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John Keats -- Analysis, Themes and Devices

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  Themes Appreciation of the Greeks Greek references Intertextuality: Chapman's Homer, Chaucer, Petrarch Love or die Immortality for love Knight Women as sorceresses Meta- art Yearning for immortality Lovers depicted on the Grecian urn: Bold Lover, never, never canst thou kiss, Though winning near the goal yet, do not grieve; She cannot fade, though thou hast not thy bliss, For ever wilt thou love, and she be fair! Reveling in nature God No one who once the glorious sun has seen, And all the clouds, and felt his bosom clean For his great Maker's presence, but must know What 'tis I mean, and feel his being glow Poetry as sacred O Poesy! for thee I hold my pen That am not yet a glorious denizen Of thy wide heaven – Should I rather kneel Upon some mountain-top until I feel A glowing splendour round about me hung, And echo back the voice of thine own tongue? Excitement about writing poetry; emotions toward poetry Keep Sleep aloof: but more than that there came Thought after th

Essay -- Not an Ode: On the Reader-Writer Relationship in Kincaid's A Small Place

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Not an Ode: On the Reader-Writer Relationship in Kincaid's A Small Place Jamaica Kincaid's personal essay A Small Place is a highly polemical text. Written by the Antiguan native in 1988, A Small Place encompasses two voices: that of the impoverished, post-colonial Antiguan native and that of the luxuriating, capitalist Westerner. In the text's very syntax resides a meeting between these two very different types: its narrator is an Antiguan native who utilizes the second person throughout the entire text, a style generally associated with poetry, advertisements and open letters. The narrator accuses its presumably Western reader of being a personal contributor towards the suffering of the natives. With its inflammatory language, its breathless-angry style, and unapologetic imagery the text binds its readers to the natives of Antigua through discomfort and guilt. Kincaid creates a debate between the natives of Antigua and the Western tourist, in which the tourist has

A Poetic Exploration of the Artistic Process: Inspiration and Frustration in Shakespeare and Keats

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At times it seems that art cannot help but be self-reflexive. In the poetry of both Shakespeare and Keats, literature and the creative process are themes that surface and dominate their work, even when the presumed subject of their work is entirely unrelated. Shakespeare's Sonnet "66" and "76", despite being written in a form that traditionally celebrates love, explore the difficulties of the artistic process. "Sonnet 66" addresses the issue of external hardships imposed upon the artist, whereas "Sonnet 76" concentrates on difficulties that originate within. John Keats' "Ode on a Grecian Urn" seems to be more of an ode to imagination and the creative process, defying its self-proclaimed subject, the urn. External examination of the vessel inspires questions as to the events depicted on it, resulting in speculation that goes beyond the urn and creates vivid, colorful poetry. Through the form of their poetry and the various sound

Poems by John Keats - Mini Poem Summaries

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On First Looking into Chapman's Homer The speaker is taken aback and inspired by the beautiful descriptions in Chapman's work Homer . Sleep and Poetry An appreciation of sleep as a wonderful inspirer, and of poetry as high form of art to which the speaker aspires. Endymion Nature is so beautiful as to alleviate depression. Just as nature is grand, so is the prospect of death. Bright Star, Would I Were as Steadfast as Thou Art The speaker wants to be like a star not in the sense that it hangs alone in the sky, forced to watch over everything constantly, but in the sense that it is immortal. He wants to spend eternity with his love or else die. La Belle Dame Sans Merci A knight is lonely and sad. He tells the narrator he met a maiden, and made love to her. She lulled him asleep and met many other men she bewitched. He woke up and discovered her gone. Ode to a Nightingale The speaker is numb, and seeks further numbness in liquor, so that he may forget