William Blake’s poems “The Lamb” and “The Tyger” can be viewed as summarizations of Blake’s own world views concerning nature and metaphysics, posing deep philosophical questions regarding the structure of the existence and creation. That is to say, through the figures of the respective animals, Blake’s poetry provides an investigation into fundamental themes of what it means to exist in general, postulating the diversity of creation and what such creation means from a greater metaphysical perspective. It is this metaphysical perspective which can be said to harbour Blake’s own religious views, as the poems indicate a certain commitment to Christianity, especially in the poem “The Lamb.” In contrast, “The Tyger” shows this same religious dimension by meditating on the power and diversity of creation itself: the kindness of the Christian God as presented in the lamb is replaced by a god who is subject to his own creation in the form of the tiger. Accordingly, Blake’s careful attention to the physical details of the lamb and the tiger in these two poems becomes a means by which Blake can articulate his views on creation. However, judging by the contrast in the animals in terms of the innocence of the lamb and the violent power of the tiger, Blake illuminates two sides of creation – the passivity of the lamb in the delicacy of its existence, and the overwhelming power of the tiger which shows the capacity for potency within nature, thus evoking the creative potential of God.

In Blake’s “The Lamb”, the care with which the poet constructs his verse reflects the delicacy of the animal itself. Blake treats his subject with a gentleness that befits the animal. In the poem Blake speaks to the animal with a simplicity that is normally reserved for talking to the very young, asking the lamb in an almost playful manner “dost thou know who made thee?” Blake is careful to describe the lamb as “little”, thus identifying the apparently small position of the animal within nature. This position suggests that the lamb is thrown into a world that is altogether heterogeneous and chaotic, by juxtaposing the lamb with the entirety of creation: the question of the lamb’s knowledge of its creation immediately confronts the passiveness of the lamb with the entirety of existence. At the same time, although the lamb seems like an insignificant creature within this existence, Blake carefully describes the attributes of the lamb itself, citing the lamb’s “clothing of delight/softest clothing wooly bright.” This demonstrates that even in the body of a fragile creature there is a profound singularity to its existence, as the lamb possesses attributes that are unique to him alone. The lamb is thus attributed, despite its smallness, a power, as Blake continues: “gave thee such a tender voice/making all the vales rejoice.” The lamb is able with its natural abilities to cause effects within nature that are disproportionate to its apparent meekness. Blake continues this theme by comparing the lamb itself to the Lord. Blake’s Christianity is overt in this passage, as he emphasizes that Jesus Christ also “calls himself a lamb.” That the lord of all creation chooses to identify himself with the lamb shows the power inherent in even the smallest creatures. At the same time, it demonstrates the benevolence of creation itself in Blake’s worldview. This is because the omnipotent creator decides to identify himself with the meekness of one of his smallest creations – the Lord himself therefore is a delicate lord, one that is not indicative of a vengeful god. Blake essentially provides a metaphysical interpretation in which creation itself is construed in terms of the innocence and lightness of the lamb.

This contrasts to the metaphysical view of nature presented in Blake’s poem “The Tyger.” As opposed to the passiveness of the lamb, Blake stresses the tiger’s power and elegant violence. Firstly, the utilization of the spelling of tiger as tyger suggests that Blake is trying to evoke a certain otherworldly quality of the animal, as by playing with the conventional spelling, Blake places the tiger outside of the realm of common experience and understanding. This allows the reader to conceive of the tiger in its very specificity, and to truly think about the unique attributes of the animal. These attributes are primarily described by Blake in terms of the potency of the tiger. The opening lines, “Tyger Tyger, burning bright, In the forests of the night: What immortal hand or eye, Could frame thy fearful symmetry?” The tiger is presented as a uniquely potent product of creation, its colors visible even in the darkest evening within the heart of the jungle. Moreover, the power of the tiger seems to surpass the power of creation itself. This is because Blake postulates that the grace of the tiger is an excess for the immortal lord: the symmetry of its body is so great that it is impossible for even a god to capture the essence of the tiger’s physicality. This is the main thematic of the poem, as Blake continually stresses the inability of the creator to control the tiger. When Blake questions, “Did he who made the Lamb make thee?” the poet directly addresses the diversity of creation itself, as the tiger and the lamb become contrasting poles that delimit what is possible within the realm of existence. Yet these poles are radical opposites, such that the extent of what is possible in Blake’s metaphysics and account of nature is essentially unlimited. Blake presents the tiger as an animal that is not a slave to the very nature that created him: in the case of the tiger, the created surpasses the creation. With the image of the tiger, nature essentially turns against herself, surrendering her powers to her offspring: the tiger, in his “fearful symmetry”, is capable of evoking terror in the heart of creation itself, according to its limitless majesty. Blake therefore opposes the Christianity of “The Lamb” by presenting a view of a God who must come to terms with the power of his own creation.

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