Comparing 'London' and 'Composed Upon Westminster bridge'

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Steve Ramos 10 GVE        24/05/07

Ms Kennedy

Compare how Wordsworth and Blake present their ideas about the city in their poems 'Composed upon Westminster Bridge' and 'London'

Wordsworth and Blake express their views differently about London. The two poets’ poems were written at the time of the French Revolution. Blake’s poem ‘London’ was published in 1794. ‘Composed Upon Westminster Bridge’ was written in 1802. Both of these poems mainly focus on London but contrast in language, mood, structure, and theme. Wordsworth’s poem is virtually based on the key idea of romanticism, putting more emphasis on emotions than on individuals. He focuses on the beauty of London in the morning. He especially illustrates the morning in London because that is where he sees the pure beauty of it. In contrast, Blake’s poem ‘London’ addresses the audience on the negative parts of London and contradicts Wordsworth’s poem. Blake describes how the government and the growth of prostitution control London, he considered that human beings are naturally virtuous, however the society and civilisation’s rules are corrupted. At this time there was a great political conflict in Britain. Blake was writing about the city as he pictured it at the time. However, London was a much smaller city back then, and the countryside south of the river Thames is now the suburbs of south London. He is furious at the authorities and hates the way poverty in London is steadily increasing. Around this time the French revolution is going on in France, Blake is also a supporter of their struggle for democracy.

Blake describes ‘London’ as if the government with their corrupt, restrictive laws controlled it! The quote of the ‘chartered streets’ tells us that the rich were given charters, which allowed them to control the streets of London. Blake exaggerates with the quote ‘The chartered Thames’ to show us as if the rich could be able to control it. Blake clearly displays his immense hatred towards the political oppression imposed by the authorities. Blake uses death in his poem, criticising London for its sorrows because he sees despair in the faces of the people and hears the fear in their voices. However, if both poems were written around the same period, why do they contradict each other?

One of the many famous sonnets Wordsworth wrote was ‘Composed Upon Westminster Bridge’. Wordsworth has chosen a sonnet because he now realises his been far away from a tremendous part of humanity, also Wordsworth sees the city as divine. He feels more associated with the whole city, as well as with the sky and fields.

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Wordsworth’s poem is a Petrarchan sonnet, this means the poem is divided into two sections. Wordsworth flows his poem and tries to keep a romantic rhythm going, on the other hand Blake's poem is more joint and follows a rhyme scheme.

, Blake’s poem has four quatrains, with alternate lines rhyming, ABAB words such as ‘fear…hear’, ‘man…ban’ and ‘curse…hearse', this illustrates the destruction of life in the city, including poverty, disease and particularly the ‘marks of weakness, marks of woe’. Blake creates a well-structured effect by making each line of each verse having the same number of syllables. Blake attacks ...

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