From Scrubbing Floors to Commodores

It all started on the streets,

All I could do for money was push carts.

I think therefore I am,

You can call me Rene Descartes.

Woke up the very next day,

Part of a revitalized team,

I was no longer a thug,

I started living the dream.

My people and I went from scheming, to believing,

Started diligently studying for my family,

And before they knew it I started achieving.

After another long day of work,

Full of scrubbing out mold,

Finally told my mom, “I’ll be wearing Black and Gold.”

Paradise Lost

William Blake’s “The Sick Rose,” employs two symbols–the rose and the worm–to tell an allegorical tale of contaminated love. The rose, usually infused with connotations of passion and romance in this piece, is somehow sick. Its condition allows us to infer that this rose, along with its traditional associations, is changed by its sickness and its connotations are twisted into more sinister versions of themselves: passion into “crimson joy” and romance into “dark secret love.” Looking closely at the word “crimson,” we can connect it to shame. “Dark” and “secret” imply that this love is not pure and must stay concealed for some reason. Clearly, Blake’s poem infuses the rose with new meaning by declaring it “sick.”

The second striking symbol in this piece is the worm. In Blake’s poem, it is described as “invisible.” It flies only at night in a “howling storm.” With these images, the poet tells us that this is a distorted version of a worm, almost ghoul-like. There is something much more sinister about the creature. We therefore adopt the negative connotations of the worm: its serpentine qualities, underground habitation, and its close ties with death and decay. If we take a step further, we can extricate the Biblical allegory of the serpent in the Garden of Eden, specifically the temptation of Eve. The worm has “found thy bed” refers to the safety and serenity Eve has found with Adam in paradise. The rose symbolizes the love between God and Even; however, in Blake’s poem, it is contaminated by the arrival of the worm, which stands for the serpent. By tempting Eve to eat the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge, the serpent exposes Eve to her nakedness, which explains the subtle, sexual imagery that permeates this piece. Their world has been infected and what was previously pure, is now tainted.

Roses are red, violets are blue, death is sweet, and so are you.

“Sea Rose” by Hilda Doolittle tells the allegorical story of dying as a freeing and uplifting process. The poem especially redefines the symbol of the dead rose as beautiful rather than tragic.

At first, the traditional negative connotation of death is set up with the imagery of a “harsh rose, marred and with stint of petals, meager flower, thin”. These unpleasant descriptions set the reader up to fall into a trap of believing that the poem will provide the traditional view of a wilted and dying rose as an undesirable process. However, the true allegory is illuminated when this rose that was just described is further characterized as “more precious than a wet [alive] rose”. We further understand this dichotomy with the uplifting description of the rose as it is “lifted in the crisp sand that drives in the wind”. Now the process of the rose’s death is seen as freeing as the rose floats in the wind. Finally, Doolittle challenges the reader’s preconceived notions of a dead and wilted rose by asking the rhetorical question, “Can the spice-rose drip in such acrid fragrance hardened in a leaf?” Or in other words, now that we know that the process of death is so sweet, how could a dead rose actual smell bitter?

Ms. Rose? The Doctor will see you now.

William Blake’s The Sick Rose is a piece of poetry with a very unconventional description of a rose. In most writings, the rose is depicted as something beautiful and romantic, however, the author of this poem narrates a very different image of the flower. Though unconventional, Blake’s poem delivers a message that contrasts with the themes generally associated with the rose. Utilizing a form of allegorical poetry, as well as a number of other poetic elements such as symbolism, Blake is able to successfully convey his views on love through the pessimistic narration of the “rose”.

Though the author tells the story a rose, it can be understood that he is actually speaking of something more. Blake open the poem with an apostrophe, telling the inanimate rose that it is sick. This provides evidence that he is likely not literally describing a rose in this poem. Things become quite peculiar when the “invisible worm” is introduced in line 2. Though worms eat plants, flying worms with “deep secret love” are quite unheard of. This personification of the worm provides further evidence towards the fact that the author is describing something greater. In line 5, the speaker explains that the worm has found “thy bed of crimson joy”. This can be interpreted both literally and figuratively, for the bed of joy seems to be a sexual innuendo. The author’s description of the worm is quite cynical throughout the poem, which may be an allusion to cheating. It can be understood that, by utilizing symbolism, Blake is describing love throughout the poem, rather than just a rose. By telling the story of an impossible worm, and its destruction of a rose, Blake is able to challenge the traditional symbol of the rose. As the paradoxical worm destroys the life of the rose with his “dark secret love”, love can also be destroyed by darkness, secrets and cheating, creating love that is sick and damaged, much like a “sick rose”.

Wilting

In William Blake’s “The Sick Rose,” themes of lust, corruption, deceit, and destruction are explored through an allegorical story detailing the relationship between a rose and a worm. Though the rose maintains its most traditional meanings, love and purity, those meanings are explored in a non-traditional sense. The poem begins with “O Rose thou art sick.” From the very beginning, the speaker articulates that the rose is not normal; it is one that is “sick,” therefore clueing the reader in that the rose is not in its normal state. It then begins to describe the “invisible worm” that travels through the night to destroy the rose’s “crimson bed” with its “dark secret love.”

I believe the poem likens the sick rose to the soul when it is exposed to corruption. It depicts the worm, “invisible” in the night that comes to eat away at the rose. The symbolism of the worm equates to a vice that the soul may be susceptible to falling victim to- such as lust, greed, or addiction. Just as worm delights in the immediate satisfaction of its actions, the soul delights in its most secret of desires. The sickness of the rose is in direct correlation with the deterioration of the soul as it loses its true virtue.

A Rose by Any Other Name

“The Sick Rose” by WIlliam Blake is a short poem about a wilting flower, at least that’s what it is on the surface. In reality, it is much, much more than that. In this poem, I interpreted the rose is an allegory for infidelity in a relationship. Even though there aren’t many words or lines, this poem still manages to convey many powerful images and ideas. A rose is a symbol of love and romance, but the sick rose is distorted to show an unhealthy relationship. Blake seems to be writing this poem about a woman whose relationship and life is going to be ruined because her partner is unfaithful to her and has a lover who he meets with in secret. The woman is currently happy, but this secret is going to be discovered and it is going to “destroy [her] life”. The sick rose “flies in the night” which is when the woman’s partner is probably cheating on her. A rose, which is a beautiful symbol of the couple’s romance, is tarnished because of the man’s infidelity, and all of their joy is lost. It is amazing that in so few words, William Blake was able to tell such a heartbreaking story and that he was able to do so totally indirectly through an allegory of a symbol. A rose is a rose is a rose is a rose, but this rose isn’t a rose at all, its the wilting relationship of a couple that used to be happy, but will be no more.

Some Thorns are Larger than Others

Typically, the rose is seen as a symbol of love, compassion and warmth; William Blake uses the romantically traditional symbol of the rose in an astronomically different way. William Blake is putting emphasis on a flawed, sick rose instead of the more commonly used idealistic, beautiful rose. The allegorical story being represented by Blake is one that effectively sheds light on the issue of secrecy involved in human relationships through the personification of the rose.

Blake uses an astonishingly unfettering directness when addressing the rose about its current condition; Blake is telling this rose that it is dying. Through the ominous rhythm of the poem, Blake creates a somber tone for the reader. This rhythm allows the reader to understand the emotional context of this poem. Shockingly, it seems as if before this poem, the “rose” was not even aware that it was dying. Without a doubt, this rose represents the state of love throughout the world; love is sick and deception should be expected in all relationships. Allegorically, Blake is noting that couples fail to recognize the true status of their own relationships, which causes them to eventually die out. This sickness is obviously caused by “The invisible worm, That flies in the night,” this worm is an allegory for deception, dishonestly, adultery and corruption as well as a representation of its more commonly used symbols, death and decay. This invisible worm (man) flies into a bed of crimson joy (woman). This brings up the disturbing, yet probable notion that men actually enjoying participating in affairs because of the sexual satisfaction that they receive. As the poem states, dishonesty and secrecy are absolutely fatal to relationships. “The Sick Rose” redefines the traditional symbol of the rose to discuss the growing concern of disloyalty being associated with love.

The Rose and the Rapist

When imagining a “sick” rose, one might picture the flower drooping to one side, with shriveled petals that have started to lose their vibrant color.  Without even reading Blake’s poem, one would expect that the tone of “The Sick Rose” would be dark and depressing in nature.  This is exactly what kind of tone Blake creates.  To quickly summarize, the poem involves a speaker talking directly to a figurative “rose,” which now faces destruction and sickness due to the actions of an “invisible worm.”  By talking directly to the rose throughout the poem, Blake does a tremendous job at humanizing the flower for the reader.  This should lead the reader to believe that the rose represents a particular person, or simply a type of person.  To determine what allegorical story Blake is conveying through the inclusion of a sick rose, I first focused on the theme of sexuality within the final four lines of the poem.  Blake references the rose’s “bed of crimson joy” and the worm’s “dark secret love.”  Obviously, Blake is talking about something more abstract than a bed of roses. I believe these lines portray a theme of sexuality that is not marked by passion or love, but by violence.  The fact that Blake labels the worm as “invisible” demonstrates that the worm’s so-called love was “secret,” and therefore not desired or expected by the rose.  As a result of this unwanted love, the worm destroy’s the state of the rose.  In my mind, this allegorical story is conveying a rape scene, and the effect that the rape has on the victim.  In this poem, the rose clearly represents the victim, while the worm represents her rapist.  Just as a parasite or pest might destroy a bed of roses, a rapist can destroy the life of his or her victim.  This sick rose represents a loss of innocence and a loss of spirit, which contribute to the rose’s overall sickness and destruction.  Traditionally, a rose might symbolize romance and passionate love.  So, it makes perfect sense that Blake would use a sick rose to portray something that so greatly contrasts with these positive elements.  “The Sick Rose” is a dark allegory that depicts what happens to a victim when love and sex become corrupt and violent.

Infection of Affection

William Blake in “The Sick Rose” gives an apostrophe to a rose personifying it as sick, being eaten alive by an invisible worm. The literal meaning of the poem could be that a budworm, a type of moth larva that devours its way inside a rosebud through the petals and ovaries, is insidiously destroying the pure new rose’s life before it can bloom. Moreover, both the nature of the budworm and a worm’s symbolic association with corruption, depravity, death and a slow, creeping doom match with well with Blake’s worm whose “dark secret love/ Does thy life destroy.” However, the poet takes the traditional symbolic meanings of a rose such as love, the heart, passion, spring and life, and ironically distorts these meanings on the front end when he refers to the rose as sick in both the title and the first line.

Therefore, the heart or love, which is symbolically tied to the rose, is being haunted and polluted all the sudden by an “invisible worm,” or an unseen, unrecognized force that unexpectedly “flies in the night” under the cover of darkness. Thus, I could deduce an allegory concerning a toxic relationship with an undeserving, shady person, either real or in the speaker’s head, who subversively infiltrated the heart of someone, emotionally and possibly sexually. This worm exposed, “found out,” and exploited the innocent heart when it is most vulnerable or in “thy bed.” The heart, in the midst of an emotional “howling storm” or turmoil, could not equip itself to fight this underhand invasion. The speaker claims that his unaware, naive heart cannot survive this lustful, consuming, hidden love that the parasite offers.

Allegories of the Rose

For this Thursday (10/2), students will write a blog post on ONE of the two poems, Blake’s “The Sick Rose” or H.D.’s “Sea Rose,” in answering the following blog prompt:

What allegorical story or argument is the poem conveying in its redefinition of the traditional symbol of the rose?  Please consult the definition of “allegory” in your glossary of literary terms or in your poetry textbook, page 156 and 727.

 

Please categorize under “The Symbol of the Rose” and don’t forget to create specific and relevant tags.