William Blake•William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker •Notable work(s) Songs of Innocence and of Experience《天真之歌》《经验之歌》, The Marriage of Heaven and Hell《天堂与地狱的婚姻》, Jerusalem《耶路撒冷》1 The Tiger 2 Text of the Poem Stanza 1Tiger, tiger, burning brightIn the forests of the night,What immortal hand or eyeCould frame thy fearful symmetry? 老虎！老虎！光焰闪耀， 在黑夜的丛林中熊熊燃烧， 什么样的不朽之手和眼 ? 造成你那可怕的匀称外貌3 Analysis In the first verse, the author compares the fierceness of a tiger to a burning presence in dark forests. He wonders what immortal power could create such a fearful beast.4 Stanza 2In what distant deeps or skies Burnt the fire of thine eyes? On what wings dare he a spire? What the hand dare seize the fire ? 你眼中的烈火熊来自多远的深处或高空？ 他凭什么翅膀敢飞到九天？什么样的手敢去抓这火焰？ 5 Here the poet compares the burning eyes of the tiger to distant fire that only someone with wings could reach. The poet wonders where such a powerful fire could have come from? 6 Stanza 3And what shoulder and what artCould twist the sinews of thy heart?And when thy heart began to beat,What dread hand and what dread feet?什么样的臂力，什么样的技才能拧成你那心脏的腱肌什么样的手,什么样的脚才使得你的心脏开始弹跳？ 7 In this verse the poet gives us a vision that the tiger's beating heart awakening a powerful beast. The phrase "...twist the sinews of thy heart" is an allusion that a beast of prey must have towards the creatures it kills.8 Stanza 4 What the hammer? what the chain? In what furnace was thy brain? What the anvil? What dread grasp Dare its deadly terrors clasp?用什么样的锤子？什么样的链条在什么样的炉里炼成了你的大脑？ 在什么样的铁砧上？用什么样的臂力 敢抓住这可以致命的可怕东西？9 Wh This verse continues the allusion to a creator, who, having made the fearsome beast, must confront with the sheer terror of a tiger's nature. 10 Stanza5 When the stars threw down their spears, And water'd heaven with their tears, Did He smile His work to see ? Did He who made the lamb make thee ? 当星星投下他们的矛枪， 用他们的泪水浇灌穹苍， 他见到自己的作品时可微笑？ 难道是他造了你也造了羊羔？ 11 Here the poet wonders whether the creator of the fierce tiger could also make the gentle lamb. He seems have a confliction between the creation of heartless, burning predator and its potential victim, the lamb.12 Stanza 6 Tiger, tiger, burning bright In the forests of the night, What immortal hand or eye Dare frame thy fearful symmetry ? 老虎！老虎！光焰闪耀， 在黑夜的丛林中熊熊燃烧 什么样的不朽之手和眼 造成你那可怕的匀称外貌？ 13 The final verse repeated the wondrous question of the tiger's creation and gives the reader another chance to think the question, “What immortal hand or eye?”14 Theme The poem is more about the creator of the tiger than it is about the tiger itself. The poet was at a loss to explain how the same God who made the lamb could make the tiger. So, the theme is : humans are incapable of fully understanding the mind of God and the mystery of his handiwork. 15 MeterThe poem is in trochaic tetrameter with catalexis at the end of each line. Here is an explanation of these technical terms:Tetrameter Line : a poetry line usually with eight syllables but sometimes seven.Trochaic Foot : A pair of syllables--a stressed syllable followed by an unstressed syllable.16 Structure and Rhyme SchemeThe poem consists of six quatrains. (A quatrain is a four-line stanza.) Each quatrain contains two couplets. (A couplet is a pair of rhyming lines). Thus we have a 24-line poem with 12 couplets and 6 stanzas – a neat, balanced package. 17 18 。