When it is read aloud, however, the reader understands that the simple rhyme scheme adds a great deal to the poem. Because it is written in such a simple, singsong rhyme scheme, which seems in appropriate, the reader can quickly comprehend that this disconnect is, most likely, intentional. Presenting a poem about the sadness of people in London in a childlike, singsong fashion evokes an irony that can only be understood when the piece is read audibly. Through this, the author seems to imply that London is not innocent, that she has been scarred, and even the most innocent of children's songs must now reflect that fact. When John Stallworthy recites, however, the poem is not read with an overemphasis unstressed/stressed meter, instead further emphasizing the connection among the different images. While the meter is still there, and can be detected, Stallworthy reads the poem more like a string of rhymed images and stressed syllables instead in a beat to which one could clap his or her hands. Further, an audible reading of the poem makes it much easier to understand the last stanza of the poem, which is its capstone. When reading this stanza silently, it is easy to, at first, question what the author means. Why is the harlot's curse so important, and what is its connection with the baby and marriage? However, upon listening to the poem read in Stallworthy's string-like way, one hears the emphasis on the words "curse" and "hearse," and suddenly it becomes clearer that Blake is offering a commentary on the state of marriage as perhaps the most important societal institution.
Although readers of poetry are instructed to connect the lines in a string-like way if no piece of punctuation is present at the end of the line, it is difficult to do this upon a silent reading. Readers, naturally, want to pause at the end of the line. In the audible version of the poem, however, Stallworthy excellently connects the lines as they were meant to be read. This makes it much easier to understand concepts that are contained in two lines. For instance, it was not until the audible reading of the poem that I was able to make sense of the image, "And the hapless soldier's sigh. Runs in blood down palace walls" (Blake). To emphasize punctuation, Stallworthy does not pause between two lines without punctuation and offers a longer pause with a period than with a comma. Further, a long pause is given with the semi-colon, so that listeners might be aware of the fact that what comes after is a list of images, a list of the noises that Blake hears in London.
Thus, Blake's poem, like any other, was meant to be read aloud. Though the stanzas also offer certain visual appeal, when read aloud they present the reader with the cadence of the poem, allowing that reader to better grasp the poem's meaning.
Works Cited
"Archive: Audio Readings." The Norton Anthology of English Literature: Norton Topics
Online. 2009. 10 May 2009.
Blake, William. "London." Archive of Classic Poems. 2009. 10 May 2009.
