Songs of Innocence and of Experience

This collection arguably contains some of the most charming lyrics ever written in English. The childlike simplicity and trust of these artless verses are unique.

Blake’s poems can be enjoyed, not only for their historical importance in an age which was fiercely proud of its genius and its traditions, but also for their simple and beautiful expression of “two contrary states of the human soul.”

Songs of Innocence was originally a complete collection of twenty-three poems, first printed in 1789. In 1794, a composite collection entitled Songs of Innocence and of Experience, containing forty-seven poems, was published.