Compare the ways in which Wordsworth and Blake present their ideas about the city of London in ‘Composed upon Westminster Bridge’ and ‘London’.
“Composed upon Westminster Bridge” and “London” are two very different poems themed around the growing important and powerful city of London. William Wordsworth, who wrote “Composed upon Westminster Bridge”, writes about the spectacular view and landscape he can see from Westminster Bridge, on an early crisp morning, with the flowering and dazzling sun shining down upon it. He wrote this poem in 1802, when he was in his horse and carriage on his way to France. Whilst passing on Westminster Bridge he couldn’t help but notice this marvellous view in front of him, inspiring him to write “Composed upon Westminster Bridge”, then and there. However William Blake, author of “London”, portrays London as being politically incorrect, full of woe and corruption, as well as suffering and depression. He writes this controversial poem in a way that makes the reader feel as if he is walking the streets of London and that you are there with him, watching all this corruption and suffering first-hand. He wrote this poem in 1792, around the time of the French revolution.
In “Composed upon Westminster Bridge”, Wordsworth describes the magnificent view of London he can see from Westminster Bridge. He starts by saying how London is the most beautiful place on earth, and that anyone who could pass by without stopping to take in this magnificence; they would have to be extremely dull and boring. He also describes the view as being breathtaking and specifically focuses on the visual aspects of London, describing how peaceful and calm the city is, so early in the morning. On the other hand, Blake’s poem “London” focuses on the common people living in the heart of London. He goes in to detail about the suffering and lack of freedom these people have, and how the government and monarchy is to blame. He also describes how the church turns a blind eye to child labour and how there are constant rules and regulations imprisoning peoples voices, views and basic needs.
In ‘Composed upon Westminster Bridge’, Wordsworth uses the form of a petrarchan sonnet to structure his poem. This in itself tells the reader how much Wordsworth is in-Love with the city of London, as a petrarchan sonnet is the original form of sonnet, used mostly to describe deep and true feelings such as love. Wordsworth also structures his poem using an octave for the first part of his poem. These first eight lines set out his proposition that London is the most beautiful place on earth and helps to introduce the reader to the scenery and feeling he is seeing and experiencing. But for the last six lines, Wordsworth uses a sestet to come to his resolution. This makes it easy for the reader to understand and acknowledge what Wordsworth is feeling, helping the reader to relate to his emotions. It also helps to bring the poem to a calm and peaceful conclusion, helping the reader take in all the positivity presented in this poem. Another technique Wordsworth uses to help the structure of his poem is ‘enjambment’; this is when a line does not come to and end, but simply flows into the next line, creating a sense of freedom to his imagination, and makes the reader feel as if Wordsworth thoughts are flowing on to the page. Finally Wordsworth uses caesura, this is the use of commas and semi-colons to force the reader to pause. Wordsworth describes the, “Beauty of the morning; silent, bare”. The short pauses in this line forces the reader to stop, helping the reader to take in and picture the beauty and peacefulness of this scene. However Blake chooses to structure his poem in a very formal, strict and controlled manner. For example the poem is divided into four quatrains with an alternate rhyming scheme, for example A,B,A,B and C,D,C,D. This strict control very much ties in with the theme of Blake’s poem about the lack of freedom and over restriction the people had in London at that time. Another way in which Blake has structured his poem is the use of repetition. This structural technique helps to build up and create a strict and steady rhythm, referring back to the controlled society at the time. This controlled and tight rhythm also helps to echo Blake’s foot steps as he is walking through the streets of London.
