Help me interpret this poem please?

Question

A Poison Tree
-William Blake

I was angry with my friend.
I told my wrath, my wrath did end.
I was angry with my foe;
I told it not, my wrath did grow.

And I water'd it in fears,
Night and morning with my tears;
And I sunn'd it with smiles
And with soft deceitful wiles.

And it grew both day and night,
Till it bore an apple bright;
And my foe beheld it shine,
And he knew that it was mine.

And into the garden stole
When the night had veil'd the pole:
In the morning glad i see
My foe outstretched beneath the tree.



Can you tell me the meaning of the poem and what are the kinds of poetry devices used?

Thanks in advance. I seriously suck at poems.

best if u can explain it line by line. cos i just started learning poetry ):

Answer 1

This is what I think:

First two lines: I was angry with my friend but I let it go

Next two lines: I was angry with somebody I didn't like and I didn't let it go

Next four lines: I fed my anger with fear, sadness, deceit, and (Somehow) smiles.

Next four lines: My anger got really big

last four lines: and I'm guessing I killed the guy I didn't like because my anger grew to much.

I hope this helps!

Answer 2

The first verse is about being able to talk with friends but not with enemies. The anger at the enemy continues to grow watered with tears and deception. (metaphor) It grows into an apple (red--color of anger--another metaphor). The last verse is another metaphor that of the garden and the enemy dead beneath the tree. Instead of talking out the anger to the enemy the enemy is killed for recognizing the author's inability to deal with it in a civilized way--through language.
There may be other devices other than metaphors in this poem. See the link below for definitions of these devices.

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Answer 3

Study this analysis


William Blake "A Poison Tree"

In “A Poison Tree,” by William Blake is a central metaphor explains a truth of human nature. This poem teaches how anger can be dispelled by goodwill or nurtured to become a deadly poison. It is appropriate that poems touching on Biblical themes should be expressed like this in which a spiritual meaning is expressed in a vivid story. The opening stanza sets up everything for the entire poem, from the ending of anger with the “friend,” to the continuing anger with the “foe.” Blake startles the reader with the clarity of the poem, and with metaphors that can apply to many instances of life.

Blake also uses several forms of figurative language. He works with a simple AABB rhyme scheme to keep his poem flowing. These ideals allow him to better express himself in terms that a reader can truly understand. These forms of language better help authors to express their feelings and thoughts that would not normally be able to be expressed by words.

The personification in “A Poison Tree” exists both as a means by which the poem's metaphors are revealed, supported, and as a way for Blake to forecast the greater illustration of the wrath. The wrath the speaker feels is not directly personified as a tree, but as something that grows slowly and bears fruit. In the opening stanza the speaker states, “My wrath did grow.” The speaker later describes the living nature of the wrath as one which, “grew both day and night,” and, “bore an apple bright.” This comparison by personification of wrath to a tree illustrates the speaker's idea that, like the slow and steady growth of a tree, anger and wrath gradually accumulate and form just as mighty and deadly as a poisoned tree.

To understand the metaphorical sense of the poem, one must first examine the title, “A Poison Tree,” which alerts the reader that some type of metaphor will stand to dominate the poem. In the second stanza, Blake employs several metaphors that reflect the growing and nurturing of a tree which compare to the feeding of hate and vanity explored by the speaker. The verses, “And I watered it …with my tears” show how the tears life lead an object of destruction. The speaker goes further to say, “And I sunned it with smiles” describing not only false intentions, but the processing of “sunning”, giving nutrients to a plant so that it may not only grow and live, but flourish. In both of these metaphors, the basic elements for a tree to survive, water and sunlight are shown in human despair and sadness.

The religious context of the poem is also evident in two metaphorical allusions made by the speaker towards the end of the poem. The deadly fruit borne of the tree is an apple, while the scene of death and treachery occurs in the speaker's garden. The apple is a product of hate, the ironic “fruits of one's labor,” and a biblical metaphor for sin. This co notates that destruction will occur if the tree is showered with sour emotions. The garden, which could be viewed as a place of life and prosperity, is simply the stage for the sinful act, as it was in the Bible. Like the events of the biblical story of Adam and Eve, man gives in to the weakness of sin and falls.

Blake's poetry, while easy to understand and simplistic, usually implies a moral motif on an almost basic level. The powerful figurative language in “A Poison Tree” is so apparent that it brings forth an apparent message as well. The poem is not a celebration of wrath; rather it is Blake's cry against it. Through this, Blake warns the reader of the dangers of repression and of rejoicing in the sorrow of our foes.

William Blake wrote this poem to convey a simple message. “A Poison Tree” may be one of Blake’s simpler poems, but is just as effective of getting its message across. He used figurative language as a way to express his point that anything beautiful in life can be contorted to something disgusting if shown ugly emotions.


good luck

Answer 4

lol i LOVE this poem!!!!!!!!!!!!

1st
i told my friend my anger..my anger subsided
i didnt, it grew

2nd
im not sure lol but
i was afriad (im not sure why, waterd get that)
and cried day and night
was sunnd? lol

3rd
my anger grew as days passed and my friend knew of it 9sumthin like that)

4th
and i dont know lol

Answer 5

harboring hatred and anger is poisonous. letting go is resolution.

Answer 6

i don't know about deviceses but basicaly it is aboput some person who had a friend then started hating him or her for what ever reason untill they died