THE ART AND ARGUMENT OF "THE TYGER"
Author(s): John E. Grant
Source: Texas Studies in Literature and Language, Vol. 2, No. 1 (Spring 1960), pp. 38-60
Published by: University of Texas Press
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THE ARTAND ARGUMENT
OF "THE TYGER"
By John E. Grant
I. The Poem
Blake's "The Tyger" is both the mostfamousof his poems and one of
the most enigmatic.It is remarkable,consideringits popularity,that
thereis no singlestudyof the poem which is not marredby inaccuracy
or inattentionto crucial details. Partlyas a result,the two mostrecent
of "The Tyger" are very uneven in quality.1
popular interpretations
Anotherreason that the meaning of the poem has been only partially
revealed is that the textualbasis forinterpretation
is insecure.Even in
his mostrecentedition,Keynes has foundit necessaryto punctuatethe
lines in his own way, not Blake's.2 And Nurmi's carefulstudyof the
manuscriptrevisionsand of the probable movementsof Blake's mind
as he composed the poem is unaccountablyerroneous,forwhat Nurmi
"3
gives as "The Final Form of Blake's The Tyger' is the text with
Keynes's punctuationratherthan Blake's, a formtoo finalto be useful.
Blake's punctuationwas sometimestoo irregularto be effectiveand
thereforethe pointmay seem to be a small one, but it should remindus
that neitherBlake's notebooknor Keynes'stextscontain the ripestversion of "The Tyger" because the finaltextexistsonlyin the illuminated
design.'In fact,thisfamouspoem has neverbeen accuratelytranscribed
apart fromfacsimiletexts.The closestapproximationoccurs in Wicksteed's studywhereit faces a reproductionof the Small copy,but even
this versioncontainsseveral errors.4As a basis for discussion,then,an
accurate textmustbe provided:
THE TYGER
TygerTyger.burningbright,
In theforests
ofthenight:
Whatimmortalhand or eye.
Could framethyfearfulsymmetry?
In whatdistantdeepsor skies.
Burntthefireofthineeyes?
1F. W. Bateson,ed., Selected Poems of William Blake (London, 1957), pp.
117-119. Hereaftercalled Selected. D. W. Harding,"William Blake," in From
Blake to Byron,ed. BorisFord (London,1957). dd. 68-70.
2
GeoffreyKeynes,ed., The Complete Writingsof William Blake (London,
( 1957) . d. 214. Hereafterreferred
to as K.
3 Martin K. Nurmi,"Blake's Revisionsof The
Tyger,"PMLA, LXXI (September,1956), 685. Hereaftercalled "Revisions."
4
Joseph H. Wicksteed,Blake's Innocence and Experience: A Study of the
Songs and Manuscripts(London, 1928), p. 192b. Hereaftercalled Wicksteed.
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39
JohnE. Grant
On whatwingsdare he aspire?
Whatthehand,dareseizethefire?
Andwhatshoulder,& whatart,
Could twistthesinewsofthyheart?
Andwhenthyheartbeganto beat,
Whatdreadhand? & whatdreadfeet?
Whatthehammer?whatthechain,
In whatfurnacewas thybrain?
Whattheanvil?whatdreadgrasp,
Dare itsdeadlyterrors
clasp?
Whenthestarsthrewdowntheirspears
Andwater'd heavenwiththeirtears:
Did he smilehisworktosee?
Did he whomade theLamb makethee?
TygerTygerburningbright,
of thenight:
In theforests
hand or eye,
Whatimmortal
Dare framethyfearfulsymmetry?5
of the finalversionof the poem, Nurmi
As a generalinterpretation
that
it
"a
but
is
asserts
essentiallypositivestatementaffirming
complex
the dread tiger'sdivinity,and not a probingof good and evil, as it has
sometimesbeen interpreted,"and he cites a number of distinguished
Blakeans as supportingthisview againstDamon and a less distinguished
array of other critics.6But howeverwe punctuate the poem, it is not
Mr. Nurmi
easy to convertitsmightyquestionsintosimpleaffirmation.
understandsthe poem too well to simplifyit grosslyand he recognizes
the severequestioningcontainedin its firstdraft,but he is unwillingto
admitthatall thepowerin thefinalversiondoes not come frompositive
thinking.
There is, in fact,a thirdforceamong interpreters
of "The Tyger"
whichprefersto followtherhetoricof thequestionsratherthanto translate them into rhetoricalquestions.Both Kazin and Basier, who are
concernedwith expoundingunorthodoxor secular aspects of Blake's
imagination,insiston the primacy of the questions.7And recently,
5 It is evidentthatsome of the
periods,such as thatat the caesura of the first
line and the one at the end of the third,mustbe read as commas.But Wicksteed
thecolonat theend ofline 2 intoa semicolon.Robert
certainlyerredin converting
T. Gleckner,The Piper and theBard: A Studyof WilliamBlake (Detroit,1959),
pp. 22-23, makesthesame error.This book will hereafter
be called Piùer.
6 "Revisions,"d. 670.
7AlfredKazin, "Introduction"to The PortableBlake
(New York, 1946), p. 43;
and Roy P. Basler,Sex, Symbolism,and Psychologyin Literature(New Bruns-
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40
Artand Argument
of"The Tyger"
fromtheirs,
thoughhisgeneralviewofBlakeisquitedifferent
Northrop
a similaropinionwhileregistering
a strong
in
Fryehas expressed
protest
behalfofthecommonreader:
"Did hewhomadethe
Scholars
willassert
thatthequestion
in"TheTyger,"
lambmakethee?"is tobe answered
witha confident
yesorno: yesifBlake
is believedto be a pantheist,
Mostof
no ifhe is believedto be a Gnostic.
and theyare
thosewholovethepoemare content
to leaveit a question,
right.8
thatthethirdforcehas lovedthepoembetter
Therecan be no thought
thanthemoredeterminate
Blakeans,to be sure,butin thisrespectthey
ofthe
have lovedit morewisely.Of course,a systematic
interpretation
that
a
rest
content
with
the
assertion
can
hardly
questionis a
poem
of
rhetoric
cannot
be
But
the
the
explainedapart
significance
question.
ofotherproblems.
froma consideration
thepoem.Few qualified
whichaccompanies
Considertheillustration
to studythe poem in the contextof its
criticshave had the temerity
design,thoughthepictureoftheTygerhas invitedmanyofthosewho
casuallyknowit eitherto treatthisworkof England'sgreatest
painter
fordemonstrating
as a merebotch,or to use it as a pointof departure
betweenpoetryand painting,9
a positionwhichcan
the dichotomy
elseBlakedid.
byanything
hardlybe supported
or thepoem,is likelyto strikethe
Nothing,eitherin theillustration
affirmative,
exceptperhapsforthe
impartialreaderas beingobviously
questionaboutthe creator:"Did he smilehis workto see?" Almost
elsein thepoemmightbe interpreted
to be theworkof an
everything
to
such
a
has
no exactcounterhostile
man,
though
energetic
being
god
in
relevant
to
the
Blake's
system.
Very
part
developed
questionof the
indicatedbeethicalstatusof the Tygeris the intimaterelationship
tweencreatorand creature.Severalcriticshave observedthatin the
fromhiscreature
heat of creationthecreatoris scarcelydistinguished
and therefore
ofeitheraffecttheother.
theethicalimplications
If we followthe poem through,
it wordforword,as
interpreting
measuredcadenceinviteus to
Blake'sheavypunctuation
and powerful
a basicreadingagainstwhichto test
do, we shouldbe able to establish
such
a readinghas neverreallybeen
Since
anygeneralinterpretation.
wick, 1948), p. 21. As a matterof fact,Wicksteedhimselfcould be considereda
memberof thisschool.See p. 94.
8 NorthropFrye,"Blake AfterTwo Centuries,"Universityof Toronto Quarterly,XXVII (October,1957), p. 12.
9 See René Wellekand AustinWarren,TheoryofLiterature(New York,1949) ,
p. 128, who speak of the "grotesquelittleanimal" depicted as thoughit were
irrelevant
to thepoem.
entirely
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JohnE. Grant
41
1 shallmention
a numberofquiteobviousthings.11
before,10
attempted
A speakerbeginsbyaddressing
theTyger,and in theheavyalliteration
and primarily
trochaic
beatofhiswordsthebeastis envisioned
as burnforests.12
Flame is a clearsymbolfor
ingin the darknessof nocturnal
ofthenocturnalforests.
Forests
passionand is setoffby theblackness
se
are
sinister
in
selva
to
Dante's
per
symbols Blake,13
corresponding
world
oscura,fortheystandforthemerelyor triumphantly
vegetable
he elsewhere
callsthe"stemsofvegetation"
at thebottomofthestate
of generation.
A beastwhichwouldnaturallydwellin such a place
wouldtherefore
likewisebe ominous.The contrastbetweenfireand
of
to thecontrast
ofyellowand blackstripes
night, course,corresponds
the
ringing Tygeritself.
At thispointwe mustdrawbackfromconsideration
of detailsfora
moment
to askwhothespeakerin thepoemmaybe. It shouldbe clear
thathe is nottheomniscient
BardoftheIntroduction
to theSongsoj
Experience"who Present,Past,and Futuresees,"becausehe has too
manyquestions.Nowherein thepoemis he able to provideevensuch
enigmaticanswersto his questionsas are possibleforthe speakerof
"The Fly."As willbecomemoreevident,
thespeaker'squestionssometimesexpressoutragecomparableto thatfeltby Earth in "Earth's
Answer."Is notthisawestruck
voicein Experiencethatofan average
butalsoimaginative
manwhois almostoverwhelmed
bythemysterious
he
sees
a
as
But
we
cannot
prodigy
Tyger?
quite supposethat the
has
stumbled
the
in
the
midst
oftheforests
ofthe
speaker
upon
Tyger
because
he
would
be
much
too
to
ask
night,
busy
questionsaboutthe
beastunderthosecircumstances.
The visionof theTygerhas someof
thehair-raising
qualityofEliphaz'svisioninJob,buta moreinstructive
analogyis providedby the conjuredroughbeast of Yeats's "Second
10The nearest
approach to this kind of study,except for Mr. Adams' accompanyingessay,is containedin StanleyGardner,Infinityon the Anvil (Oxford,1954), pp. 123-130.Hereaftercalled Infinity.
But evenGardneris moreconcernedwiththe resonancesof themajorsymbolsthanin thepoem as a developing
whole.
11A
completerhetoricalanalysisshould be coordinatedwith a prosodieone
and bothshouldbe combinedwitha semanticstudy.Amongthethingsone would
wishmostto note is the subtleand brilliantorganizationof the words"In" and
"What" in the initialpositionof the lineswhichfollowtheirfirstintroduction
in
lines2 and 3.
12"Nocturnalforests"does
rendertheovertonesof "forests
not,indeed,properly
ofthenight,"thoughit is betterthanBateson'sothersuggestion,
"forestsat night."
(See Selected, p. 118). Bateson does well to commenton Blake's fondnessfor
the construction
Of plus abstractnoun (p. 117). But theseparaphrasesgive priwhereasthe poem putsit theotherway around.We getcloser
orityto theforests,
to the spiritof Blake's image by recallingthatMiltonicvoid whichis "the
realm
ofChaos and Old Nicht."
13The clearestand mostaccurateaccountof Blake's
basic symbolsis Northrop
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42
ArtandArgument
of"The Tyger"
by
Coming,"fortheconceptionof thegeneralsituationis influenced
Blake'spoem and also sharplydivergesfromit. ObservethatBlake's
abouttheoriginsof hisbeastin view,
speakeris an ardentquestioner
aboutthespectacle,itsimplications,
whereasYeats'sis morereflective
and itsidentity.
The questionsofBlake'sspeakerare moreradicaland
likewisemoreemotional;in thisstateof mindhe can neverreachthe
accessibleto
potentially
philosophical(or theosophic)understanding
the Yeatsianvisionary.14
It will becomemoreclear laterthat what
Blake'sspeakersees and reactsto is a compoundof truthand error
For the readerwho achievespropheticperwhichproducesmystery.
in thepoemitselfis on theTygeras perthe
focus
of
interest
spective,
and
than
as
rather
object, on thespeakeras subject.
cept,
for
a
As paraphrase thequestionBlake'sspeakerputsto theTyger
aboutits origins,"What immortalmade you?"is totallyinadequate.
stanzaderivesfromthe
ofthefirst
Partoftheforcein thequestioning
fromtrochaicto
movement
factthatthe fourthline is iambic.The
to
to the shiftfromvision question.Withthisin
iambiccorresponds
mindwe can betterparaphasetheimportof thequestionitselfas follows: "What immortal
organcould produce(by hand) or evenconbalance
or terrifying
ceive (withtheeye), shape,or limityourfearful
are: "How in theworld
The grammatical
or proportion?"
possibilities
did he have eithertheabilityor thecourage,etc.,to do it?" or "Why
- or transgress
did he presumeagainsttheTyger'snature
againstman
or limit(like a
to do so?" And "frame"meansto form,contrive,
may
pictureor a prison). Eventhemodernargotsenseof"doublecross"
Blake's
in
so
is
Idealism
absent.
be
thoughtthat
not wholly
pervasive
Most
sense
a
in
some
considered
be
can
incarnation
readings
trap.
every
for"could" and "frame"are
alternatives
seemto assumethatthefirst
such rethe onlyrelevantones,but nothingin the poemnecessitates
to
attain
bemused
is
too
The
certainty.
stricted
interpretations. speaker
intothesourceofthematerialcauseofthe
Stanza twoinquiresfirst
cause
of itsefficient
circumstances
beastand thenintothe antecedent
ask
it
to
first
the
or maker.Nurmioversimplifies
questionby taking
or
heaven
hell
from
thefireintheTyger'seyescame
whether
("deeps")
are "perhapsvolthat
the
Bateson
whereas
"deeps"
suggests
("skies"),
is at all
canoesratherthanoceans."15Neitherof Bateson'ssuggestions
Frye's"Blake's Treatmentof the Archetype,"EnglishInstituteEssays: 1950,ed.,
Alan S. Downer (New York,1951), pp. 170-196,esp. p. 178.
14Hazard Adamshearsanothervoice,thatot the Blakeanvisionarywno knows
the answers,behindthebemusedand baffledquestioner.I supposethatno Blakean
has doubtedthat Blake himselfknewthe answers,but I am not convincedthat
sucha speakeris really"in" thepoem.
15"Revisions,"p. 676; cf.Selected,p. 118.
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JohnE. Grant
43
becausethereaderknowsbythistimethata metaphysical
satisfactory,
creature
liketheTygercouldneverhavehad a merely
physicalplace of
of
origin.At thesametime,"deepsorskies"has theexactcombination
definiteness
and suggestive
boththequeswhichcharacterizes
vagueness
tionand the questioner.The merelyconceptualtranslation
"hell or
heaven"obscurestherealsignificance
the
question,namely,
impliedby
thatthespeakerdoesn'tknow.It is also necessary
to observethatthe
stanza
poemhasmovedfroma concernwiththecreator's
eyein thefirst
tothatoftheTygerhere,thusbeginning
to linkthetwo.
The exactimplication
ofthelasttwolinesofthesecondstanzais even
harderto spellout. "Did thecreatorgo underhisownpower(wings)
orthatofanother?"or "Whatremarkable
wingswouldenablehim- to
word
This
seems
to
mean
aspire?"
"soar,""mount,"or "tower"as in
The Sunflower(thoughthereit is clearlytransitive)to somevaguely
understood
place up in the"skies"wherethecreatorcouldgetthefire
oftheTyger'seyes.Butifwe followBlake'spunctuation,
"aspire"is intransitive
and thusit wouldindicateproudambition,a stateof mind
veryobjectionableto the orthodox,
thoughnot in the same senseto
Blake.And the word"dare" wouldalso tendto reinforce
thesuggestionofa suspiciousaudacity,thoughit mayonlyimplycourage.The
ofthefourth
linealso maintains
thisdual ambiguity;
parallelstructure
itasks"Whatkindofhandwouldhavethecourageor presumption
to
seize (i.e., graspdecisively,
or steal) the fire(whichis shownin the
Tyger'seyes)." It shouldalso be observedthat"dare" is probablythe
tenseoftheverb,a factwhichtendsto bringthese
present
subjunctive
events
intotheimagination's
focusas thequespresumably
past
present
tionermeditates
on them.
The sinister
connotations
of thecreator'sactionshave beenscarcely
but
isnothing
there
inthepoemwhichrulesthem
regarded
bycriticism,
out.Since"AllReligionsareOne," itis usefulto observeparallelstothe
actionofthepoemin myth.BatesonrecallsPrometheus,
thefirebringer
- and [co-] makerof man- who stolefirefromheaven.16
A creative
blacksmith
us ofHephaestus.
reminds
Bothhad troublewithZeus,a fact
whichbecomesrelevantto "The Tyger"whenwe beginto askwhythe
creatorwouldhaveto "aspire,"abovehimself.
Fromthispointofview,
thecreativefiatsoftheDeityofGenesiscan hardlybe whatthespeaker
is referring
to. Aspiring
on wings,indeed,recallsSatan'sjourneyoutof
Hellfire
in ParadiseLost.
One passagefromThe MarriageofHeaven and Hell is particularly
relevant
here:
16Selected, 118.
p.
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44
Artand Argument
of"The Tyger"
It indeedappear'd to Reasonas ifDesirewas castout; buttheDevil's
accountis,thattheMessiahfell,& formed
a heavenofwhathe stolefrom
theAbyss
. . . theJehovah
oftheBiblebeingnootherthanhewhodwellsin
fire.KnowthatafterChrist's
death,he becameJehovah.17
flaming
The recentpenetrating
ironies
essaybyHaroldBloomontheconvoluted
of The Marriagemakesclearwhyanybriefinterpretation
of thispasand oversimplified.18
But whatthispassage mustbe bothprovisional
when
of"The Tyger,"
with
the
second
stanza
sageimplies,
juxtaposed
is thatthe fireof the Tyger'seye came initiallyfromthe deeps of
hell: thatthe Messiahcreatorstoleit fromthe "Abyss."The trouble
is thatthe"history"
ofthecreationas givenin The Marriagepassage
is onlyan important
fortrueenergyis notdevilish.But in
half-truth,
"The Tyger"it is clear thatthe questioneris not able to engagein
such complexrationalspeculations,
because he is whollyengagedin
hisawesomevision.He does notknowwhetherthecreationis a good
or a bad thing,thoughhe suspectsboth,but he does knowthatthe
Tygerwas not createdto improvehislot in theworld,and he feelsa
holydread as he meditateson the divinepowerwhichwentintoits
creation.
and
forthecritictobe able todefinetheattitude
It ismoreimportant
intimahis
of
the
and
his
vision
toward
of
the
Tyger
feelings
questioner
tionsofthecreatorthanto use "The Tyger"as an occasionto dilateon
the statusof the creationin Blake'sdevelopedthought.Nevertheless,
of
thereare at leastthreethingsto be gainedbydoingso. We can,first
the
to
of
what
make
understand
more
specificquestions
all,
clearly
of
whichthe speakerasks; secondly,we can evaluatethesignificance
certainanalogiesto "The Tyger"whichothercriticshave suggested;
thediffertheproblemprovidesan occasionforcharacterizing
thirdly,
forthereis stilla gooddeal
encebetweenthelyricsand theprophecies,
onthispoint.
ofconfusion
Hardlyanymajorsymbolsor actsin Blake'ssystemare considered
bad, butBlakeusuallychoosesto regardthecreationin
unequivocally
itsmalignaspect."[I think]theCreatorofthisWorldmustbe a very
CruelBeing."19
Generallyspeaking,the creationand thefall are two
aspectsofthesamething;at bestthecreationis a measureto stopthe
gap in Eternitycaused by the fall.Thus Adam and Satan are the
and opacitymadeto savethe
humanformsofthelimitsofcontraction
DivineHumanityfromdroppingintooblivionor "Non-Ens."There17Kt p. 150.
18Harold Bloom, "Dialectic in The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, PMLA,
LXXIII (December,1958), 501-504.
19K, p. 617.
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JohnE. Grant
45
for"The Tyger"
said thattheproperillustration
fore,whenWicksteed
which
wouldbe thepicturecalled"The AncientofDays/'
appearsin
the
one formas the frontispiece
to Europe,he musthave forgotten
sinister
ofthepaintingbecausehe appearsto thinkofthe
implications
Also any sceneof the
creationof the Tygeras beingforthe best.20
creationin Blakemustsuggestthe greatpictureof "ElohimCreating
Adam," as Batesonrecognizes.21
But, in spiteof theirgrandeur,the
whilethepresence
first
at besta verydubiousbenefit,
painting
presents
oftheserpent
is depicted.
inthesecondassuresthatno unmixedblessing
an adeptofBlake'ssystem
has no greatdifficulty
in identiActually,
and
not
of
Satan,
Elohim,
Prometheus,
traces,
only
fying
Hephaestus,
but also ofthedistinctively
and
Blakeancharacters
Los,
Ore,
Urizen,
in thevisionof creationconjuredup by thequestionsof the speaker
in "The Tyger."FromBlake'spointof viewsucha conglomeration
is
in
the
which
concerned
is
he
was
intellectually
why
unintelligible,
to distinguish
these"states."But if we lookaroundus, we
prophecies
see thatmostimaginative
the
averagemenare capableofexperiencing
doubtsand confusions
ofthespeakerin "The Tyger."Moreover,even
the inspiredreadermustretainempathiepowersgreatenoughto be
capableoffeelingthemtoo as thoughtheywerehisown.The incomin the questioner's
visionare intellectually
patibilities
muddled,but
a
concors
because
discórdia
theyparadoxicallyrepresent
theyare
and
real and thereforemoving. The
imaginatively
existentially
prophecies,"allegoriesaddressedto the intellectualpowers,"are
rarelyconfusedin thisway; therefore
theycan providea basis for
judgingthe lyricswhich primarily
engagethe emotions.Thus the
are able satisf
to containvisionsofExperiencedespite
prophecies
yingly
thefundamental
incoherence
ofthatstate.
Withthedramaticsituationso defined,we mayresumea detailed
withthethirdstanza- in thefaiththatthecharacterof
commentary
the speakerin thismasterpiece
is so crucialas to deservethe most
In
this
attention.
stanza
the focusis on the makingof the
thorough
heart.
The
dual
of
Tyger's
subject the first
questionhere,"shoulder"
and "art,"shouldbe recognizedas a modulationof the organsmentionedinlinethreeofstanzaone,"handoreye,"butthereis a progression in the processof creationindicatedhere.Firstwe shouldnotice
thatinsteadoftheoption,"or," thereis theconjunction
"&." Furtherthe
shift
from
"hand"
to
"shoulder"
how
muchmore
more,
suggests
is
while
the
from
to
"art"
force necessary,
"eye"
change
impliesthe
20Wicksteed, 193. Cf.
p.
NorthropFrye,FearfulSymmetry(Princeton,1947),
esp. p. 433. Hereaftercalled Symmetry.
21Selected, 118.
p.
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46
Artand Argument
of"The Tyger"
needformorepracticalactivity
in thisstageofthedesignofthebeast.
Now theTygeris comingoffthedrawingboardsand is aboutto live.
In thiscontextthe word "could" is less ambiguously
a reference
to
stanza,whiletheword"twist"alongwith
abilitythanit was in thefirst
"shoulder"beginsto suggesttheimageofa blacksmith
whichbecomes
in thenextstanza.The factthattheveryheartoftheTygeris
manifest
saidtohave "sinews"shouldsuggest
thatthisbeastis madeforviolence
ratherthan compassion.The readeris able to feelthe etymology
of
"sinews,"whichemphasizesthe bindingratherthan the connecting
and thusthe heart,the organof pity,is bound by twisted
function,
cordsin itsverymake-up.It is necessarily
a Tygerofwrath.22
In the thirdline the Tygercomesto life.Then occursone of the
famouscruxesin thepoem,forthesyntaxofthefourthlineis incomknowsthatBlake
pletedespiteBlake'stwoquestionmarks.Everybody
it
the
wrote
next
"Could
fetch
from
furnace
deep." Buton a
originally
becauseeitherthestanza
formallevelsucha continuation
is impossible
wouldbe too longor thesentencewouldrunon intothenextstanza.
either
was whatBlakewanted.Amongtheotherthings,
Neithereffect
the
woulddisturb effect
ofprecisestage-by-stage
progression
possibility
to locatethe
whichthe finalpoem creates.And, of course,explicitly
sourceof the Tyger'sheartin the deep furnaceof hell would be to
in the"deepsor
oforiginestablished
indeterminacy
betraythebrilliant
indicatethatit tookBlake
skies"of the secondstanza.The revisions
himself
some timeto realizethatthe speakerin the poem could not
knowas muchas theBardshouldknow.
fortheprinted
versionofthisline,"What
Therearetwoemendations
: Malkin's
dreadhand?& whatdreadfeet?",whichhavesomeauthority
and
Blake's
some
own
been
which
has
critics,
by
praised
"forgedthy,"
One objection
in inkin one copyoftheSongs.23
"Formedthy"written
who is
the blacksmith
to "forged"is thatit too explicitly
anticipates
revealedin the nextstanza.But Blake'sown emendation,
especially
eventhoughitwas
someconsideration
deserves
becauseitis capitalized,
thatBlake'splateswere
to understand
It is important
an afterthought.
noteasyto change,so thatthewholeplatemighthavehad tobe redone
intothetext.As it
wereto be neatlyintegrated
ifa majoremendation
text
and
erased
the
rather
Blake
simplypennedin
engraved
is,
poorly
thechange.Notethathe capitalizedthisword,thusmakingit theonly
wordin the poem,except"Tyger"or "Lamb," whichis capitalized
22The fact that Blake elsewherecondemnspity and praises wrathdoes not
invalidateforthispoemthemorecommonattitudestowardtheseemotions.
23See "Revisions,"p. 678-679. Blake's alteredversionis reproducedto accompanythisessay.
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JohnE. Grant
47
whenit is not the firstin a line.Blake capitalizedforemphasiswith
to imaginethathe
greatfreedomin otherplaces,but it is impossible
wishedto call attention
to theTyger'sfeet!On the otherhand,it is
It
easytosupposethatthecapitalized"Formed"indicatesexasperation.
maybe thatsomestickler
complainedto himand thatBlakethussaid,
in effect,
"Therenow,doesthatmakeyouhappy?"24
of the emendation,
thereare several
Whateverthe circumstances
about
the
In
to
be
observed
the
things
unpunctuated
printedwording.
seconddraft,whichomitsstanzastwo and four,Blake allowedthe
first
draftofthisstanzatostandunchanged,
thoughthelineinquestion
is evenmoreobviously
in thisversionthanin
syntactically
incomplete
thefinalone.It istrue,however,
thatbystraining
onecan integrate
this
lineintoitsstanzain one oftwoways: either,"Whatdreadhandand
what dread feettwistedyourheartafterit began to beat?" or, by
changingBlake'squestionmarksto exclamation
points,"What dread
hands and feetappearedon the Tygeras it came alive!" But it is
obviousthatneither
ofthesewillreallydo; each readingis feeblein its
ownway.We shouldnotethatboththehandand thefeetwerethose
ofthecreatorin theoriginalversion,
whilethefeetbelongto theTyger
in theBlakeanemendation.
as
But, we have shown,the Tyger'sfeet
are notso remarkable
as to deservespecialattention.
Adam's feetof
clayare thelastpartof himto be formedby the creatorin "Elohim
to theTyger'sfeetin thispoem
CreatingAdam," but suchattention
wouldbe almostas bad as the"ankle"and "knee"ofthecreatorwhich
wanderedintoBlake'svisionduringthefirst
draft.As a matteroffact,
the loose syntaxof Blake'sprintedtextis the kindof thingone encounters
in his prophecies.
It is a distinctive
frequently
partof his art
and idiomwhichusuallyjustifies
itselfin context.
This deviceis notto
be confused
withtheindefinite
in artwhichBlakehated; generally
it
or indetermacy
and a properreadingwillrecognize
expresses
mutuality
thisto be a rhetorical
In "The
device,not the resultof carelessness.
Tyger"we shouldobservethat the indeterminate
syntaxintimately
relatesthecreatorand his creature.Anysharpdivisionwouldconstitutea "clovenfiction,"
liketheassertion
thata good God can create
is tooimaginative
to restcontentwiththiskind
evil,and thequestioner
of fallacy.The mutuality
of the creatorand the Tygeris like that
in
Yeats's
famous
implied
question,"How can we tellthedancerfrom
thedance?"
Thereis one further
theline.Even if
pointto be made concerning
we shouldacceptthe emendation,
weak as it is, the dread hand, at
24Bateson,Selected,
p. 118,correctly
judges thattheemendationdoes nothelp.
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48
Artand Argument
of"The Tyger"
least,belongsto thecreator.That is,bothcreatorand creatureinspire
dread,and a dreadfulcreatoris Nobodaddy,Urizen,or Satan. It is
truethatBlakehad no useforcreeping
Jesus,butfromBlake'spointof
view"Christthetiger"is thecreationoftheChurchof Caesar and a
littleoldman.
In stanzafour,thealreadylivingTygeris completed
bytheaddition
of his brain.A prosaicaccountwouldsupposemerelythatthe quesfromtheTyger'sheartto itsbrain,but
tionerhas shiftedhisattention
thatcreationhas reacheda climax.
readerrecognizes
theimaginative
The metersuggeststhatnow the creatorhas caughtthe fullrhythm
ofhiswork,and thequestionscomethickand fastas thespeakerconjures up the movementof creationby his questions.In thisstanza
aremore
oftheprevious
stanzas,like"fire"and "shoulder,"
suggestions
thus
and
the
with
the
"hammer"
combined
"anvil,"
premanifestly
Noticetoothatthewhatthe
theimageofa smithin hissmithy.
senting
formulaofstanzatwolinefourhererecursin linesone and three.But
in each case. "Whatthehammer?"refers
different
thesenseis slightly
i. e., "What kindof tool couldhammerout
to a shapinginstrument;
connotathisarchetypal
Tyger?"But "whatthe chain" has different
choose
Blake
did
not
to put a
is
the
that
evidence
tions,and partof
A
in
his
does
text.
chain,
questionmarkafterthe phraseas Keynes
one. The
afterall, is nota shapinginstrument,
thoughit is a limiting
itis an instrument
fortyranny;
chainis oneofBlake'sprimary
symbols
and ithas thefamous"mindwhichkeepsthefallenworldfromrising,
forg'dmanacles" hangingfromit.25Those in chains are usually
byBlake,to be sure,buton idealistpremises
portrayed
sympathetically
- "mind-forg'd
ofthevictimand
manacles"meanboththecompliance
The rhymeof "chain" and "brain"in this
ofthetyrant.
thescheming
withthefactthatthereis no fullstopat theendofthe
stanza,together
first
line,linksthetwoinevitably
together.
in effectgivesthe
In thesecondlineof stanzafour,the questioner
of
stanzasa moredefinite
fireofprevious
place origin,a furnace.Briefly
we can say thatthe furnaceis anotherambivalentsymbolwhichis
in itsmalignaspectin theearlierwork.It represents
usuallypresented
the
torments
the naturalbodywhichimprisons,
limits,and therefore
the
torIn
its
of
life.26
characteristic
benignaspect,however,
energy
fireis seento be the energyitself.Thereis nothingbasically
menting
25As mentionedbefore,however,everysymbolof evil may be seen as potentiallyredemptive.The greatpaintingof Michael bindingthe Dragon Satan is
of Los's smithyon plate six of Jerusalemshows
a case in point.The illustration
the bellowsbound down by a chain. However,the bindingof Ore by Los in the
earlierpropheciesis a moreambiguouscase.
« Cf.Symmetry,
esp. p. 288.
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/';-=09
)(8*=-0/']
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/';-=09
)(8*=-0/']
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JohnE. Grant
49
fire: thethreefiresofthethreeregions
peculiarin Blake'sambivalent
in Dante giveus a clearexampleofhowthesignificance
ofthesymbol
maybe modified
by itscontext.But we saw earlierhow thesourceof
theTyger'sheartinthefirst
draftwastheinfernal
"furnacedeep" Even
thisbecauseit is discordant
withthestateof
thoughBlakesuppressed
mindofhisspeaker,thereaderprobablyfeelstheinfernal
associations
of "furnace"in thecompleted
more
than
strongly anyheavenly
poem
ones.Part of the reasonforthisis thatthe "sinews"of the heartin
stanzathreecorrespond
to theassociation
of"chain"and "brain"here,
thussuggesting
thattheTyger'screationis nettedin the ironweb of
whichis Blake'sversionof evil.If thesespeculations
seem
materialism,
toosubtle,we shouldat leastrecognize
somekindofimaginative
hiatus
betweentheorganicand theinorganic
in thisstanza.It is horrifying,
as
well as awesome,to thinkof an animatethingbeinghammeredinto
shapeina smithy.
The last two linesof the stanzabear out theseimplications.
The
"anvil" of the thirdline is the otherhalfof the shapinginstrument,
alongwiththe "hammer"of thefirstline.They,as it were,spatially
bracketthechain-brain
forgedbetweenthem.Then the"dreadgrasp"
of the creator,the act of his "dread hand" of stanzathreeline four,
"dares"- as he daredto aspireand seizethe firein stanzatwo,lines
- to "clasp" (again a
threeand four
the"deadlyterrors"
bracketing)
oftheTyger'sbrain.Can thephrase"deadlyterrors"
alsobe explained
forenergy?27
The feelingofthefinalquestion
awayas a merekenning
in thisstanzais not- as it was in thefirst
stanza- thatthecreatorwas
or audacious;it is thattherelationship
betweencreator
presumptuous
and creatureis one of irresistible
forceand immovableobject.The
butitscreatormustalso
Tygerappearsto be a Frankenstein
monster,
be quitemonstrous
to retaincontrolofit.
The fifth
stanzarepresents
a distinct
shiftofthought.
The veryfact
thatnoneof theselinescontainsa heavycaesura,as do at leastsome
linesin all theotherstanzas,helpsto communicate
a senseof release
and reliefafterthelaborofthepreceding
stanzas.Nevertheless,
thisis
the mostdifficult
stanzain the poem,and thusit demandsthe most
carefulattention.
Noticefirstof all thatthestanzabreaksintohalves
to
Blake's
according
punctuation(as opposedto Keynes'scomma),
whichputsa colon afterthe secondline. Blake'spunctuation
makes
moreopen-ended
thanthesimpler
climactic
order
interpretation
slightly
ofhiseditors.Butbeforewe can attempt
suggested
bythepunctuation
to interpret
themeaningoftheactiondescribed
in thestanza,we must
27Nurmi,"Revisions,"
p. 680, triesto discountthe feelingof dread here as
one ofmereawe.
being,paradoxically,
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50
Artand Argument
of"The Tyger"
havebeforeus theseveralpossibilities
ofactionwhicharegrammatically
impliedbyBlake'swords.
afterthefirst
It is noteworthy
thatBlakehasno markofpunctuation
lineofthestanza:
downtheirspears
Whenthestarsthrew
Andwater'
d heavenwiththeirtears:
Did hesmilehisworktosee?
Did hewhomadetheLambmakethee?
is conceived
Thus thedefeatof thestarsand theirevidentrepentance
ofas beinga singleaction.Blake'scolondoesmakeitpossible,
however,
that"his work"in line threerefersto the defeatof the starsby the
to
creator.But the precedingstanzashave devotedso muchattention
the creator'sworkin makingtheTygerthatthereaderprobablysupbeast.Or we can combinethe
poseshimto be smilingat thefinished
twoand readthelinesas thoughtheTygerwerecreatedearlierand that
laterthebeastdefeatedthestars,causingthecreatorto smilehis apwouldbe notto tryto workoutanycausal
possibility
proval.A fourth
two
between
the
events,but simplyto supposethatthe
relationship
at hiscreated
whenthecreatorsmiledwithsatisfaction
starscapitulated
Tyger.
to recThisis one ofthecruxesin thepoemwhereitis mostessential
Here
rather
than
makes
assertions.
asks
the
questions
ognizethat poem
indicated
is
as
awestruck
the
of
thestateofmind
by
questioner such,
thereis a defithathe doesnotknowwhether
hisambiguousquestions,
betweenthetwoeventsand,forall thereadercan tell
niterelationship
he mayneverbe ableto decide.
fromthequestioner,
to the fact thatin the early
Mr. Nurmihas drawnour attention
thatthe creator"laughed"to
thepossibility
draftsBlake entertained
But
see hiswork,a wordingwhichwouldsuggesta joyousoccasion.28
transcribes
fact (thoughhe properly
he does not discussthe contrary
word
"Dare" insteadof"Did" as thefirst
it) , thatBlakealsoconsidered
ofthe
forbothofthelasttwolinesofthisstanza.One clearimplication
is thatthecreatorhad hisnerveto do so. How darehe
"Dare" wording
smile(or laugh,forthatmatter)to see theTyger(or, lesslikely,the
defeatofthestars)thathemade,and howdarehe whomadetheLamb
make the Tyger?This phrasingtendsto make the insolenceof the
thanhiscourage.ButBlakedid notwant
creatorseemmoreprominent
he settledforthe
and therefore
so
hisspeakerto be violently
rebellious,
28Gardner,Infinity,pp. 129-130,givesa particularlyeffective
explanationof
ofthefinalwording.
thepoeticsuperiority
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JohnE. Grant
51
moreneutralrepeated"Did," whichalso makesthetenseofthequestionsa moredefinite
past.
As forthefamousquestionabouttheLamb and theTyger,thegrammaticalpossibilities
are roughlythese: "Did he who made the Lamb
(first?)nextmaketheTyger,or was thecreationofbothsimultaneous
withthedefeatofthestars?"Or thequestionmaybe a relatively
indea
which
arises
from
all
the
pendentafterthought,
speculation
previous
ofthepoem: "How couldthesamecreatormakeboththe
implications
LambandtheTyger(and ifhe could,whereisthejusticeofheaven?)."
For BlakeanscholarswhohavesupposedthatBlakeis askingthequeshave
tion,theansweris obviously
yes,thougha fewrecentinterpreters
the
answer
to
be
as
thought
obviouslyno. The poeticanswer,I must
assertagain,is thatforthespeakerthe questionis a question.In this
oneshouldobservethattheformofthequestioninthethird
connection,
linesuggests
thatoflinefour,thusmakingit appearas a kindofafterlevel
thought,althoughit cannotbe decidedon a purelyrhetorical
whether
thelastquestionis lessimportant
thanthefirst,
evenmoreimorofequalimportance.
portant,
Butwhilefromcertainpointsof viewthequestionis not centralto
theprimary
concerns
ofthepoem,it represents
theclimaxofthepoem
formanyreaders.The wholestanza,of course,is a kindof glorious
fromtheprimary
inthepoemand thusthe
digression
pointofattention
linein questionis onlythefinalleap in a series.According
to narrowly
formalist
the
sudden
in
increase
standards,
scopeprovidedbythestanza
makesita technical
but
from
an
excrescence,
imaginative
pointofview
it assuresthetriumph
ofthepoem.On theotherhand,symbolic
foresuch
that
as
traced
Gardner29
is
not
to
shadowing
by
enough guarantee
cause.
specific
poeticexcellence.It is a cause,butnota sufficient
Iftheambiguities
ofthestanzahavebeentracedwithsomecompleteit in
ness,we mustnextconsiderthecomplexproblemofinterpreting
relationto Blake'swholesymbolic
Nurmimakesa concisestatesystem.
mentabouttheassumptions
behindthefirst
twolines:
In [Blake's]workin general,
starsand heavenssymbolize
therigidly
cateman
laws
derived
from
abstract
goricalrestrictions
imposed
upon
by
reason,
and theweepingof starssymbolizes
at the cosmiclevelan apocalyptic
or breaking
downof thesebarriers
manfromhisown
melting
separating
a return
ofmanfrom
the"forests
ofnight."30
humanity,
Thisis an accurateaccountof Blake'ssymbolism
and thought,
and yet
thereare severalproblems
whicharisewhenwe tryto applyit directly
29Ibid., p. 128.
30"Revisions," 672.
p.
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52
Artand Argument
of"The Tyger"
a page in Europefor
to "The Tyger."For example,Nurmifootnotes
ofnight,"butthepointaboutthatpassageisthattheremangoes
"forests
on
attendant
ofnightas a resultofthegeneraldisorder
intotheforests
theFall.31In otherwords,thepointis notat all illustrated
bytherefera partof
ifthedefeatof thestarsis invariably
ence.More important,
thefinalapocalypse,
whyis it treatedin thepasttensein thisstanzaof
orat best
"The Tyger"?The apocalypsemustbe an eventin thefuture,
Man does
availableto thequestioner.
thepresent,
fromtheperspective
is at hand.
notreturn
ofnightuntiltheLast Judgment
fromtheforests
thenthequestioner
If thedefeatofthestarsis a stageoftheapocalypse,
afterDoomsday.
mustbe askinghisquestions
from"Eden" or Eternity
in theday of revelation
Butno questionswouldbe necessary
and,furis
at
still
the
to
that
it
recall
is
thermore, necessary
present in the
Tyger
forests
ofthenight,whichis whyhe is so awesome.As Nurmihimself
returnfromtheforests
notesin anotherplace,32theTygersthemselves
inNightNineofThe FourZoas. Can thequesas partoftheapocalypse
did in
tionerhave mistakenly
sightedthe apocalypseas Enitharmon
is reAnotherhypothesis
This too is clearlyunsatisfactory.
Europe?33
quired.
Thishypothesis
readingofthestanza,though
appearsin Wicksteed's
itmustbe saidthathispurpleprosetendsto obscurethepointalmostas
thestanzadealswiththe
muchas itrevealsitsmeaning.For Wicksteed
:
Incarnation
whichnightitself
ofeternity
The starsarethebroken
and scattered
lights
ofday.
cannotquench,butwhichmeltintodawnwiththedewyreturn
before
Reason
and
War
realm
of
the
hard
cold
compassion
symbolize
They
andbirth[andare
camewithChrist. . . Butthetearssymbolise
generation
valebyhis
connected
oftheDeityintoearth'swatery
with]theentrance
womb.
incarnation
in theVirgin's
of thatDivineevent?
AretheLamband theTygeraliketheoffspring
ofHis very
Does God smileequallyuponthetwo?Arebothexpressions
in
evendeeperthanthat,I think,
mindandbeing?Thereis somemeaning
Blake'squestion.It does not merely
mean,"Did God makeboth?"It
breaksupontheforests
of the
whenthemorning
meansto ask whether
Lamb
had
made
the
in
the
God
see
that
we
then
shall
Tyger
making
night,
- inmaking
hadmadetheLamb?34
theTyger,
but to thecenterofit
notto theendoftime,35
The stanza,then,refers
31K, p. 241: Plate 1Q, 1. 18. Nurmi cites GeoffreyKeynes,ed., Poetryand
Proseof WilliamBlake (London, 1948), p. 216.
32"Revisions."d. 674.
33See "Revisions,"p. 682n,and K, pp. 243-4.
34Wicksteed,p. 198.
35There is, of course,a persistent
attemptto relatethis stanza to the War in
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JohnE. Grant
53
in theChristian
idea ofhistory,
whichBlakeaccepted,as always,with
are parTwo poemsof MiltonwhichBlakeillustrated
qualifications.
ticularlyrelevanthere: "On the Morningof Christ'sNativity"and
"ParadiseRegained."At the Advent,the nightof timein the fallen
worldbeginsto turntowardthe dewymorningwhichwillfollowthe
blood-red
apocalypseofdawn.BoththeLamb and theTygerwillhave
theirpartsin thisapocalypse,
buttheirnaturescannotbe harmonized
untilafterArmageddon
duringtheMillennium.
So detaileda commentary
on thestanzacan onlybe made fromthe
Buttheabilityto recognize
offered
the
later
perspective
by
prophecies.
thedifferences
as wellas thesimilarities
betweenthevariousphasesof
Blake'sworkis also important
someother
forcriticism;
consequently,
of Jerube
evaluated.
On
apparentanalogiesshould
plateninety-one
for
salem, example,a battletakesplacebetweenLos and hisSpectrein
whichLos "readsthe Stars"while"forming
Leviathan/ And Behewhichare Blake'sfinalreinterpretation
oftheTygersymbol.
moth,"36
These beastsin turnconsolidate
intoAntichrist,
theepitomeofError.
The finalquestionof thefifth
stanzaof "The Tyger"thuseventually
becomestranslated
intothe assertion
thatLos made the way forthe
Lamb whilehisSpectreabettedtheprogress
ofAntichrist.
But the analyticassertions
of Jerusalem
can onlyparaphrase,and
thussomewhat
themighty
of"The Tyger."Antichrist
distort,
questions
is a makeshift
of
the
error
and
conglomeration
"rejectedcorseofdeath,"
Conrad's"flabbydevil,"whilethe Tygeris fieryenergybound and
limitedbythefallenworld,Melville'sMobyDick. If he whomadethe
Lamb also madetheTyger,it is becausethetwobeastsare contraries.
On one hand,Antichrist,
theepitomeoferrorand "negative,"is transcendedand castout,whiletheTyger,as Nurmisays,is redeemable.37
"For everythingthatlivesis Holy,"concludesthefinalchorusof The
thatlivesin thefallen
Marriageof Heaven and Hell. But everything
ofthenight,it livesby
world,livesin error,and ifit livesin theforests
thelaw ofthejungle.If thecreatorsmilesbecausehe seesthatin the
endtheTygerwillleavetheforest
alongwithman,a manmayfeeljustifiedin askingwhyitis hislotnowto be castamongsavagebeasts.This
questioncannotbe removedfrom"The Tyger,"and,in spiteof assertionsto the contrary,
it was one of the questionswhichcontinuedto
hislife.
occupyBlakethroughout
Heaven in Milton'sParadiseLost and thusto the beginningof Christianhistory.
See Bateson,Selected,p. 118. Actuallysuch an interpretation
is quite impossible,
because we hear nothingof weepingrebel Angels in Milton's authoritativeacratherthanrepentant.
count,thereasonbeingthattheyare frustrated
36K,
37"Revisions," 674.
p. 738.
p.
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Artand Argument
of"The Tyger"
54
The onlyvariationin wordingbetweenthelaststanza of "The Tyger"
and the firstis theshiftfrom"Could" in line fourto "Dare" in the final
line.This change has been widelynoticedand frequently
explained.The
discussion
should
the
reader
to feelthe
here,
however,
prepare
foregoing
fullforceof "Dare" in the finalline as an expressionof indignity.Togetherwiththe accumulationof questionswhich lead up to thesmileof
the creatorand the referenceto the Lamb, the word seems to indicate
that outrage is the strongestimplicationof the line. "Dare" may still
indicate courage on the part of the creator,but since the speakercontinuesto the end of the poem preoccupiedby a vision of the forestsof
the night,having more promisethan evidence that day will dawn, he
mustbe morestruckby the Tyger'sfearfulaspect than by itssymmetry.
of the poem which ends in a manner
On the otherhand, the symmetry
so likeitsbeginningmustsurelyimpressthe reader.The factthatin the
last stanza the poem comesfullcycle,as it were,withitsspeakerhaving
achieved onlyone word moreof insightthan he possessedat the onsetand thisin spiteof thewide perspectivetakenin duringthe whole poem
- should serveto relatethispoem to such later poems as "The Mental
Traveller" whichstudythe tragic"Ore" cycleof lifein a moreanalytic
manner.Eventsat theend ofJerusalem,Blake's lastprophecy,also come
fullcycle,but that poem is a cycle to end all cycles,and the eventsare
broughtto an epic resolution.
II. The Illustration
No account ofthe meaningof "The Tyger" can pretendto completeness unlessit containsa studyof the details of Blake's illustration.Yet
to deal withthe totalmeanonlytwo criticshave made any seriouseffort
of
the
who
a
can
be
most
ing
design.Wicksteed,
painstakingand valuable exegeteof Blake's pictorialsymbolism,
saysmerely:
We knowthathe had neverseena tigerin theforests,
and one wouldalmost
thathe had neverseen one, where
say,if'one judged by the illustration,
theywere in thosedays kept,at the Tower. As one looks at the quaint
creaturein thedesign,one almostwishesthatBlakehad chosento paintits
purelyspiritualformas he paintedtheghostof a flea.But he had triedto
portraythesmileoftheDeityon itslips,and toshowtheultimate"humanity
divine"ofNature'smostterrific
beast- unlessit is bestto regardthewhole
as
a
those
who
mask,deriding
design
expectupon a mortalpage thepicture
of theDeityat work.38
38Wicksteed,
p. 193.
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JohnE. Grant
55
Wicksteed'sreadingof the poem itself,however,showsno influenceof
theseobservations.More integratedare the remarksof Erdman:
"The Tyger"raisesthe cosmicquestion:How can the tigerof experience
and thelamb of innocencebe graspedas thecontraries
of a single"fearful
The answer,suggestedin the questionform,is thatthe very
symmetry"?
processof the creationof the tigerbringsabout the conditionof freedom
in which his enemies (his prey) become his friends,as angels,become
devils in The Marriage.The tigerin Blake's illustrationof thispoem is
and criticshave sometimesconcludedthat
notoriously
lackingin ferocity,
Blake was unable to "seize the fire"requiredto draw a fearfultiger.He
could at leasthave tried,but he is showingus the finaltiger,who has attainedthestateoforganizedinnocenceas have theadjacentlionsand tigers
of "The LittleGirlLost" and "The LittleGirlFound" who demonstrated
that "wolvishhowl" and "lion's growl"and "tygerswild" are not to be
feared.Blake had no difficulty
... or forthat
drawinga fearfulwere-wolf
mattera fearfulflea.But his tigeris notevenbaringitsfangs.39
What Wicksteedand Erdman certainlyestablishis that the depicted
Tygeris no accidentand that it deliberatelydoes not existon the same
levelas theTygerenvisionedin thepoem. Wicksteed'sinitialsuggestions
are not veryconvincing,however; the Tyger'smouthis not smiling,in
factitslined face suggestsworry,and thereis certainlynothingdepicted
which resemblesthe enigmaticsmile the creatormay have smiled,accordingto the poem.40As forthe Tyger'sdepictingthe "humanitydivine," strictlyspeaking,the Tyger would have to be even more heroic,
as well as human,than theone suggestedby the poem in orderto reflect
the Edenic state; possiblyWicksteedhad in mind somethinglike Erdman's organizedinnocence,however.Wicksteed'sfinalsuggestion,that
39David V. Erdman,Blake:
ProphetAgainstEmpire (Princeton,1954), pp.
179-180.Hereaftercalled Prophet.
40At least thereis no traceof a smilein the BritishMuseum Small versionhe
reproduceson p. 192c. Like Blake's otherdesigns,the "Tyger" plate variesconsiderablyfromone versionto anotherbecause Blake seems to have approached
the problemfreshly
each timehe paintedit in watercolors.The standardbibliographicalstudyof the Songs is containedin GeoffreyKeynes and Edwin Wolf
2nd, WilliamBlake's IlluminatedBooks: A Census (New York, 1953), esp. pp.
knownoriginalcopies super50-69; theirletterdesignationsof the twenty-six
sede the earliercodes of Sampson and Keynes. I have examinedfouroriginal
versionsof the "Tyger" plate: copies I (Weidner), Κ (PierpontMorgan), Ο
in Wick(Harvard), and Ρ (formerly
Emerson).The photographicreproduction
steed is evidentlyfromCopy T, a color-printed
page, whichdiffers
considerably
in characterfromtheengravedversions.ExceptforWicksteed'sreproduction,
the
most accessibleversionis the Albion-UnitedBook Guild facsimile(1947), eviin Keynesand
dentlyof copy O. More accurateis the photographic
reproduction
Wolf,plate 2, p. 53a, of copy P. It is a photographof thisversionwhichaccompanies thisarticle.
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56
Artand Argument
of"The Tyger"
is an obscurejoke on the reader,will be considered
the illustration
below.
Erdman'sattemptto see theTygeras an expression
oforganizedinto recommend
it and his
nocence,on theotherhand,had moreinitially
reference
to"The LittleGirlFound"doesgiveus a valuableperspective
on theTygerdesign.Thereis,forexample,a morepowerful(though
lessformidable)
possibly
lookingtyger
depictedonthefirst
pageof"The
LittleGirl Found." It shouldbe observed,however,thatthisbeast
undera dead treewhoselimbsbecomeentangledin
standsin darkness
a serpentine
vegetation
growing
up in theleftmargin.And on thesecondpageofthepoema babyis depictedridingan animalwhichis perwild"), thoughit could
hapsa tygerminusitsstripes("Amongtygers
alsobe a lioness.On thispage,however,
thetreein therightmarginis
a double-entwined
the unionof love- which
livingtree- expressing
not
overarch
the
animals
and
In theleftmargin
of
children.
does
figures
thereis a delicatetreeentwinedwitha vine.Here thestripeless
tyger
withtherideris goingin thesamedirection
as theTyger,butit is sigbacktotherighttowardthevitalTreeofLife.41
There
nificantly
looking
isno doubtthatthesituation
depictedon thissecondpageis "organized
but I suggestthatthetermshouldbe appliedto Blake's
innocence,"42
pictorialsymbolism
onlywhenthereis a rideron thebeast.Thus even
theTygeron thefirst
page of"The LittleGirlFound"is a tygerofexas
sinister
the
perience,
vegetablesettingmakesclear. Some further
of the organizedinnocencesymbolism
willbe examined
ramifications
below.ButI wishto makestillmoreclearthebasisofmydisagreement
withMr. Erdman'sgeneralinterpretation
of"The Tyger."His assertion
thatthemerecreationoftheTygerbringsabouta condition
offreedom
in whichenemiesbecomefriends
Blake'sconcepseemsto oversimplify
thisis thefinalresultoftheaction
tionofhistory.
As I suggested
earlier,
is priof
the
fifth
stanza
the
impliedby
poem,butwhatthepoemitself
The
the
with
is
the
condition
to
concerned
reversal.
prior
marily
Tyger
in theforests
and theLamb do notlie downtogether
ofthenight.
wordsinthesematters,
One picture
but
oughttobe wortha thousand
if we have studiedBlake carefully,
and also his interpreters,
we are
aware thatpeople see whattheywantto see and sometimes
nothing
41The illustrations
accompanyingthisarticlefor"The Little Girl Found" are
based on copyΒ (1794), as in Wicksteed.In theBlake Trustfacsimileof copyZ,
the mild Tygerdepictedon the firstpage has stripeshardlymore distinctthan
thethinlineson theostensiblelionessshownon thesecondpage.
42For an explanationof theterm,see Prophet,pp. 115-118.The basic idea for
thisstatewas firstsuggestedbyThomas Wright,The Life of WilliamBlake (Olney,Bucks,1929) I, 25, and plate 12. Gleckner,Piper, pp. 46 and passim,discussestheconcepteffectively,
thoughhe usuallycalls it simply"higherinnocence."
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JohnE. Grant
57
else.The onlyway,therefore,
tobe certainthatthedesignisbeingpropis forthecriticto enumerate
erlydiscussed
everypotentially
significant
detail.The Tygeris goingtowardtheleftwithitsfrontfootforward
and itshindfootpushing.Thus it is in exactlytheoppositepositionto
the Lamb in the foreground
of the Song of Innocence.Wicksteed's
brilliant
about
the
theory
generalmeaningofrightand leftin Blake's
been
has
butit
pictorial
symbolism
byseveralrecentcritics,
challenged
wouldbe hardto denythatcontraries
arebeingdepictedbythisdevice.
We have commented
on the linedand ratherworried(or
previously
look
on
the
possibly
pathetic)
Tyger'sface.In theleftmarginin front
oftheTygeris an indefinite
a seven-or eightobjectwhichis evidently
prongedbush.One stemgoesup theleftsideofthepage and tiesin on
theloopoftheΤ in thetitleofthepage.Thisshouldbe comparedwith
theabove-mentioned
stemin theleftmarginofthefirst
illusserpentine
trationof"The LittleGirlFound."Underneath
theloop a birdfliesto
theleft.The titleofthepoemoccupiesthetopofthepage. In theright
to the
marginis thelargemottledand stripedtreewhichleansslightly
leftat thetopofthepageand curvesdownuntilitspreadsoutat itsbase
and blendswiththehindquarters
of theTyger.Threedead branches
proceedfromthetree: twoshootsfromthetopbranchbracketthelast
threeletters
of thetitleand thethirdunderlines
thelasttwowordsof
thefirst
it offfromthesecondstanza.The second
stanza,thussetting
branchhasonlyone distinct
shootwhichcrossestheentirepage in most
thus
text
the
of thepoemin half.The bottombranch
copies,
splitting
alsohasthreedistinct
two
shortone
stems, ofwhichare short.The first
to
the
word
"make"
in
the
last
line
of
the
fifth
the
points
stanza; second
underlines
"made of Lamb" of thatline and functions
as a
primarily
betweenthelasttwostanzas;thelowershortstempointsto
separation
the word "eye" in the last stanza.Two moredevicesin the design
shouldalso be mentioned.
The tailson theletterY of theword"thy"
in thefourth
and lastlinesofthepoemare veryprominent,
especially
thelatterone whichpointsto theTyger'shead.Notethattheletterhas
no suchflamboyant
tailin sucha wordas "deadly"in stanzafour.The
tailson theletterare evenmoreexuberant
in theword"symmetry"
in
thefinalline.The first
has a tripleserpentine
which
underlines
squiggle
thelastthreelettersof "fearful"and corresponds
to the torsoof the
The threeareasofthe
beast,whilethefinalY pointstoitshindquarters.
tothehead,heart,and loins
Tygerwhicharethuspickedoutcorrespond
thatassumeconsiderable
in
Blake's
As a
importance
symbolic
system.43
of
the
total
effect
of
the
note
that
the
partialsummary
design,
depicted
43Forunmistakableevidencethateventhe
shapesof lettersmaybe meaningful
in Blake'sworksee, forexample,plate seventeenof The Marriageof Heaven and
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58
Artand Argument
of"The Tyger"
framedbya bandofcolorbeneaththepoem,and thatthen
Tygeris first
thestanzasthemselves,
withtheshoots,especially
theone that
together
box in theanimalfromabove.An examibisectsthepoem,successively
nationoftheintermingled
linesofthebranchesand titleat thetop of
thepage willconfirm
effect.
thefactthatthisis a deliberate
of the "minuteparticulars
of the design"should
This enumeration
structure
must
indicatethekindofmeaningwhichthissymbolic
byitself
in
some
of
the
the
colors
communicate.
versions
poemlighten
Though
theeffect,
function
ofthelinesis to communicate
thesymbolic
tyranny
and repression.
As inthefirst
page of"The LittleGirlFound,"thehuge
withtheBiblical
dead treeis thetreeofmystery,
whichBlakeidentified
treeofknowledge
ofgood and evil,and itstwigscircumscribe
thetext
of thepoemitself.The factthatthetreeis distinctly
in
striped some
versions
showsthatitisthevegetableequivalentoftheTyger.ThisTree
of Death epitomizes
thefallenor "vegetable"world; it represents
the
ofthenightwhichbeginat thelowerlimitofthestateBlakeelseforests
is imprisoned
wherecallsGeneration,
wherespiritual
and almost
energy
It isno accidentthattheTyger's
in conflicting
dissipated
cross-purposes.
loinsare setagainstthistreeso as, in thecolor-printed
copyΤ version,
to be almostindistinguishable
unfromit.All thewearyand distinctly
of the bedraggledlittleTygerare consistent
withthe
heroicfeatures
modernfolklore
notionthatonlyold decrepittigersare dandoubtless
gerous.
is a joke,butitis a joke
Thereis a sensetooin whichtheillustration
on
Mr.
not
so
much
"those
who
Wicksteed)
(pace
expectupona mortal
as
on
of
the
at
it
theawestruck
is
the
Deity work,"
quespage
picture
on
the
and
on
the
creator
himself.
"Did he smile
tioner,
Tyger, perhaps
hisworkto see?" Is thisthebestthatfallenworldcan show?Whenimintomerely
mortalenergy
mortalform,whatelsecan apis hammered
a
but
of
eternal
Note
howthesequestionsemerge
vitality?
pear
parody
fromthecontrapuntal
in
relationbetweenthelast
contained
the
irony
lineof thepoemand thedepictedshabbybeast."Dare" appearsover
thetoothless
muzzleof theTyger;"frame"overitslimitedhead and
Y points
brain; "thy"overtheshoulder,but,as said, the long-tailed
torso;and "symagain to thehead; "fearful"overtheunimpressive
metry"(alongwiththeblackestquestionmarkin thepoem) overthat
of
background
partof theloinswhichemergefromtheoverwhelming
thetree.Perhapsthefinalmeaningoftheserpentine
squiggleon thefirst
ofsymmetry,
Y ofthewordisthatthedepictedbeastisinfacta travesty
to theepisodein The MarriageofHeaven
and it certainly
corresponds
Hell: Reproducedin Facsimile witha Note by Max Plowman (London, 1927).
The penultimate
word"twisted"has a triplesquiggleon theletter"d."
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JohnE. Grant
59
and Hell wherethefearfulaspectof theTygeris identified
withthe
Leviathan.
serpentine
If we now studythedetailsat thetop of thepage,fromwhichthe
cutoff,we seethatthemazeofserpentine
depictedTygerissuccessively
branchesand letters
hasonlyoneexit,thewindingonebetweenthetwo
wordsofthetitle.Thisisthefinalconfirmation
thattheTygeris closed
in fromabove,tieddownto thisfallenworld,framed.Indeed,thegratuitous
loopon thetailoftheletterY in thetitlemayremindus thatthe
nameofthebeastis pronounced
as thoughit werespelled"Tie/ger"!
Butwhatofthetinybirdwingingitswayto theleftundertheserpentine vegetation?Surelyit is mentionedin the "Proverbsof Hell":
"Whenthouseestan Eagle,thouseesta portionofGenius;liftup thy
head!" or in themottoto thefirst
"MemorableFancy"whichprecedes
the"Proverbs":
Howdoyouknowbutev'ryBirdthatcutstheairyway,
Is an immense
worldofdelight,
clos'dbyyoursenses
five?44
The birdin "The Tyger"platehasenteredintothefallenworld,butit
is stillfarfromthe Tyger.In Miltonthisbirdwill be the larkwho
fliesto thegateofheavento bringbacknewsoftheApocalypsewhen
willagainembracetheproductions
oftime.Here thebirdexEternity
pressesthe tinyportionof the Tyger'sgeniuswhichis least circumin theforests
of thenight.The factthatthe
scribed,leastimprisoned
Tyger'shead,as opposedto hisloins,is outlinedagainstthelight,shows
thatthedawnmayafterall notbe faroffand thattheTygerwillsoon
castoffthe ragsof itsfallenstateand reassumethe lineaments
of its
Thus
all
three
and
original
glory.45
times,Creation,
Advent, Apocalypse,
are suggested
in thismammoth
littlepoem-design,
and thewholespectrumofattitudes
fromheroicto mock-heroic,
visionto question,is containedwithin
itsscope.
We can saywithmorecertainty
nowthatMr. Erdman'ssuggestion
thatthedepictedTygerrepresents
organizedinnocenceis premature;
thisstatewillonlyfollowthefinalemergence
oftheTygeron thegreat
ofthenight.If we wishto see an animalversionof
dayfromtheforests
thisstate,we mustturnto platefifteen
ofThe MarriageofHeavenand
Hell,wherea drunken
eaglecarriesoffa smilingserpentin whatis the
bestemblemin thebookforitstitle.The mutualecstasyis morecom-
44The
Marriage of Heaven and Hell, K, plate 9, no. 15, p. 152 and plate 7,
p. 150.
45This is
evidentin copy Ζ wherethe Tyger'shead and leftfront
particularly
leg are outlinedin pink.But the perspectiveachieved in the illustrationis both
- more prophetic
- than that attained
more optimisticand more comprehensive
bythespeakerofthepoem.
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Artand Argument
of"The Tyger"
60
in "America"and
pletethanin the organizedinnocenceillustrations
The Book of Thel,46becausethe vehicularpoweris providedby the
it is
rider,notby themount.If the"devils"have usurpedtheenergy,
theirownnature.The balancewill
becausethe"angels"havedeserted
on Judgment
to "The Tyger"pribe restored
Day. Buttheillustration
marilydepictsthe divorceof heavenand hell,the splitbetweenthe
factabouttheworld
Eagle and theTyger,whichis themostimportant
weliveanddiein.
46See America,
The Bookof
plate11,boththeupperand lowerillustrations,
fromThe Marriage
Thel,plate6, andProphet,
ofHeaven
p. 107.The illustration
andHell accompanying
thisarticleis fromtheDentfacsimile
(1927) ofcopyI.
of Connecticut
University
Storrs,Connecticut
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