A POISON TREE

By William Blake

A Poison Tree
byWilliam 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 watered it in fears,
Night & morning with my tears:
And I sunned 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 my garden stole,
When the night had veiled the pole;
In the morning glad I see;
My foe outstretched beneath the tree.

Vocabulary
1.Wrath strong,stern, orfierceanger
2.Foe enemy
3. Deceit distortion ofthetruth; cheating
4.Wiles trick, trap
5.Veiled conceal, lackingclarity

A Poison Tree

Tone : Unsympathetic and intense

Mood:
Somber Blake
byWilliam
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 watered it in fears,
Night & morning with my tears:
And I sunned it with smiles,
And with soft deceitful wiles.

First
Person
Point of
View

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 my garden stole,
When the night had veiled the pole;
In the morning glad I see;
My foe outstretched beneath the tree.

Form
4 quatrains with a set rhyme
scheme: AABB

POETIC/LITERARY DEVICES
1.Personification
- Waters the wrath withfear
-I told my wrath, my wrath did end
2.Metaphor
The tree is considered as a wrath/anger
Till it bore an apple bright, the apple is a metaphor for the
"fruit of his grudge.
3.Alliteration
sunned and smiles
friend and foe
bore and bright

POETIC/LITERARY DEVICES
4.Imagery
Throughout the poem
5.Irony
the foe beneath the tree of hatred
6.Repetition
I was angrywith my friendI was angrywith my foe
7.
-

Symbol
The tree is a symbol of life and anger seems to have been
given life to grow.

Meaning of the Poem

A Poison Tree' is a symbolic title as it explains the
truth of human nature. It is a metaphoric poem as the
poet creates a picture in our minds of how anger hidden
in our minds can grow to become a poison tree. The
poet describes that a feeling of anger can disappear if
there is goodwill and friendship but if there is distrust n
enmity, it grows and causes great destruction. When one
is angry with a friend, and we communicate that anger, it
automatically disappears because of love and friendship.
But when one is angry with an enemy, it continues to
grow because it is not expressed.

Moral Values

How does the poet show that anger is a

basic human emotion?
By not telling us anything about the two
people involved, Blake shows that this is an
emotion that can affect anyone.
He uses a simple but effectiveimageof a
tree growing in a garden.
The poem's uncomplicated structure
suggests something basic is being
examined.

What is the poem "A Poison Tree"

mainly about?
"A Poison Tree" examines the effects of
unresolved anger.
The poem conveys the message that
unresolved anger that is nursed as a grudge
becomes a poison that can hurt other
people.

What is a figure of speech in the

poem "A Poison Tree"?
The poem uses a metaphor to compare
anger to a tree.
The poem describes the speakers wrath.
When he does not tell anyone that he is
angry, the anger just festers like a growing
tree.