentiments.