Lesson Overview 

NOTE: I've created a printable Word Doc & PDF of these Lesson Notes for easy teacher use)

Quiz / Test

As always - or nearly so - we begin the class with a short 5 question quiz (and extra credit) to see if the students did the reading.  Another reason for having a quiz is it helps me more easily see who was in class for the discussion and in order to make the quiz up, the students must also listen to a recording of the class.

 See my handwritten Lesson Notes for more details on what follows.

Power Point Presentation

The last two years that I taught this lesson - I was moved by Remote Learning to create a Power Point for this lesson.  It's not necessary - but it may help with focus.  It also differs from the basic lesson by including the biographical material on Blake which we normally would just gloss over (having assumed and verified by the quiz that the students read the bio).  

Biographical Material

Usually, I just ask - "What can you tell me about William Blake?"  It's important to make sure the students at least mention that he was an artist, a mystic, a printer - and far, far ahead of his time.   It should also be noted that his two most famous works are Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience.  During remote - and when we switched to horrible Block Scheduling, we read the through the book's intro to Blake and talked about it a little.  See the Power Point.

The Lamb and The Tyger

I think a great way to begin the class is to ask for two volunteers to read Blake's two poems - "The Lamb" and "The Tyger" - perhaps the two best  examples of the divide between Blake's Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience.  How you do this reading for the class is VERY important.

First, ask for a student to read "The Tyger" who can be VERY loud, VERY boisterous,  and VERY intimidating.  Next, ask for (or have the class select - I varied on the method depending on the class and their sensitivity) a student who can read "The Lamb" - very quietly (and be heard), very SOFTLY, and very meekly.

Time to begin:  Have the student who is reading "The Lamb" go first.  Let them read the whole poem, but remind them - if you need to - to be as meek as possible (while still being heard by the class, not an easy endeavor at all)
Next, have the other student read "The Tyger" - again, you may have to remind them as they read to be LOUD, ferocious, and as scary as possible.   When they finish - make sure the class applauds both students.

Time to discuss: See my handwritten notes (found below) for more -  but here are a few of the points you want to cover:

• Which poem is from Songs of Innocence; which is from Songs of Experience?

• Start with "The Lamb".  Why is it so obvious who made the Lamb - and not so obvious as to who made the Tyger?  (Because the Lamb is soft and pure and good - while the tyger, well the tyger is a tyger - scary, cruel, and ferocious.)

• What is the metaphor for the Lamb?  (this is a little tricky BUT it is innocence).  And Is there another metaphor for the Lamb?  (this is even trickier - but the other metaphor is Jesus Christ - the poem even says "He is called by thy name" (Lamb of God))

• What is the question or take away or over-all implication of "The Tyger"?  (How could God have made such an evil thing?)

The Greatest Question of the 20th Century 

At  this point, I usually ask the class this question: At the end of the 20th Century (1999), there was a great listing of "Greatest Things of the 20th Century".  For example, Greatest Movies of the 20th Century, Greatest Cars of the 20th Century.  So they asked historians, philosophers, theologians, and more - What is the Greatest Question of the 20th Century?  The overwhelming answer that came back was: "How could God have allowed the Holocaust to occur?"  Then I ask the class - What does this have to do with Blake's "The Tyger"?  (It is a form of the same question - why does God allow or even create evil in the world?)

Innocence & Experience

It's at this point in the lesson that I tell the students about my amazing college professor - Gene Ruoff and his explanation that it is far too simplistic to see the poems contained in Blake's Songs of Innocence are simple, naive, and from an innocent point of view, and the poems from Songs of Experience are mature, jaded, and from an experienced point of view.  Blake is much more complex, layerd, and brilliant than such a simple labeling.

With this in mind, I ask my students to take another look at "The Lamb".  Question: Do any of you know why Jesus Christ (as per the poem - this is not about religion - but there will most likely be someone in your class who knows the answer to this - in my 32 years of teaching there was at least one student in every class who did) is called "the Lamb of God"?  Answer: (Because he was sacrificied). Ah - now the poem does not seem so innocent after all!  And most of the "Innocence" poems can be more closely examined through this lens.

John Anderson, My Jo

Have a student read the poem - then I ask the students if it sounds familiar.  Usually I get a few great answers.  Then I play the sequence from the Pixar film "Up" about a couple growing old together (I've included a link below) that closely follows this poem/song.

A Red, Red Rose

Rather than reading this poem – I play a version of this song – sung by Eva Cassidy – who a few days earlier in our lesson on the intro to The Romantics – sang “Somewhere Over the Rainbow”. Her own tragic early death follows naturally the previous poem, “John Anderson, my Jo”

Auld Lang Syne

Almost as important as “To a Mouse”.  If “To a Mouse” postulates that we are cursed compared to mice, because we are constantly looking forward and back into the past.  This song takes the exact opposite tack.

First I have s student (or 4 students – one for each stanza) read the song aloud.  Then I ask what is the persona or speaker asking? 
(Should we forget the past? The answer seems easy given what he say in “To a Mouse”)  And yet?  

What is his answer? (No – not only should the past not be forgotten – we should drink a toast to it.)

WOW!  I love the ambiguity of having these two opposing texts by the same author – it points out the complexity of the question and the idea that nothing is simple or black and white.

I then play a number of different versions of “Auld Lang Syne” (the playlist can be found on the lesson page – and see if the students can identify who is the artist (these include: Barenaked Ladies, Jimmi Hendrix, Guy Lombardo.

Two Songs

Next – I will play two songs – The first one is “Another Auld Lang Syne”.   It’s a soft, sweet song by Dan Fogelberg – I just instruct the students to write down any connections they see directly on the handout (found on the Lesson Web Page). We don’t have time to – but I think even if we did, the class wouldn’t discuss it – sometimes it’s best just to let students make their own critical and emotional connections. Besides the connections to “Auld Lang Syne” – I love the ending of the song.  It echoes are Carpe Diem Lessons huge theme of: “Where are the snows of yesteryear?”

The next song, "Taxi" by Harry Chapin  covers the same ground as the previous one – two lovers who meet after being apart after many years – but it has a much harder edge to it than the Dan Fogelberg song. In this case, it seems to answer – perhaps the past is just the past – and is indeed best left alone.  There are no lyrics for this song on the handout – and it should be noted that there is, at the end, a brief drug (marijuana) reference.  It sad, poignant tone is a perfect way to end the lesson.