William Blake: The Chimney Sweeper - Year 7 Lesson

To explore William Blake’s poem ‘The Chimney Sweeper’ in relation

to the historical/social context.

What does thispicture say

about London in18th century?

Hogarth’s ‘Gin Alley’ 5 minutes


about London in18th century?

Poverty

Lawlessness

Immoral behaviour

Drunkenness

?


about childhood in18th century?

Consider:Poverty

Illness/diseaseEmployment

CrimeDeath

Behaviour

Child Workers 15 minutes

The shabby clothes on this boy shows ……….

…………………………………………………….about childhood in

London.



William Blake was a 19th century writer and artist in a period called The Romantic Age.

He was born on 28th November 1757 in the Soho district of London, England.

He only briefly attended school, being chiefly educated at home by his mother.

Originally an artist, Blake completed a seven-year apprenticeship in 1779 and became a copy engraver.

He privately published his Poetical Sketches, a collection of poems in 1783.

In 1782, Blake married Catherine Sophia Boucher, who was illiterate.

In 1787 his beloved brother, Robert, died from tuberculosis at age 24.

Blake died in 1827, aged 70. Many of Blake's best poems are found in two

collections: Songs of Innocence (1789) and the Songs of Experience (1794.)

If you were a child from a poor family you worked and worked and worked .......

Children were often forced to work almost as soon as they could walk and very long hours.

Children had no choice - they needed to work to help their families earn enough money to live.

Chimney sweeping was a job children could do better than adults.

Small boys (starting at the age of 5 or 6 years) would be sent scrambling up inside the chimney to scrape and brush soot away.

Children often got stuck or froze with terror in the cramped darkness.

The Master Chimney Sweeper, would simply light the fire underneath to 'encourage' them to get on with their work.

Some boys got stuck and died of suffocation. Thousands of poor children worked and lived on the

streets. Many were orphans, others were simply neglected.

When my mother died I was very young,And my father sold me while yet my tongueCould scarcely cry " 'weep! 'weep! 'weep! 'weep!"So your chimneys I sweep & in soot I sleep.

There's little Tom Dacre, who cried when his headThat 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 darkAnd 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.

The Chimney SweeperBy

William Blake

Each group will analyze one stanza. You will be given a key poetic feature or phrase to identify or you will be asked to analyze the whole stanza.

Use your poetic language glossary to helpyou.

You will then relate your findings to the picture of child workers.

15 minutes

Pick one person from your group to write your findings on the picture of the child workers.

Pick one person to explain to the rest of the class what you have identified in your stanza and what you think it means.

By the end of this, you will all have added more points to the picture of child workers,and gained more understanding about whatit was like for children living in the 18th Century.

The shabby clothes on this boy shows ……….

…………………………………………………….about childhood in

London.



William Blake: The Chimney Sweeper - Year 7 Lesson

Education