Poem: “A Poison Tree” by William Blake

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 my 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.

Short Answer Questions: 1. What did the speaker do with their anger towards their friend? 2. How did the speaker nurture their anger towards their foe? 3. What happened to the speaker’s foe in the end?

Long Answer Questions: 1. How does the speaker’s approach to dealing with anger differ when it comes to their friend and their foe? 2. What does the act of watering the anger with tears and sunning it with smiles symbolize in the poem? 3. Discuss the significance of the apple in the poem and its role in the speaker’s revenge. 4. How does the poem explore the theme of the consequences of harboring anger and resentment? 5. Analyze the use of personification in the poem and its impact on the reader’s understanding of the speaker’s emotions. 6. What message or moral lesson do you think the poet is trying to convey through “A Poison Tree”?

Vocabulary Questions: 1. Define “wrath” as used in the poem. 2. What does the word “foe” mean in the context of the poem? 3. Explain the meaning of “deceitful” as it relates to the speaker’s actions. 4. Define “veiled” as used in the line “When the night had veiled the pole.”