175. Poetical Sketches

One of twenty-three copies, this earliest publication of Blake's poetry was set in conventional type. The introduction notes that Blake composed many of the poems between the ages of twelve and twenty. The two songs here exemplify his early use of rural scenery. The turtledoves nesting in the branches of a tree, for example, represent love and harmony. More than thirty years later, this imagery was admired by the Ancients, who were moving from the symbolic use of nature to a more realistic style.