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Read the Poem below, and then answer the questions that follow.
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 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.
By William Blake

(i) Identify and explain any two features that would make this poem easy to recite.
(ii) Describe the rhyme scheme of this poem.
(iii) In an oral performance of this poem, how would you say the last line?

Answer Text:
(i) The lines are simple and the language is not difficult — easy to read and remember.
There is regular repetition of words at regular predictable parts of the poem. For example stanzas, two, three and four start with the word “And” and all the lines of stanza one with ‘I’.
The stanzas are of the same size; all have four lines.
The lines are basically of the same length.

(ii) The rhyme scheme in all four stanzas is aabbccddeeffgghh.
In stanza one we have ‘friend/end’ and ‘foe/grow’
In stanza two ‘fears/tears and ‘smiles/wiles’
In stanza three ‘night/bright’ and ‘shine/mine’
In stanza four stole/pole’ and ‘see/tree’

(iii) In a celebratory tone. The persona has been plotting to kill the enemy for a long time and now his plans have borne fruit\ a smile to show contentment.
It could be said in a falling or rising intonation (low-falling intonation suggests both the end of the poem and the sad message of death). Deliberate slow pace.
Use of gesture-e.g. outstretched hands to show how the foe stretched beneath the tree.