"The Sick Rose" by William Blake

William Blake was an English painter, poet, and print maker that lived during the mid-eighteenth through early nineteenth century.  He was considered one of the 100 greatest Britons of all time. 

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.

Traditionally the rose has been a symbolic representation of love, beauty, and romance. The worm, as its antithesis, represents death, decay, and uncleanliness. The “invisible worm/ that flies in the night” is a metaphor for the dastardliness of society in its attempt to fill our minds and ergo the rose with ideals that are anything but true love. The ability of the worm to be invisible and flight embodies the secretive and unexpected nature of false love and temptation, as worms do not have either of these abilities. The “howling storm” suggests that in our darkest times, these false ideals of love tempt us and corrupt us even more so. The worm finds the rose’s natural flower bed, which is the juxtaposition of lover’s bed. The worm is destroying the life of the rose with “his dark secret love,” which is significant because worms in nature tend to help plants grow by increasing the amount of air and water that the seeps into the soil and hence the rose. However, this worm is slowly killing the rose, who is unbeknownst to the worm’s plot. Roses recognize neither their beauty nor whether or not they are dying. In this way, true love is also dwindling away in the presence of the worm. The rose and love are sick and dying. It has been tainted by the false ideals of true love produced by the worm and therefore society. The innocent rose clings to whatever it is able to due to its trusting nature, which can be compared to our youths’ tendencies for hopeless romanticism. As a warning to the temptations of society, Blake writes this poem in order to caution its youth against societal ideals of false and superficial love.