William Blake: Songs of Innocence and ExperienceWilliam Blake was born in 1757 in the city of London. Although he had no recognized education, he was taught to read and read a wide range of literature. The influences of certain writers and poets are visible in his later works. Blake studied drawing at a local school. He also studied temporarily at the Royal Academy School, in the early 1770s. This introduction to art shaped Blake's career as an engraver. Blake established a printing business, which was not very successful. He found himself bankrupt. For the rest of his life, Blake made his living as an engraver and illustrator. Blake was a strict Christian and had very strong views on society. Blake was also a radical, sympathetic to the American and French Revolution. During his lifetime, more and more factories were opened and more and more children were enslaved. Blake hated child labor and anything that imprisoned the human spirit. This is why he was against the king, against the organization of the Church and against the priest. Blake saw the Church as suppressing the human spirit and forcing people to work. He hated the laws of the Church, according to which people were ranked according to their wealth. There was no possible way for the poor to advance to a higher class because they could not marry into a wealthier class. Blake wrote poetry to get his ideas across to the rich. Although during Blake's lifetime, very few of his poems were read and appreciated. . Blake wrote two collections of poems, Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience. As the titles of the collections make clear, these statements seem to contradict each other. Innocence is reminiscent of carefree and innocent children. Innocence can mean blamelessness and purity or it can also mean inexperience or simplicity. We can see from this that states of innocence can be either for or against a person. Innocence as purity can be as good as