Holy Thursday by William Blake: Poem Analysis Essay

Holy Thursday is a poem by William Blake from the book of poems Songs of Innocence. This book contains 19 poems and was first published in 1789 (“Holy Thursday,” para. 1). Interestingly, there is also a poem with a similar name from the book Songs of Experience published in 1794, which is different in mood and images (“Holy Thursday,” para. 1). The poem depicts the ceremony on the Ascension Day, which takes place in St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. This paper aims to analyze the Holy Thursday poem by William Blake.

William Blake was an English poet and painter, and his literary style is romantic, as he was one of the most distinguished figures of the Romantic Movement. His famous writings are The Book of Los, Songs of Innocence and Experience, and The Marriage of Heaven and Hell. These poems are sometimes called ‘prophetic,’ as there is something mystical and Biblical in Blake’s writings. Hence, the poem Holy Thursday is not an exception, but rather a typical example of Blake’s style.

In the poem, the author delivers the details about the theme by stimulating the reader’s imagination, mind, and perception. For example, in the first of the three stanzas that use the AABB rhyme scheme, it is said: “Twas on a Holy Thursday their innocent faces clean / The children walking two & two in red & blue & green” (Blake, para 1). The author explicitly depicts the scene through a direct and clear lyrical voice. Although straight to the point, the poet uses some metaphors when depicting the evil in the children’s lives. He portrays “Grey-headed beads walked before with wands as white as snow” making a hint that the wands are often used to establish discipline (Blake, para. 1). However, since this is a holy day, the children flow into the high dome of Paul’s “like Thames waters,” which is supposed to mean the clarity, and innocence (Blake, para. 1). In other words, in the first stanza, the author juxtaposes the orphan children who are good and the beads who are evil.

In the second stanza, the poet uses epithets to deliver a festive mood. He depicts the “multitudes” of “these flowers of London town” – children, whose hum resembles the “multitudes of lambs” (Blake, para. 2). The author openly admires the “Thousands of little boys & girls raising their innocent hands” (Blake, para. 2). In this stanza, the evil seems to be relegated to the background, giving way to the children, “Seated in companies” “with radiance all their own” (Blake, para. 2). Therefore, the second stanza, being in the middle of the story, presents its main topic – the holy Ascension Day, and beautiful innocent children.

The third stanza shows even greater exaltation because of the joy of observing the children. The author says: “Now like a mighty wind they raise to heaven the voice of song,” and compares the children’s souls and voices with “harmonious thunderings” (Blake, para. 3). However, in the third stanza, the figures of “old men, the wise guardians of the poor” appear, that symbolize the evil, and death, as opposed to the very source of life symbolized by children. The poem ends with a threat, as the author calls to “cherish pity, lest you drive an angel from your door” (Blake, para. 3). Compared to the hopeful first two stanzas, the third one is closer to the mood of the book Songs of Experience, as the lyrical voice returns the reader to the poor and painful everyday reality that will begin when the holiday is over.

Thus, the analysis of the Holy Thursday poem by William Blake was presented. In the poem, the author uses epithets and metaphors to stimulate the readers’ imagination and describe the holy Ascension Day. The images are direct and explicit, which is typical for Romantic poetry. There are determined roles for the good and evil in the poem, and the evil is doomed to win after the holiday ends.

Works Cited

Blake, William. “Holy Thursday: ‘Twas on a Holy Thursday, Their Innocent Faces Clean.” Poetry Foundation, Web.

“Holy Thursday (Songs of Experience).” Genius, Web.