Poetry of John Keats Inspires Readers Because

¶ … poetry of John Keats inspires readers because of their lyricism, accessibility, and imagery. Many of Keats' poems focus on beauty as subject and theme, for beauty is a source of inspiration. Flowers and other natural objects like birds, trees, and supernatural creatures appear frequently in the works of John Keats to convey the theme of beauty. As one of the threads tying Keats' poems together, the theme of beauty emerges in several of his more famous works, including "Ode to a Nightingale," "Ode on a Grecian Urn," and "Ode on Melancholy." Beauty is treated as a subject worthy of spiritual discussion, and Keats frequently makes mythological and esoteric references in his poems. Keats treats beauty as one of the mysteries of life, which he seeks to understand through his verses. The beauty of nature is one way in which Keats can access and comprehend the true meaning of beauty. Another way in which Keats treats the theme of beauty is by describing it as a function of time. Time can be the enemy of beauty, as age begets death and decay. However, beauty also transcends time because Beauty is eternal. Keats conveys the theme of Beauty in his poetry using sensual imagery that focuses on time and eternity.

Ode on a Grecian Urn" is Keats' uplifting description of the paintings on an ancient Greek urn. Using the urn as the object of discussion is significant to the theme of beauty because a Grecian urn is ancient. It has witnessed the ravages of time and still retains its physical luster. The urn is the "still unravished bride of quietness," meaning it is unsullied by time. Keats uses images of silence to emphasize that the urn is eternal: "foster child of silence and slow time." The paintings on the urn, which consist of various images of "deities or mortals, or of both" are described as a "flowery tale." These paintings or carvings were lovely enough to inspire Keats to write this poem, or at least to use it as a metaphor for beauty. Greek gods and goddesses are immortal ideals of human beauty, and Keats evokes them to create a sense of timelessness. Furthermore, this timeless quality shared by the gods and the urn itself is an essential quality of beauty. Beauty is as timeless as the gods and as long-lasting as the Grecian urn.

The Grecian urn is an art object, and thus a thing of beauty. It is also a man-made object, which shows that Keats values human creations as much as the creations in nature. Ironically, although Keats associates beauty with timelessness in "Ode on a Grecian Urn," the object can be a victim of time. Keats is somehow aware that all physical objects of beauty are transitory, like the urn. The things of greater, longer lasting beauty are spiritual. In the second stanza of "Ode on a Grecian Urn," Keats refers to melodies that cannot be heard by the human ear: "Those unheard / Are sweeter." The physical senses can only behold transitory beauty, while the spiritual senses perceive true, lasting beauty. "She cannot fade." Spiritual beauty is eternal, like the "happy, happy boughs" that "cannot shed" their leaves. Here, Keats also blends imagery from the natural world to convey a sense of beauty and timelessness.

Beauty is also associated with youth throughout "Ode on a Grecian Urn." Keats refers to the "fair youth" beneath the tree; in Keats' time, "fair" meant pretty. The eternal spring the poet alludes to in the third stanza symbolizes eternal youth, which translates to eternal beauty, "forever young." Because Keats' ode is on a Grecian urn, he is probably seeing pictures of young men and women frolicking. The images on the urn correspond with the symbolism of youth and beauty.

When old age shall this generation waste, thou shall remain," writes Keats in the fourth and final stanza of "Ode on a Grecian Urn." In other words, the passage of time will not destroy beauty. The poem ends by associating beauty with truth, which is eternal. "Beauty is truth, truth beauty." Beauty is not transitory like the objects in the physical universe, and beauty does not age. Beauty transcends time because it is a spiritual quality, like truth itself.

Keats ties together the concepts of timelessness and beauty throughout his works. However, Keats is not always optimistic about the ability of beauty to transcend time. In his poem, "Ode to a Nightingale," Keats describes aging as a loss of physical beauty. In the third stanza, Keats mediates on the physical condition of aging: "where men sit and hear each other groan; / Where palsy shakes a few, sad, last gray hairs, / Where youth grows pale, and specter-thin, and dies." This is a more somber view of beauty than that in "Ode on a Grecian Urn." Keats speaks to the Nightingale, whose song is beautiful to the ear. He also refers repeatedly to flowers and also to wine, which induces a state of consciousness that allows Keats to appreciate mundane beauty.