William Blake was the son of a London hosier. When he was fourteen, he apprenticed to the engraver James Basire. This is where he developed his skills. He worked as an engraver, illustrator, and drawing teacher. During this time, he also wrote poems. His Songs of Innocence was published in 1789 and Songs of Experience was published in 1793. In 1794 an edition that combined both of the two, Songs of Innocence and Experience, was published. In 1809, Blake had financial problems and became depressed, he shut himself out from the rest of the world for the remainder of his live (Sparknotes).
The Lamb is one of the first of the poems in Blake's Songs of Innocence. In this poem, I take it as the Lamb symbolizing Jesus Christ. Jesus is the Lamb of God. The Lamb seems to be from a child's perspective also. When I picture Jesus, I see him as interacting with children and having a special fondness for them. There are many stories in the Bible about Jesus and children. A child in the poem is asking a question. He is asking who made him. In the second stanza, he attempts to answer the question. He says that he who made him also calls himself a Lamb and we are called by his name.
The Little Black Boy is the next poem. This poem is about a little black child and his mother. The mother teaches her child about God and how he loves everyone. He created everyone the way they are and loves them the way he made them. He doesn't care if you are black or white, when he comes to take you up to heaven with him it makes no difference. As long as you live according to his ways, he pays no attention to something such as skin color.
Holy Thursday is about many young orphans that are marching through the town to the church. They are going to church to pay respects and acknowledge the holiday of Holy Thursday. Holy Thursday is the day that Jesus Christ died for all of our sins. It is the day that we were forgiven and given the chance to have eternal life.
