William Blake's Infant Sorrow: Symbolism & Childhood Themes

Imagery and Symbolism in Infant Sorrow

The Child: Innocence, Sin, and Instinct

The interpretation of the child in William Blake's Infant Sorrow heavily relies on the reader's preconceived notions about children. During Blake's era, newborns were often viewed as symbols of innocence, as depicted in poems like Infant Joy and in Cradle Song. The New Testament, for instance, records Jesus stating that the Kingdom of God belongs to those who embody the innocence and humility of little children. Some Christians of the time believed children arrived fresh from God, retaining a memory of Him—an idea particularly popular among the Romantics. Consequently, children were seen as reflecting God's creativity and goodness.

Conversely, followers of Rousseau perceived babies as inherently good, possessing an innate capacity to learn and grow, which societal demands often crush and distort. Other Christians in Blake's day held the belief that children entered the world as inheritors of original sin, thus being 'bad' until they accepted personal salvation. In Infant Sorrow, the baby is portrayed as brimming with energy and instinctual life, which might initially appear negative or destructive. However, Blake considered these to be positive attributes; therefore, his use of the term ‘fiend' does not carry its usual negative connotations.

Piping and Cloud Symbolism

The imagery of piping and cloud in Infant Sorrow echoes the opening poem in Songs of Innocence. However, the infant's loud wailing and knowing awareness of the world's negative aspects here stand in stark contrast to the innocence of the child in the cloud of Introduction (I). Similarly, there is a marked difference between the ‘cloud' representing the earthly body containing an innocent soul in The Little Black Boy and the 'fiendish' contents of the cloud in Infant Sorrow.

The Symbolism of Being Bound

The term bound refers to the common practice in Blake's day of tightly wrapping newborns in swaddling bands. This was intended to provide a feeling of security and aid in the straight growth of limbs. Blake, however, employs this image to symbolize parental oppression, against which any self-respecting individual would struggle. The child, in this context, remains physically bound and metaphorically confined by the strictures of its parents and society's expectations.

Blake's Vision of Childhood and Imagination

Children's Pre-Earthly Existence

Blake's concept that a young child possesses the clarity to perceive God resonates with the Romantic sensibility, particularly as articulated by Wordsworth. This view suggests that children had an existence in Heaven prior to their earthly life. For further reading, refer to: The World of the Romantics: Making Sense of the Intangible World – Seventeenth and Eighteenth-Century Attitudes to Childhood.

The Creative Imagination as a Spiritual Core

Blake regarded the natural child as an embodiment of the creative imagination, which he considered the spiritual core of human beings. He expressed concern over how social institutions, such as the school system and parental authority, often suppressed this capacity for imaginative vision. A child's ability to experience happiness and engage in play are direct expressions of this imagination. Any form of restraint can, therefore, be perceived as an attempt to stifle creativity. This presents a fundamental dilemma for the child, who is inherently subject to parental care.

Contraries: Energies, Instincts, and Experience

Regarding how the human mind perceives the creator and its nature, Blake posited that ‘contraries' are fundamental truths about the world and the creative force behind it. He believed that Heaven and Hell directly influence human experience. Consequently, the powerful energies within the world, and the energies and instincts within human beings, are inherently necessary and beautiful. These forces only become destructive when they are either denied or viewed as the sole determinants of life and experience. A key sub-theme in Blake's work is that a vision based entirely on experience is as incomplete as the inadequacy of ignorant innocence.

Parental Influence and Repression

Protecting or Repressing Children?

In much of Blake's work, parents are frequently depicted as inhibiting and repressing their children. Their personal fears and shame are often transmitted to the next generation through a parental desire to ‘protect' children from their natural desires. Blake argued that parents often misuse ‘care' to repress children and bind them to themselves, rather than liberating them by celebrating and safeguarding their innate capacity for play and imagination. In Infant Sorrow, the parents' response is ambiguous, yet even the most neutral care carries the potential to be perceived as restraint by the child.