Poems by Blake (William Blake) — NCERT Solutions

Given: Blake's overarching vision of humanity — innocent wholeness, experienced fallenness, and the need for redemption.

Concept: Blake's Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience together represent "the two contrary states of the human soul." They are not simply about childhood and adulthood but about two modes of perceiving and being in the world.

Mankind Once Whole and Happy — 'The Divine Image':
In 'The Divine Image,' Blake presents the original, unfallen state of humanity. Mercy, Pity, Peace, and Love are perfectly integrated — they are simultaneously human and divine. Every human being, regardless of religion or race ("heathen, Turk, or Jew"), carries the divine image. There is no discord, no hierarchy, no exploitation. God, the human being, and the virtues are one unified whole. This is the state of innocence — not naïve ignorance, but a state of spiritual wholeness and harmony.

Mankind Fallen into Discord and Tyranny — 'The Human Abstract':
In 'The Human Abstract,' Blake depicts the fallen state. The same virtues have been corrupted by the rationalising, self-serving human brain. Society is built on inequality (the poor are kept poor so the rich can feel merciful). Religion becomes "Mystery" — a tool of control and mystification. Cruelty, Humility (false), and Deceit grow like a poisonous tree. The Gods of earth and sea search for this tree of corruption in Nature but cannot find it — it grows only "in the Human Brain." This is the state of experience — of tyranny, both political (the oppression of the poor, of chimney sweepers, of soldiers) and spiritual (organised religion suppressing free thought and joy).

The Need for Rescue:
Blake implies that humanity must be rescued from this fallen state. The very fact that he writes both sets of poems — showing both the ideal and the corrupt — is an act of prophetic vision. By exposing how virtues are distorted, he calls upon the reader to recognise the corruption and strive to return to the original wholeness. The rescue lies in human consciousness — in seeing through the "mind-forged manacles" (as he writes elsewhere) and reclaiming the divine image that resides in every human being.

Conclusion: The two poems together form a complete Blakean argument: humanity has the capacity for divine goodness (Innocence) but has fallen into self-created systems of oppression and hypocrisy (Experience). True redemption lies in recognising this fall and consciously working to restore the original unity of the human and the divine.

Observation: In 'The Divine Image' and 'The Human Abstract,' Blake capitalises words such as Mercy, Pity, Peace, Love, Cruelty, Humility, Mystery, Deceit, Raven, Gods, Nature, Tree, Human Brain, etc.

Reasons for Capitalisation:

1. Personification: The most important reason is that Blake personifies these abstract qualities, treating them as living beings or characters. In the 18th century, it was a common poetic convention to capitalise personified abstractions (e.g., Mercy walks among us, Pity has a human face). Capitalisation signals to the reader that these are not merely adjectives or common nouns but active, almost mythological forces.

2. Theological / Philosophical Importance: Blake capitalises virtues like Mercy, Pity, Peace, and Love to elevate them to the status of divine attributes — qualities that belong equally to God and to the ideal human being. The capitalisation underscores their sacred significance.

3. 18th-Century Convention: In Blake's era (late 18th century), it was standard practice in English writing to capitalise all nouns, not just proper nouns. Blake follows and extends this convention, but uses it with deliberate artistic intent.

4. Emphasis and Contrast: By capitalising both the positive virtues (Mercy, Love) and the negative forces (Cruelty, Mystery, Deceit), Blake draws attention to the contrast between the two poems and the two states of the human soul. The capitalisation gives equal weight to both, suggesting that in the fallen world, the negative forces have become just as powerful and 'real' as the divine virtues.

Conclusion: The capitalisation is both a period convention and a deliberate artistic choice by Blake to personify, elevate, and draw attention to the key concepts that drive his philosophical and poetic argument.

Given: We are asked to count syllables in the lines of 'The Divine Image' and identify the metrical pattern.

Syllable Count — First Stanza:

$$\text{"To Mer-cy, Pi-ty, Peace, and Love"} = 8 \text{ syllables}$$
$$\text{"All pray in their dis-tress"} = 6 \text{ syllables}$$
$$\text{"And to these vir-tues of de-light"} = 8 \text{ syllables}$$
$$\text{"Re-turn their thank-ful-ness."} = 6 \text{ syllables}$$

Pattern Observed:
The lines alternate between 8 syllables and 6 syllables. This is the pattern of the Common Metre (also called the Ballad Metre), which follows the scheme: 8–6–8–6 syllables per stanza.

Metrical Foot:
As stated, two syllables make one foot. The pattern here is iambic — the first syllable of each foot is unstressed (u) and the second syllable is stressed (/):

$$u\;/\;\;u\;/\;\;u\;/\;\;u\;/$$
$$\text{to MER | cy PI | ty PEACE | and LOVE} \quad (4 \text{ iambic feet} = \text{iambic tetrameter})$$

$$u\;/\;\;u\;/\;\;u\;/$$
$$\text{all PRAY | in THEIR | dis TRESS} \quad (3 \text{ iambic feet} = \text{iambic trimeter})$$

Conclusion:
The poem is written in iambic tetrameter (8 syllables, 4 feet) alternating with iambic trimeter (6 syllables, 3 feet) — the classic Common Metre or Ballad Metre. This metre gives the poem a simple, song-like, hymn-like quality, which is entirely appropriate since Blake modelled his Songs of Innocence on the simple hymns written for children by Isaac Watts. The regularity and musicality of the metre reinforce the poem's message of harmony and divine order.