How does William Blake portray children and childhood in his poetry?
… beliefs. As Blake was religious he would have grown up believing that there shouldn’t be poverty and children should be treated well. In the 18th century children had to work. They weren’t Free and happy like children in this day and age, they had hard working lives, and didn’t get much freedom. I don’t think Blake was happy about this, he didn’t think it was right. Childhood should be a happy time. In the eighteenth century, volunteer efforts of the church and other organizations, the two most prominent being The National Society and The British and Foreign Schools Society, created free schooling for working-class children. Charity schools were established and provided day classes for poor children. They offered moral lessons as well as basic reading and writing. Sunday Schools were the church’s offering. They gained popularity in 1780 when Robert Raikes publicized them in a Gloucester newspaper. These schools taught religious …
