London the capital city

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QUESTIONS

1. 
   Why do you think the speaker never actually says the word "London" in the poem itself? Could this poem be about other cities?
   
2. 
   How one-sided is the speaker's perspective of London? Why doesn't he say anything positive, or point out any of the beauties of London?
   
3. 
   What do you make of the phrase "marriage hearse"? Why might be marriage be associated with death in "London"?
   
4. 
   Why are there so many children in this poem (chimney sweeper, infants, etc.)? What do they symbolize, and why do you think so?
   
5. 
   Blake illustrated much of his work. Take a look at "London." How do the pictures enhance or complicate the poem's themes?
   

Literature
 "London, United Kingdom Forecast : Weather Underground (weather and elevation at Bloomsbury)" (online). The Weather Underground, Inc. Retrieved 22 August 2014.
  "Metropolitan Area Populations". Eurostat. 16 November 2017. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  "Population Estimates for UK, England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland". ONS. 22 June 2017. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  "Regional gross value added (income approach) - Office for National Statistics". www.ons.gov.uk.
  "XE: Convert GBP/USD. United Kingdom Pound to United States Dollar". www.xe.com.
  "XE: Convert GBP/USD. United Kingdom Pound to United States Dollar". www.xe.com.
  "London". Collins Dictionary. n.d. Retrieved 23 September 2014.
  "The World Factbook". Central Intelligence Agency. 1 February 2014. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  "Roman London". Museum of London. n.d. Archived from the original on 22 March 2008.
 Joshua Fowler (5 July 2013). "London Government Act: Essex, Kent, Surrey and Middlesex 50 years on". BBC News.