Blake's Songs of Innocence and Experience: Shewing the Two Contrary States of the Human Soul

Blake subtitled Songs of Innocence and Experience "Shewing the Two Contrary States of the Human Soul." Having read selections from both, how would you characterize these two states? Does Blake show a preference for either?

Blake's use of these subtitle is actually somewhat straightforward. The first part, "Songs of Innocence" shows examples of innocence in mind or in action, as well as innocence being lost in some ways. "The Ecchoing Green" is a good example of this. To take it literally, we see children playing cheerful in the morning while their elder's watch on until darkness falls and the children run home to their mothers and fathers. Considering Blake's way of thinking from such things as this quote from the man himself, "That which can be made Explicit to the Idiot is not worth my care" (pp 78), we know that he doesn't want to be taken on the level of what he presents us. The children were of course youth that spring out in the morning and sunlight. The Narrator identifies himself as such. In the end, the children run home to their parents when darkness falls on the Green. However, when the children were playing, the elderly people were watching from the shade of the trees. One can see that this is a circle of life, especially when looking at the artwork meant to accompany the words. The children are shown to the left in the full sun, while the parents or at least mothers from what I can tell are in the center as the sun and shadow mix when you look at the ground beneath them. Then to the right in the full shade of both the night and the tree assumable are the elder folk. So really, the meaning is clear in this loss of innocence through age. Even just seeing the image in our book (pp 82) we see children who are possibly praying with their mother beneath a stylized tree.
The second part, "Songs of Expereince" is obviously darker, as though a life had been lived and is now being seen from further along. Again, I'll take the first poem presented to us, that being "Earth's Answer" in which the Earth personifies and tells the narrator of what sounds to be the Earth's capture in a state that could be compared to night or winter perhaps. Here, in the literal taking she is being held captive that is presented in a God-like fashion "I hear the Father of the ancient men//Selfish father of men" though the footnote also mentions this character is later identified and used in Blake's prophetic works. This poem of the earth taken into darkness could be many things. Considering the image given, with the snake at the bottom, perhaps this isn't just the personfication of night or winter on the planet, but the loss of innocence and the fall into sin and even as far as the first sin. Needless to say, this is a section that will have more bite than the first. The picture in our books (88) shows women grieving over to aged and likely dead figures, with what could be an angel or cherub flying above within the title. So where the first section was innocence with a transition, this section is perhaps aged or dying, with a smear of hope to latch on to.
"Nurses' Song" In Innocence is a literally a nurse watching over a bunch of children. She calls them in and they beg to stay out until the sun sets. she agrees and they run off to play again. They are given a second chance to enjoy themselves by this overseer who could easily represent God or Jesus sending out the innocence to continue on as they are looked down upon and watched after. The only thing that will hinder this joy and innocence in play will be the coming night. Through this poem, we see the world as a place where the innocence can be free to go about as they like with little care but the approaching darkness. "Nurse's Story" in Experience is very different however. This speaker also watches the children, but they do not seem to remember their childhood fondly, "The days of my youth rise fresh in my mind,//My face turns green and pale." Here to the children are asked to return home as darkness falls. This poem suggests the regrets felt when life has been wasted in play as the rest of your life will be a facade to the world. Fooling about will not help you in life is what we are to take from this poem. While the children of the first are enjoying their innocence, the idea of the latter poem seems to be a concern for lack of preparation in life perhaps. The first Nurse watches after the children happily, while the second seems ill at the memory of her own youth and probably mistakes made then. This helps illustrate the more hopeful outlook in Innocence while then showing the alternative recalling after experience in a not so fond way. Don't we often look back at more innocent days and cringe a bit at how thoughtless we were?
Given what we learned of Blake through the introduction, I feel like between the two parts, he ought to favor the "Songs of Expereince." He didn't like to have his work be taken litertally and I feel that mistake could have been much easier to make with the "Songs of Innocence." The images are too innocent, even when tinted in the hint of age, time, or sin. "Experience" shows a wiser and yes, experienced person looking back and contemplating these things.

(Though I assume the different versions have the same pictures, I made all of my images references that weren't from the book by way of Songs of Innocence and of Experience, copy B, 1789, 1794 (British Museum): electronic edition from the archive at http://www.blakearchive.org.)