Why Should I Care for the Men of Thames
Why Should I Care for the Men of Thames - meaning Summary
Rejecting Compromised Roots
Blake rejects allegiance to corrupt, "charter'd" England and its compromised institutions, refusing to be cowed by hired fearmongers. The speaker renounces the Thames as symbol of betrayal and turns toward the Ohio as a promise of cleansing and liberation. The poem frames personal and political emancipation: born into bondage and tainted origins, the speaker insists on leaving that past behind to claim freedom and a new identity.
Read Complete AnalysesWhy should I care for the men of thames Or the cheating waves of charter'd streams Or shrink at the little blasts of fear That the hireling blows into my ear Tho born on the cheating banks of Thames Tho his waters bathed my infant limbs The Ohio shall wash his stains from me I was born a slave but I go to be free.
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