Name: ___________________________________________
Date: ______________________ #: ________
9.2.52: “A Poison Tree”
As a life-long learner, I will…
(RL.2) analyze how an author achieves specific effects of tone and theme
(W.4) use the writing process to draft a poem based on a reflective essay
Poetry
About the Author
William Blake (1757-1827) was an artist as well as a poet. Born in London, he was apprenticed to an engraver when he was
young. Blake claimed to have mystical visions which he expressed in his poems and engravings. He engraved both the texts
and the illustrations for his poems. “A Poison Tree” is from his collection called Songs of Experience, which reflect his
complex view of a world that includes good and evil, innocence and experience.
A Poison Tree
by William Blake
I was angry with my friend:
I told my wrath1, my wrath did end.
I was angry with my foe:
I told it not, my wrath did grow.
5
And I watered it in fears,
Night and morning with my tears;
And I sunned it with smiles,
And with soft deceitful wiles2.
10
And it grew both day and night,
Till it bore an apple bright.
And my foe beheld it shine.
And he knew that it was mine,
15
And into my garden stole
When the night had veiled the pole;
In the morning glad I see
My foe outstretched beneath the tree.
1
2
wrath: fierce anger; vengeance caused by anger
wiles: tricky or clever behavior
You will be assigned a “chunk” of the text. Please visualize what is described in your chunk and sketch
it below. Create an image that reflects important themes or ideas from the text.
Now, you will work to clarify the tone and theme of the poem. Please re-read the text and mark it to
respond to the following:
 Highlight or underline the different choices the speaker makes about revenge.
 Locate the speaker’s shift in attitude and mark it with a star.
 Describe the attitude of the speaker in different places in the poem.
 How does the poem end? Paraphrase the last two lines.
 What causes this to happen?
Yesterday you created an essay about revenge. Please take that same event and draft a poem – using
Blake’s work as a template – and respond to it in verse. Feel free to present it from a different point of
view or voice than you used yesterday.