The poem "A Poison Tree" by William Blake is about the dangers of harboring anger instead of expressing it. In three sentences: The speaker tells of how expressing anger to a friend ended it, while bottling up anger towards a foe only increased it, allowing it to grow "like a tree" bearing poisonous fruit that ultimately kills the foe. The poem warns that nurturing anger internally transforms it into something toxic capable of harming others.

1. A poison Tree
William Blake
R. PECHIYAMMAL M.SC., B.ED.,

2. Motivation
 What makes you angry?
 Is anger an emotion you find east to control?
 Is it always easier to be angry with an enemy than a friend?

3. Introduction
William Blake(1757- 1827)
He was an English poet, painter and paint maker. Blake is
now considered a seminal figure in the history of English poetry. He
was born in London. He was a boldly imaginative rebel in both hid
thought and his art. Some of his famous poem are “ The Lamb” and “
The Tiger”.

4. A Poison Tree

5. 1st stanza
“ 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. “
Meaning:
The speaker tells his friend what has upset him, they work it out, and the
speaker is no longer angry. The speaker doesn’t tell his enemy what
makes him angry. When he bottles it up, his anger increases.

6. 2nd stanza
“ And I water’d it in fears,
Night and morning with my tears:
And I sunned it with smiles,
And with soft deceitful wiles.”
Meaning:
The speaker imagines reasons to fear his enemy. His fears and
frustrations increase his animosity. But the speaker is
not honest with his enemy. He smiles at him and acts friendly,
building up a deceitful relationship lacking in trust.

7. 3rd stanza
“ 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.”
Meaning:
The speaker’s anger is like a glittering poison that attracts
both the speaker and his enemy. Anger and hate become appealing
to the speaker, and his enemy is fooled by his deceitful behavior.

8. 4th stanza
“ And into my garden stole,
When the night had veiled the pole;
In the morning glad I see,
My foe outstretched beneath the tree.
Meaning:
The enemy tries to take the advantage of the speaker, but
the speaker is one step ahead of him. The speaker’s secret
anger poisons and kills his enemy.

9. Application
 Wrath – anger
 foe – enemy
 deceitful – cunning
 wiles – tricks
 Veiled - covered

10. Summary
 Anger is a common feeling.
 When it is let out it will be gone forever.
 When we have it in our heart it starts to grow like a tree.
 All the fruits bore by this tree will be filled with poison.
 Either the foe or the person himself will become mortal due to the seed of anger.
 So we should never get anger and if we get we have to let it out and not grow it as a tree
faking outside.

11. Assignment
Fill in the blanks:
once the poet was angry with his friend. He expressed his (i) ________ and it
ended. They became friendly but when he grew angry with his foe, he (ii) __________ it and
allowed his anger to grow. Day and night he watered it with his tears and allowed it to grow.
He (iii) ________ his foe with false smiles and cunning tricks. The tree kept growing and
yielded a bright apple which (iv) ________ his foe to eat it stealthily during the night. The
next morning the poet was happy to see his foe lying (v)______ under the tree.

12. Theme
The message of the poem is that if we hold anger within
and nurture it, it is poisonous and can harm others.