By: William Blake

I was angry with my friend;

I told my wrath, my wrath did end.
I was angry with my foe:
I told it not, my wrath did grow.

And I watered it in fears,

Night & morning with my tears:
And I sunned it with smiles,
And with soft deceitful wiles.
*Property of STI SH1601
 And it grew both day and night,
Till it bore an apple bright.
And my foe beheld it shine,
And he knew that it was mine.

And into my garden stole,

When the night had veiled the pole;
In the morning glad I see,
My foe outstretched beneath the tree.
Source: http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/175222

*Property of STI SH1601

 Step 1: Know the author
William Blake
• born in London on
November 28, 1757
• Writer during the
Restoration period.
commons.wikimedia.org

• learned to read and write at home

• wished to become a painter

*Property of STI SH1601

 Step 2: Unlock the difficulties
• What are the words in the
poem that you don’t
understand?
• List down those words
then look for their
meanings in the dictionary
*Property of STI SH1601
 Step 3: Figure out the
figurative language
• What are figures of speech
or figurative language used
in the poem?
• Interpret the meaning
appropriately.
*Property of STI SH1601
 Step 4: Extract the theme
• What is the message of the
literary work?
• List down possible major and
minor themes.
• It could be a word or phrase
that best explains the message
of the author.
*Property of STI SH1601
 IV. Theme
The poem is about anger. It may
also be about lies & deception.
They appear to be good when
deep inside they are not. It is a
manifestation of deception and a
form of lying by omission.
 

*Property of STI SH1601

 Step 5: Appreciate it
• Compare it to another literary
work with the same theme. It
could be a song, movie, work of
art, etc.
• Relate it to real life situation

*Property of STI SH1601

 V. Appreciation
This poem reminds me of a Filipino saying “Ang
pagsasabi ng tapat ay pagsasama ng maluwag”.
Though the latter is all about being honest, it branches
out a new idea for me, which is to be honest with your
feelings. When you feel bad, let it transpire through your
words and through your actions. Tell it to the person
responsible for that anger not for the purpose of
provoking him/her but letting him/her know how you
feel and what he/she can do about it. When people talk
about things and exert effort to repair broken
relationships, they could have the so called
“pagsasama ng maluwag” or ease of everything.
*Property of STI SH1601