To the Evening Star by William Blake



Thou fair-hair’d angel of the

 evening,

 Now, whilst the sun rests on

 the mountains, light

 Thy bright torch of love; thy

 radiant crown

 Put on, and smile upon

our evening bed!

 Smile on our loves, and

while thou drawest the

 Blue curtains of the sky,

scatter thy silver dew

on every flower that shuts its sweet eyes

 In timely sleep. Let thy west wind sleep on

The lake; speak silence with thy glimmering eyes,

 And wash the dusk with silver. Soon, full soon,

Dost thou withdraw; then the wolf rages wide,

 And the lion glares thro’ the dun forest:

 The fleeces of our flocks are cover’d with

 Thy sacred dew: protect them with thine

 influence.

William Blake,

He was born on 28 November in London 1757. He was an artist and poet; he is an influential figure during the Romantic Era. His works and paintings have inspired many. Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of the poetry and visual arts of the Romantic Age.

 “To the evening star” is an ode ( ode is a lyric poem, typically one in the form of an address to a particular subject, written in varied or irregular meter, a classical poem of a kind originally meant to be sung)  to the Venus, the Roman Goddess of love, beauty, and fertility. It is a sonnet by the Romantic poet.  the poet is calling upon “Her” (Venus) to protect all against the evils of the night and more importantly to inspire “whilst the sun rest” all that is oppressed during the daytime.  The poet uses apostrophe and it a common way to start an Ode.  The star represents the transcendent moments of the struggle between oppositions.

 Summary

 He addresses “Her” as a “fair-haired angel of the evening” she can light a lovely bright torch at night to

remove the darkness, she wears a glowing crown on her head and smiles upon the evening bed of humankind. “Now, whilst the sun rests on the mountains light” it implies that even the mountains that have endured all forms of hardship have to surrender to the inevitable night.

 It is a “bright torch” while all else is dark, presenting a juxtaposition to the transcendent symbol. The poet further proceeds to say that the Goddess Venus makes the fine morning and scatters the dew on every flower that shuts its silver eyes. But Venus cries “tears of dew” as she herself is aware of humankind’s fallen state on earth in a degrading manner.

 The poet expresses the idea that the stars bring peace and provide guidance to mankind during the normally forbidding night.  The poet uses anastrophe to directly address the star for example the poet requests the stars to smile upon the evening beds of the human.  The poet brings a soothing effect and wants to believe that stars have the ability to turn a dark night and stars can change the night into a magical dreamy night.  He uses anastrophe in the ninth line begging the star to wash down the dusk with silver.

 Literary Devices

 

Metaphors and symbolism are well used in this poem. For example, the wolf is a symbol of the night: it has a grey fur and has an affinity for the dark night. On the other hand, the lion with the golden fur is a symbolism of the glorious morning. “The lion glares through the dun forest” implies the uncertainty that lies at the hours of the night but eventually the night gives into the morning a   ray of hope. Finally, he maintains that “the wolf rages” this is the symbol of evil.

 

He uses metaphors to compare the evening star to the “fair-haired angel.” Evening symbolizes a prevailing problem.  And the shining star as a beautiful Goddess who looks with compassion upon the people at night. She is our guardian angel. The poet calls the star a bright torch of love which represents a radiant and heroic quality to the star. The narrator is young (as Blake himself was at the time) and his frustration between these opposing forces is placed such as youth and age, tyrant and slave, day and night, male and female, prey and predator.

 “Now, whilst the sun rests on the mountains, light”

The term “Now” reminds the significant function of time.   Sun is an inanimate object and it personified to add beauty to the line.  The sun rest is a euphemism for it replace the term darkness.  Light is a verb which is expected to be fulfilled by Venus which is a personification. 

"Thy bright torch of love; thy

 radiant crown"

The possessive pronoun ‘thy’ acts as a personification through the entire poem.  Bright torch of light is a metaphor which signifies the dawn of the star.  The punctuation marks in the middle of the line are called caesura.

In the “The Evening Star” One of the themes is of pastoral background with simplicity, man and natural world, shifting of power.  The last two lines appeals to God for the first time because of his inferiority and potential impotence when it comes to protecting his flock from the fall of grace. The second is political entrapment. the speaker knows that it is during the night when Venus’s “radiant crown” holds the power to put an end to all of the daytime’s rules (change the color of the sky, put the flowers to sleep, calm the wind). But all the excitement will “soon withdraw” and just as in man’s law-abiding society, the force of opposition governs all of Blake’s inhibitions. Smile, silver and spoon are the repetition words. Sheep and lamp are the metaphor of the Christian world.

 

Lastly is sexual desire. The narrator here is simply looking for an excuse, any sort of blessing, to act upon his desire to mate with the opposite sex.  It is not possible to appeal to reason, religion or god so, He turns to night time’s queen in hopes for approval. This poem presents the triumph of good over the evil and that the night will eventually give away to the morning. It gives an invaluable lesson of praying to God and surrendering our worries into his hands. The poem ends on a positive note leaving a glimmering hope in the reader’s heart.                                                                                                               

Central idea


Blake wants show the huge effect nature has on one’s everyday life. For instance, without the star, the night would not be bright and it will be too dark and forbidding for us. However, the presence of the star lightens the ambiance and imparts a peaceful and romantic aura to the night.

 

 He further proceeds to show how nature can protect our uncertain lives. The poet claims that the star protects the people from the violent lion and the raging wolf lurking in the darkness amidst the forest. At the same time, he beautifies and portrays the innocence of nature. The flowers “shut its sweet eyes” brings forth a sweet and fragrance and dreamy subdued tone to the poem.

 

Furthermore, the poet successfully illustrates how all the elements of nature can come together to create a beautiful, and perfect situation. For example, the star shines brightly, the lake reflects the light, and the wind gently blows. These three actions come together to produce a beautiful and attractive scenery which humans can observe and enjoy. The poet through this poem fosters the feeling of deep appreciation and love for nature. As a result, the reader feels grateful and indebted to nature for providing us with its beauty and care.

 

In his poem "To the Evening Star," the speaker is addressing a personified evening star as "thou fair-hair'd angel of the evening." The personified star, then, symbolizes a protective presence, carrying a "bright torch of love" and wearing a "radiant crown." Thus, crowned in light and spreading her love over the sleeping world, this star/angel seems to signify a Biblical angelic presence. The poet describes Towards the end how "the wolf rages wide" and "the lion glares" when the light is taken away and dark covers the earth. Meanwhile, "the fleeces of our flocks are cover'd with thy sacred dew," which will protect them. Language such as "flocks" recalls the "flocks" of The Shepherd—that is, Jesus Christ. The star, then, symbolizes faith or benevolence protecting the faithful from figurative wild animals, which seem to represent evil or disillusionment

 Thus, the poet appeal to the nature goddess to protect us form the darkness of evil.  it is an honest plea which he makes to the goddess with the intention to guard the good from the evil.




Thank you

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