The poem
Merry Merry Sparrow Under leaves so green A happy Blossom Sees you swift as arrow Seek your cradle narrow Near my Bosom.
Pretty Pretty Robin Under leaves so green A happy Blossom Hears you sobbing sobbing Pretty Pretty Robin Near my Bosom.
The Blossom
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At first glance, what a load of rubbish On the face of it, a sparrow is "merry" whilst his "pretty" pal, the robin is "sobbing" away. Gosh, how so very exciting... BUT then suddenlyy my lit teacher throws all its simplicity right out of the window in claiming that the poem's subject is...sex ?? The "arrow" a phallic symbol? "Near my bosom" "cradle narrow" "O the poem is brimming with sexual imagery!" But I'm afraid…
Read the whole commentAt first glance, what a load of rubbish
On the face of it, a sparrow is "merry" whilst his "pretty" pal, the robin is "sobbing" away.
Gosh, how so very exciting...
BUT then suddenlyy my lit teacher throws all its simplicity right out of the window in claiming that the poem's subject is...sex ??
The "arrow" a phallic symbol?
"Near my bosom"
"cradle narrow"
"O the poem is brimming with sexual imagery!"
But I'm afraid my personal conclusion lies far away from the bed.
Perhapssss it is all about accepting both the bad and the good.
The two stanzas are structurally identical with Blake placing equal emphasis on the happiness of the sparrow and the robin's sorrow. What seems to be suggested is that nature has room within it for all manner of feelings and emotions and above all, deserves to find a place "near my bosom", in other words, the human HEART.
I may be wrong but sexual connotations are really getting on my tits. hahaha...welll. back to revision then.
I agree with you, I don't really think there is sexual imagery here either (well perhaps there is, but I'd rather look at it in this way).