The Chimney Sweeper: The songs of Innocence

The Chimney Sweeper: The songs of Innocence

-By William Blake

When my mother died I was very young,

And my father sold me while yet my tongue

Could scarcely cry ” ‘weep! ‘weep! ‘weep! ‘weep!”

So your chimneys I sweep & in soot I sleep.

There’s little Tom Dacre, who cried when his head

That curled like a lamb’s back, was shaved, so I said,

“Hush, Tom! never mind it, for when your head’s bare,

You know that the soot cannot spoil your white hair.”

And so he was quiet, & that very night,

As Tom was a-sleeping he had such a sight!

That thousands of sweepers, Dick, Joe, Ned, & Jack,

Were all of them locked up in coffins of black;

And by came an Angel who had a bright key,

And he opened the coffins & set them all free;

Then down a green plain, leaping, laughing they run,

And wash in a river and shine in the Sun.

Then naked & white, all their bags left behind,

They rise upon clouds, and sport in the wind.

And the Angel told Tom, if he’d be a good boy,

He’d have God for his father & never want joy.

And so Tom awoke; and we rose in the dark

And got with our bags & our brushes to work.

Though the morning was cold, Tom was happy & warm;

So if all do their duty, they need not fear harm.

 

Bengali Translation:

চিমনি পরিষ্কারক  – সং অফ ইনোসেন্স 

– উইলিয়াম ব্লেইক

যখন আমার মা মারা গেলেন তখন আমি ছিলাম খুবই ছোট,

আমার বাবা আমায় বিক্রি করে দিলেন যখন আমার জিহবা

থেকে কদাচই উচ্চারিত হত, “উইপ! উইপ! উইপ!”

তাই আমি চিমনি পরিষ্কার করি আর ঝুল কালিতে ঘুমাই।

ছিল টম ড্যাকর, তার ছিল মেষশাবকের মত কোঁকড়া চুল,

সে কেঁদেছিল যখন তা কেটে দেওয়া হলো আমি বললাম

“চুপ কর টম! মনে কিছু করা না, তোমার মাথা যখন খালি থাকবে

ঝুল কালি তোমার মাথার সাদা চুল নষ্ট করতে পারবে না।”

তাই সে শান্ত হলো এবং সেই রাতেই

টম যখন ঘুমোচ্ছিল, সে একটা স্বপ্ন দেখল—

হাজার হাজার ঝাড়ুদার, ডিক, জো, নেড, জ্যাক

তাদের সবাইকে কালো শবাধারে তালাবদ্ধ করে রাখা হলো।

আসলেন একজন ঈশ্বরেরদূত, যার কাছে ছিল উজ্জ্বল একটা চাবি,

শবাধারগুলো খুললেন, মুক্ত করলেন সবাইকে;

সবাই তখন নামল সবুজ ভূমিতে, লাফালাফি, হাসাহাসি

আর কর দৌড়াদৌড়ি, গোসল করল নদীতে, শুকাল সূর্যালোতে।

সবাই ছিল খালি গায়ে আর সাদা, তাদের ব্যাগগুলো রয়েছে পেছনে,

তারা মেষে চড়ে বাতাসে খেলা করে—

সেই ঈশ্বরেরদূত টমকে বলে, যদি সে ভাল ছেলে হয়,

তবে ঈশ্বরকে পাবে তার অভিভাবক হিসাবে, আর আনন্দের কোন অভাব হবে না।

তাই টম উঠল,  আমরা জাগলাম, অন্ধকার থাকতেই,

আমাদের ব্যাগ আর ঝাড় (Brushes) নিয়ে গেলাম কাজ করতে।

যদিও ছিল ঠাণ্ডা সকাল তবুও টম সুখী ছিল, উষ্ণ ছিল;

সুতরাং সবাই যদি তাদের দায়িত্ব পালন করে

তবে তাদের ক্ষতির ভয় নেই।

1)What is the theme of the poem?

Ans: The theme of “The Chimney Sweeper” misery, hope and death.

2) What is the tone of the poem “The Chimney Sweeper”?

Ans: The tone of “The Chimney Sweeper” is one of gentle innocence and trust.

3) Why is Tom Dacre compared to a sheep?

Ans: Tom Dacre compared to a sheep’s back represents two things. He had thick hair in light of the fact that there was no one to deal with him. And, similar to the sheep, the child was innocent.

4) Who is Tom Dacre?

Ans: Tom was a young chimney sweeper like the narrator.

5) Why does Tom Dacre crying?

Ans: Tom Dacre cried because his head’s hair was being shaved off.

6) Who is “T” in the first line of the poem “The Chimney Sweeper”?

Ans: “T” in the first line of the poem “The Chimney Sweeper” is “The speaker”, the boy who is a Chimney Sweeper.

7) Who sold the speaker in the poem “The Chimney Sweeper”?

Ans: Speaker’s father sold the speaker in the poem “The Chimney Sweeper”.

8)What does “my tongue could scarcely cry” mean/signify?

Ans: “My tongue could scarcely cry” signifies that childhood is not a time to cry.

9) What does Tom see in his dream?

Ans: Tom saw that huge number of sweepers was locked up in the coffins of black and afterward an Angel who had a bright key and he opened the coffins and set them all free. They were playing, running and snickering and they were washing in a river and shinning in the sun.

10) Who has a bright key?

Ans: An angel has a bright key.

Theme: The three main themes in The Chimney Sweeper are innocence, social injustice, and the power of imagination.

• Innocence: The speaker contrasts the innocence of children with the Corruption of adults.
• Social injustice: The poem highlights the plight of child laborers in Victorian England.
• The power of imagination: The sweeper’s ability to imagine a better life helps him to endure his difficult circumstances.

Summary

The speaker of this poem is a small boy who was sold into the chimney-sweeping business when his mother died. He recounts the story of a fellow chimney sweeper, Tom Dacre, who cried when his hair was shaved to prevent vermin and soot from infesting it. The speaker comforts Tom, who falls asleep and has a dream or vision of several chimney sweepers all locked in black coffins. An angel arrives with a special key that opens the locks on the coffins and sets the children free. The newly freed children run through a green field and wash themselves in a river, coming out clean and white in the bright sun. The angel tells Tom that if he is a good boy, he will have this paradise for his own. When Tom awakens, he and the speaker gather their tools and head out to work, somewhat comforted that their lives will one day improve.

Extra Questions:

a) Answer the following questions. 2×5=10

i. What is the tone of “The Chimney Sweeper”?

ii. How does “The Chimney Sweeper” explore the ill effects of industrialization?

iii. What does the metaphor “coffins of black” represent in William Blake’s “The Chimney Sweeper?”

iv. Who is Tom Dacre and why does he cry in “The Chimney Sweeper”?

v. What does the lamb symbolize in “The Chimney Sweeper”?

Answer:

i. The theme of exploitation dominates “The Chimney Sweeper.” In both poems of the same name, Blake attempts to highlight the appalling working conditions that these children are forced to endure and the damaging effects that these conditions have on them.

ii. “The Chimney Sweeper” poignantly explores the harmful effects of industrialization through the tragic experiences of child laborers. William Blake’s poem uses the voice of a young chimney sweeper to highlight the exploitation and premature death faced by these children. Personalizing the children, like Tom Dacre with his Christ-like innocence, Blake emphasizes their lost childhoods and dreams of escape through death, underscoring the cruelty of their forced labor in hazardous conditions.

iii. “The Chimney Sweeper” poignantly explores the harmful effects of industrialization through the tragic experiences of child laborers. William Blake’s poem uses the voice of a young chimney sweeper to highlight the exploitation and premature death faced by these children. Personalizing the children, like Tom Dacre with his Christ-like innocence, Blake emphasizes their lost childhoods and dreams of escape through death, underscoring the cruelty of their forced labor in hazardous conditions.

iv. The metaphor “coffins of black” in William Blake’s “The Chimney Sweeper” represents the physical and existential imprisonment of child chimney sweepers. It refers to the soot-filled chimneys they clean, symbolizing their harsh working conditions and loss of innocence. The image also evokes the children’s dreams of being freed by angels, highlighting the tragic reality that such salvation is unlikely in their grim lives.

v. Tom Dacre is another chimney sweep who cries because his hair is shaved off. The narrator reassures him that a shaved head prevents soot from dirtying his hair, implying that their employers forcibly shave their heads instead of providing baths, which understandably upsets Tom.