The Tyger
A poem by William Blake, published in 1794 in Songs of Experience, that asks what creator could have made a tiger both beautiful and terrifying.
Songs of Experience: A 1794 poetry collection by William Blake portraying states of knowledge, suffering, and social constraint. The poem’s first publication placed it within this collection’s darker vision.
Rhetorical question: A question posed for emphasis or reflection rather than to obtain an answer. The poem’s unanswered questions turn its central mystery into the reader’s burden.
William Blake: An English poet, painter, and printmaker whose works combine visionary imagery with political and religious criticism. Blake wrote, illustrated, and printed the collection containing the poem.
Sublime (philosophy): An aesthetic experience of overwhelming grandeur or power that exceeds ordinary understanding. The tiger’s beauty and terror produce the mixture of attraction and dread associated with the sublime.
Songs of Innocence: A 1789 poetry collection by William Blake exploring childhood, joy, vulnerability, and spiritual innocence. Blake paired the poem’s collection with this earlier work to stage contrasting states.
Refrain: A repeated line or phrase in a poem or song. The returning opening question changes slightly at the end, sharpening its uncertainty.
Illuminated printing: A printing process in which text and images are etched, printed, and colored as an integrated design. Blake used this method to make the poem’s words and visual presentation part of one work.
Problem of evil: The philosophical and theological challenge of reconciling evil and suffering with a good, powerful creator. The poem asks how one creator could make both gentle innocence and terrifying force.
The Lamb: A William Blake poem in Songs of Innocence that asks who created a gentle lamb. Its questions about a gentle creature counterpoint the tiger’s fearful power.
Alliteration: The repetition of initial consonant sounds in nearby words. Repeated sounds such as the poem’s clustered t and f sounds intensify its beat.