My Wrath

A Poison Tree

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.

                                               William Blake

I first heard these words in a song by Rajaton, the Finnish a cappella ensemble¹, written as an adaptation of this poem from William Blake's Songs of Innocence and Experience². I love this poem because it is full of moral irony that is not usually seen in poetry from this era. It says a lot about how it is our choice to follow through with our vendettas. I thought it fitting due to the recent developments on Osama bin Laden.

What do you think? Is the need to carry out revenge human nature? Depending on the intensity of the crime, how unreasonable is it to forgive?

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rajaton

2.  http://www.sparknotes.com/poetry/blake/context.html