Organized Religion Versus Sprituality in William Blakes...

William Blake was a poet and artist who was born in London, England in 1757. He lived 69 years, and although his work went largely unnoticed during his lifetime, he is now considered a prominent English Romantic poet. Blake’s religious views, and his philosophy that â€Å"man is god†, ran against the religious thoughts at the time, and some might equate Blake’s views to those of the hippie movement of the 20th century. In â€Å"The Garden of Love†, the conflict between organized religion and individual thought is the constant idea throughout the poem. Blakes colorful use of imagery and heavy symbolism express his resentment toward the church. He makes it obvious how he feels, that it is restrictive in nature and hinders him from expressing his†¦show more content†¦(Griffiths). The third stanza begins with the narrator visiting the garden of love, but he sees something he never saw there before, a chapel in the midst of the green he used to play on. When the narrator says he â€Å"used to play on the green†, this indicates that he was familiar with the Garden of Love in his childhood. He realizes that now he has reached adulthood, he finds that loves natural expressions are no longer free and universal, but bound by the restrictions of the organized church. Blake uses the chapel to represent the orthodox church of the 18th century. He uses this religious symbol to convey the i dea of negativity, and seems to be dismissing organized religion as unnatural and restrictive. Blake changes the rhyme scheme from ABAB to ABCB in the third stanza to convey the change of tone in the poem (Griffiths). In the fourth stanza, Blake uses religious symbols to show how the structured religion of the Orthodox Church can destroy the love and joy within. The narrator finds that the gates to the chapel are shut, symbolizing the restrictive nature of organized religion. Blake alludes to the Ten Commandments when he describes the church gates as having â€Å"Thou shalt not† written across them. This demonstrates the constrained state that the church puts Blake in (Griffiths). Discouraged by the limiting statement on the gates, the narrator turns to the rest of the Garden in