The Tiger

-          William Blake (1757-1827)

Paraphrase:

O Tiger! You are glowing at night in the forest. You are so beautiful yet so fearsome. How powerful were the hands and how sharp were the eyes that made you?

Where, in heaven or in hell, did your creator find the fire that is burning in your eyes? How could he fetch the fire, flying? How powerful were the hands that caught the fire?

What a powerful build your creator might have, especially his shoulders? How artfully might he have twisted your muscles? What powerful hands or feet might have tolerated the powerful beatings of your heart?

 What were the tools used to make you? How big or powerful were the hammer, chain and anvil? How was the furnace that was used to make your brain? How forcefully had your creator to hold you while making you?

When the angels who fought with God surrendered seeing your fearsome presence, did your creator who also made a Lamb smile?

Analysis:

            This poem is taken from the poet’s The Songs of Experience. It is a highly symbolical poem. The ‘tiger’ is the symbol of ‘the fierce forces in the soul’ that are necessary to break the bonds of experience. The tiger also stands for ‘a divine spirit’ that is not subdued by restrictions, but arises against established rules and conventions. The tiger represents the negative forces in the human heart, whereas the lamb stands for the positive ideas such as humility, politeness, truthfulness, etc.

            Symbolically, the ‘tiger’ refers to the rebelliousness in human heart. The phrase ‘forests of the night’ means ‘the state of confusion in one’s mind because of ignorance’. So, the tiger or the rebellious spirit helps one to come out of everyday experience or to get rid of the confusion with ignorance.

            The speaker of the poem wonders that the ‘tiger’ has a very strong build. He concludes that the common effort of a common person cannot make the tiger. For it, extraordinary effort and tools are needed.

            There is also ‘humbleness’ or ‘the lamb’ in human heart. But the tiger is much more powerful than the lamb. Because of the tiger the human heart always challenges the common experiences to find newness.

            The poem is full of rhetorical questions. A rhetorical question is one that is asked merely for the effect. The question itself contains the necessary answer. This is an effective method in a poem to emphasize upon the poet’s idea.