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Interpretation of "A Sick Rose" by William Blake

Analyze and unravel the symbolism in William Blake's poem "A Sick Rose," exploring themes of love, darkness, and destruction through a close reading exercise. Break down the poem, identify key words, and develop insights without the need for extensive research.

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Interpretation of "A Sick Rose" by William Blake

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  1. Explication A Sick Rose William Blake

  2. A Sick Rose O Rose, thou art sick, The invisible worm, That flies in the night In the howling storm Has found out thy bed Of crimson joy : And his dark secret love Does thy life destroy.

  3. O Rose, thou art sick, • Break the poem down • Choose the most important words • Brainstorm: do not second guess yourself at this point • Use a diagram or free-write

  4. Keep Brainstorming • Remember: don’t edit yourself • There is no such thing as “wrong” at this point • Highlight, underline, circle, write in the margins, etc.

  5. Animal; fear? Frightening? O Rose, thou art sick, The invisibleworm, That flies in the night In the howlingstorm Has found out thy bed Of crimsonjoy : And his darksecretlove Does thy life destroy. Mysterious; dark • Nouns = underlined • Verbs = circled • Modifiers = highlighted Links with “night;” evil? Destruction, chaos, link with “storm?”

  6. Group and Analyze • What words or phrases seem to “go together”: • Rose and crimson • Night and dark • Destroy, storm, worm, howling • Rose, love, bed, crimson, joy • What do these associations suggest to you?

  7. Developing Themes • Rose and crimson • Love, passion • Night and dark • Evil, darkness • Destroy, storm, worm, howling • Destruction, death, chaos • Rose, love, bed, crimson, joy • Passion, sex, love

  8. Developing Themes • Choose one or more themes • Destruction/death/illness • Passion/love • Write about how the themes are linked • What do the themes have in common? • How might the themes contrast? • Examples • passion can be both positive and negative, destructive and creative • Love and passion can lead to both emotional and physical “illnesses” and “destruction,” i.e. jealousy, death of the relationship, unwanted pregnancy, STD’s, etc.

  9. Time to Write • Reconstruct the text • Organize thematically or chronologically • Retell “the story of the poem” using your new-found insights • Write about the implications, the things the poet didn’t say

  10. Keep in Mind • Explications are reader-response exercises • Reader response = what the poem means to you • You do NOT need to “research” • Explication is a skill • It CAN be learned • Anyone can do it • Explications are NOT writing-intensive exercises • You don’t have to be a “good” essay writer, just a “good” thinker

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