The Lamb

by William Blake

Little Lamb, who made thee?

Dost thou know who made thee?
Gave thee life & bid thee feed,
By the stream & o'er the mead;
Gave thee clothing of delight,
Softest clothing, wooly, bright;
Gave thee such a tender voice,
Making all the vales rejoice?
Little Lamb, who made thee?
Dost thou know who made thee?
Little Lamb, I'll tell thee,
Little Lamb, I'll tell thee:
He is called by thy name,
For he calls himself a Lamb.
He is meek & he is mild;
He became a little child.
I a child & thou a lamb.
We are called by his name.
Little Lamb, God bless thee!
Little Lamb, God bless thee!
1. INSTRINSIC ELEMENTS
A. Exposition
a. Introduction to character
– Little lamb
“Little Lamb, who made thee?”
– Narrator
It shows by some interrogative sentences above.
“Little Lamb, who made thee?”
“Dost thou know who made thee?”
b. Introduction to conflict
From the beginning it starts to ask “who made thee?” that was the rising
point of the poem.
c. Climax and Resolution
The 2 last lines is the climax and resolution
“Little Lamb, God bless thee!”
 “Little Lamb, God bless thee!”
2. CHARACTER AND CHARACTERIZATION
– Little lamb
a. Physical
He is a little boy / child.
“He became a little child.”
b. Psychological
Mild, meek, weak, (refer to good thing)
“He is meek & he is mild”
3. SETTING OF PLACE AND TIME
a. Time
It was about 17-18 centuries, the use of word “thee” usually used by poet in
that age.
4. THEME
The Lamb is a very symbolic poem. The lamb in the poem can symbolize
innocence, serenity, a child, God, or sacrifice. The poem gives credit to God for
making such a beautiful being as the lamb.
As I read, In Christian theology, Jesus the Messiah is often referred to as a
"lamb", emphasizing his meekness and gentleness, he was oppressed and
afflicted. The weakness of a lamb conveys the weakness that Jesus displayed to
the world. He did not come as a powerful God. This is the point of Christianity
emphasis on theology of suffering, not on being powerful, rich, or prideful in this
life.
"He is meek and He is mild, He became a little child". This refers to the
incarnation of Christ as a baby in Bethlehem, where God "became a little child".
In Christian theology, God became man so as to be a member of the human race;
by doing so, He also brought the human race into his "divine" race -- He adopted
humanity into himself.
"I a child and thou a lamb, we are called by His name": humans are now
identified by Jesus’ name and his life. "Little lamb, God blesses thee" the lamb,
as well as the child of God, can rejoice that God has blessed them in such a way.
5. SYNOPSYS
This poem begins with a child asking a little lamb, "who made thee?”. "Who
made thee?" is a question that all of us have asked. The question, of course, has
 taken different of answer. Blake would answer that a creature could only exist
because a creator has made them. In this poem, Blake leaves no other answer but
that somebody made everything. It's a personal question, "who made thee?"
Who is the who? It must be somebody. It can't be an impersonal being. It must
be a person who created the lamb and a little boy.
6. DICTION
a. Connotation
– “Little Lamb” it can e a creature of god or the other name of god
(Jesus).
“He is called by thy name,”
“For he calls himself a Lamb”
– “the vales rejoice” it can be means happiness
b. Denotation
– “Little Lamb” it can be a real of little pig
“Little Lamb, who made thee?”
“Dost thou know who made thee?”
“Gave thee life & bid thee feed,”
Those thee lines can be refer to the real pig (lamb)
– “little child” a true child (the little Jesus)
7. FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
It is hard to find the using of figurative language in this poetry. It’s all clear
enough and not imaginative. The only one “Gave thee such a tender voice” is
metaphor.