The Sick Rose - William Blake
O Rose, thou art sick!
The invisible worm
That flies in the night
In the howling storm
Has found out thy bed
Of crimson joy,
And his dark secret love
Does thy life destroy.
병든 장미
오 장미여, 너 병들었구나!
폭풍이 요란한밤
어둠속을 날으는
보이지 않는 벌레가
진홍색 향락의
네 잠자리를 찾아내고.
그 어두운 비밀스런 사랑이
네 생명을 망치고 있구나.
* 주제 : 이기심에 의한 사랑의 파괴, 경험에 의한 순수성의 파괴
* 병든 장미 : 예로부터 '장미'는 여성의 아름다움을 나타낸다. 따라서 이 시의 제목인 '병든 장미'는 경험의 세계에서 악과 더러움에 의해 짓밟힌 여성을 나타낸다고 볼 수 있다.
* 밤 & 울부짖는 폭풍- 인간의 원초적인 성적 본능이 적나라하게 노출되는 무의식의 영역.
이 시에서 벌레는 밤에 무서운 폭풍 속에서 보이지 않게 은밀히 찾아온다. 만약 눈에 보이게 찾아온다면 장미가 그 사랑을 받아들이지 않을 수도 있기 때문이다.
* 벌레- 악, 더러움, 부도덕성, 그리고 남성을 상징
벌레의 사랑은 어둡고 은밀한 사랑이기 때문에 생명을 파괴한다.
* "선홍색 즐거움의 침대를 찾아냈다" - '선홍색'이라는 색은 성적인 의미를 함축하고 있으며, '찾아냈다'는 것은 성적인 것으로부터 도망가려는 여성과 여성으로부터 성적인 것을 추구하려는 남성의 이미지를 떠올리게끔 하는 구절.
* "어두운 비밀스런 사랑이 너의 생명을 파괴한다"- 악에 물든 사랑은 어둡고 은밀하며, 이러한 사랑에 빠져들면 생명마저 타락한다는 것을 의미.
* in the howling storm: 폭풍우가 울부짖는 밤
thy bed of crimson joy: 진홍빛 즐거움(사랑을) 나누는 침대
Does thy life destry: 정상어순으로 고치면, destroys thy life.
The poem shares the common motifs of death and destruction in the collection, telling of a rose that has reached the end of its lifespan in the advent of the creeping winter.
There are many references to the darker side of human nature in this poem, and the death resulting from it. The rose is slowly dismantled by a number of factors— the "invisible worm" and the "howling storm" in which the rose doesn't stand a chance. The "crimson joy" is perhaps the strongest link to human death, referring to a lust for blood. This poem has also been interpreted by scholars as an apology for the sounds of merryment from "The Rose" public house on Blake's street of residence. The "Invisible worm" refers to the noise that moves through walls and flies through the night "in the howling storm" and how this noise pollution "does thy life destroy" if it has "found out thy bed"
The poem may also be referring to the state of England during the Industrial Revolution; it is being destroyed by the Revolution growing upon its shores.
The "crimson joy" could be a symbol of passion and love.
The worm could be a connection with the Biblical serpent.
Alternatively the poem may suggest that all beauty is susceptible to destruction or itself has the power to destroy. It is a reminder that there is a good and evil side to all things - love can be both joyful and painful, and all life is proceeded by death.
Another interpretation is that the poem uses a garden as a metaphor for life and relationships. Throughout the poem there is the sense that a relationship that was once full of love and joy is now 'sick' and the 'worm' is an excellent metaphor to express this.
Another interpretation is that the rose signifies the female reproductive organ and that the "invisible worm / That flies in the night" is its sexual affliction.
A garden is a symbol of beauty and peace, much like a loving relationship. However there will always be the worms in the garden that seek to destroy it and sadly, sometimes do. Using this metaphor in terms of the relationship it can be interpreted that this poem revolves around the heartbreak that is caused by one person in the relationship taking that step of betrayal and cheating on the one they are with. The poem metaphorically expresses the feelings that arise in a situation like that.
* commentary on this poem *
1. The rose has traditionally been a symbol of feminine beauty and love,
as well as of sensual pleasures.
In this poem the rose stands for something beautiful, or desirable, or good.
The worm stands for some corrupting agent. Within these limits,
the meaning is largely "open."
So, this poem might remind someone of a gifted friend whose promise
has been destroyed by drug addiction, or AIDS.
2. "Bed" can refer to a woman's bed as well as to a flower bed.
3. "Crimson joy" suggests the intense pleasure of passionate lovemaking
as well as the brilliant beauty of a red flower.
4. The "dark secret love" of the "invisible worm" is more strongly suggestive
of a concealed or illicit love affair (than of the feeding of a cankerworm on
a plant, though it fits that too.)
5. For all these reasons the rose almost immediately suggests a woman
and the worm her secret lover - and the poem suggests the corruption or
innocent but physical love by concealment and deceit.
6. This poem may refer to the destruction of love by selfishness,
possessiveness, or jealousy; of innocence by experience;
of humanity be Satan; of imagination by reason.
