le doubt Heaven and come towards Hell. Line four, “And Secrecy, the Human Dress,” represents how well humans hide these feelings of doubt and terror.Blake wrote these same lines in his poem The Divine Image. In his innocence, “…Mercy has a human heart,/ Pity a human face:/ And love the human form divine,/ And Peace the human dress.” This represents the acts and feelings associated with Heaven. To be with God and obtain peace, humans must show mercy, pity, and love for others. That is the direct opposite of the secrecy of cruelty, jealousy, and terror humans begin to feel.The concluding lines of A Divine Image describe how humans mask these feelings. “The Human Dress is forged Iron,” suggests humans protect themselves with their class and status. It is their weapon against the world to keep others from knowing of their terror. “The Human Form, a Fiery Forge,” suggests Hell begins within. ‘Forge’ also means to falsify which suggests an internal struggle because of the false appearances of the human dress.“The Human Face, a Furnace seal’d,” supports this argument. The face is a mask that keeps the truth of the struggle from emerging. It hides the cruelty, jealousy, and terror. The concluding line, “The Human Heart, its hungry Gorge,” suggests Blake feels humans crave these negative feelings. It means the struggle between Heaven and Hell will exist in everyone because it is innate in the human heart. That is a sad conclusion to reach because it means no one can truly be at peace.Blake was an expressive and complex writer. The metamorphosis of his writing from Songs of Innocence to Songs of Experience suggests he dealt with personal turmoil in his life revolving around religion. It appears he believes he cannot keep himself from Satan’s lure any longer. ...
