The Tyger quotes
6 famous lines from The Tyger (1794) by William Blake, word for word, with what each means and where it comes from.
1 min read · 24 lines
- 1
Tyger Tyger, burning bright,
In the forests of the night;
What immortal hand or eye.
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?Meaning: The speaker marvels at the tiger’s terrifying beauty and asks what divine creator could have shaped it.
the poetStanza 1, lines 1 to 4 - 2
In what distant deeps or skies.
Burnt the fire of thine eyes?
On what wings dare he aspire?
What the hand, dare sieze the fire?Meaning: The speaker imagines the tiger’s fiery power coming from distant realms and wonders who dared seize it.
the poetStanza 2, lines 5 to 8 - 3
And what shoulder, & what art,
Could twist the sinews of thy heart?
And when thy heart began to beat.
What dread hand? & what dread feet?Meaning: Creating the tiger’s living heart seems to require extraordinary strength, skill, and a frightening maker.
the poetStanza 3, lines 9 to 12 - 4
What the hammer? what the chain,
In what furnace was thy brain?
What the anvil? what dread grasp.
Dare its deadly terrors clasp!Meaning: The speaker pictures the tiger being forged like metal, emphasizing the dangerous power involved in its creation.
the poetStanza 4, lines 13 to 16
- 5
Did he smile his work to see?
Did he who made the Lamb make thee?Meaning: The speaker asks whether one creator could take pleasure in making both the gentle lamb and the fearsome tiger.
the poetStanza 5, lines 19 to 20 - 6
What immortal hand or eye.
Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?Meaning: The final question shifts from the creator’s ability to the audacity required to make something so beautiful and terrifying.
the poetStanza 6, lines 23 to 24
Questions about these lines
What does the tiger symbolize in The Tyger?
The tiger represents terrifying beauty, fierce energy, and the mystery of creation. Its contrast with the lamb raises questions about how gentleness and destructive power can share a creator.
Why does Blake change could to dare at the end of The Tyger?
The change shifts the question from who had the power to create the tiger to who would risk doing so. It intensifies the speaker’s awe without resolving the mystery.
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