The similarities between these two pieces of poetry are they are both about London. They include the poets own responses to the city and as would also be expected by Romanticism, both poets feel very strongly about the London they can see and both describe their responses fully. They also both have religious qualities e.g. In William Wordsworth’s poem ’Dear God! The very houses seem asleep; and all that mighty heart is lying still!’ and in William Blake’s poem ‘How the chimney sweeper’s cry every black’ning church appals.’ (William Blake own responses of London). It was his vision of the people of
London. ‘The hapless Soldiers sigh’ and ‘The Chimneysweeper’s cry’. These are two examples of where he puts across his visions of these people. In William Wordsworth’s, Upon Westminster Bridge it is not about the beauty of nature, but it never the less has some qualities of Romantic poetry. London is very beautiful to William Wordsworth and he is very enthusiastic about London. ‘All bright and glittering in the smokeless air.’ His enthusiasm is expressed in this quote and in this one, ‘Never did the sun more beautifully steep’.
Although both poems are about London, they both have very different perspectives. William Wordsworth sees London as being a very fair place. This can be show here ‘Earth has not anything to show more fair.’ William Blake sees London as being a city of hypocrisy and exploitation. ‘Runs in blood down palace walls.’ The poems explore London at different times of day. In Upon Westminster Bridge it’s the morning, just as the sun is rising. But William Blake’s poem it is well into the night. The poems are written in different forms. William Wordsworth’s poem is a Petrarchan sonnet. The rhyme scheme is abba abba cd, cd, cd. William Blake’s poem is more like a ballad. Abab is the rhyming scheme. William Wordsworth’s sonnet has qualities that you might expect in a Romantic poet. Not nature, but London is being celebrated. He uses figurative language to describe London as being royalty, ‘ A sight so touching in its majesty.’ William Blake describes the air in his poem as being full of soot and dirt. Where as in William Wordsworth’s sonnet the air is ’smokeless’. William Wordsworth uses a simile to help us feel the beauty of the city. ‘ This City now doth, like a garment, wear.’ William Blake uses different words e.g. “weakness”, “fear”, “cry”, “tear”, “plague”. These words are extremely negative and mainly are connected to pain. William Wordsworth’s enthusiasm for London in the early morning is its calm quiet. I think that he feels on ‘top of the world’ when he sees London that morning. William Blake’s poem is about his vision of London. It alludes to soldiers fighting for Britain in the French Revolution. His treatment towards London is of a more political point of view. Marriage is also eluded to in this poem. William Blake’s poem is more like a ballad than a sonnet, this is because the language is quite simple to read and understand ’I wander thro’ each chartered street near the charter’d Thames does flow.’ One of
more difficult words in William Wordsworth’s sonnet is ‘splendour’. William Blake uses quite a lot of repetition, which he uses with the words ‘cry’, and ‘infant’.
My favourite poem out of these two is London by William Blake, because I really like the way William Blake looks at the people of London. Especially as he looks at the weak people of this great city. ‘In every cry of every man, in every Infant’s cry of fear.’ I find it easier to understand and this poem I find is more believable because in William Wordsworth’s sonnet, London seems to be a beautiful, perfect and fair place. ‘Earth has not anything to show more fair.’ I do not see London as being that.
I do like very much London by William Blake but I do appreciate the quality of Upon Westminster Bridge although I do find it unrealistic, as nothing can be fair and perfect. I really like the way William Blake associates things together e.g. ‘infants’, ‘cry’, ‘tear’. I like the uncomplicated language that he uses in his poetry.
These two pieces of poetry have completely different moods as London by William Blake is a negative view of this great city, where as Upon Westminster Bridge is a very positive view of London. They are complete opposites in mood; William Wordsworth looks at the landscape where as William Blake looks at the people.