Question

Read the poem entitled "The Poison Tree" by William Blake.

I was angry with my friend:
I told my wrath, my wrath did end.
I was angry with my foe:
I told it not, my wrath did grow.

And I watered it in fears
Night and morning with my tears,
And I sunned it with smiles
And with soft deceitful wiles.

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, —

And into my garden stole
When the night had veiled the pole;
In the morning, glad, I see
My foe outstretched beneath the tree.

Which statement best describes the poem’s use of language?

Blake uses images of plants to show nature’s bounty.
Blake reveals emotions being cultivated like a garden.
Blake presents ripe fruit to question the duration of beauty.
Blake explains the planting process to suggest man’s hard work.

Answer 1

B

Step-by-step explanation:

Answer 2

Blake reveals emotions being cultivated like a garden.

Step-by-step explanation:

William Blake's poem "The Poison Tree" revolves around the theme of anger and how it can lead to different repercussions depending on the circumstances. The speaker talks of how his repressed anger led to different outcomes based on how he treated it.

By alluding to the process of planting or raising a plant, the speaker talks of how he deals with his anger. He "watered it [...] night and morning, [...] sunned it." This effort resulted in the fruit, "an apple" which the foe apparently took and died.

By using the imagery of a plant and the process of cultivating it, Blake reveals the emotions of the speaker.

Thus, the correct answer is the second option.