Concetti Chiave
- John Keats belonged to the second generation of Romantic poets, known for his love of sensation, the Middle Ages, and Greek civilization.
- He uniquely combined Romanticism and Neo-classicism, akin to Uso Foscolo's approach in "Le Grazie."
- Keats dedicated his life to poetry, starting with the sonnet "On first Looking into Chapman’s Homer."
- Despite personal tragedies, such as the loss of his mother and brother to TB, he produced significant works like "The Eve of St Agnes" and several odes.
- Keats died of TB in Rome and was laid to rest in the Protestant cemetery there.
Romantic influences and inspirations
He belongs to the second generation of Romantic poets. His relish of sensation, his feeling for the Middle Ages, his love for the Greek civilisation and his conception of the writer are features that make him romantic.
He fuse Romanticism and Neo-classicism, just as Uso Foscolo did in Le Grazie.
(According to Foscolo the three Graces are the gods who live between the heavens and the earth. Their task is to implement the harmony in the world through the arts that make the minds of men nobler and predispose them to civilization.)
He decided to devote his life to write poetry, beginning with the sonnet “On first Looking into Chapman’s Homer”.
With the help of the poet Hunt, Keats knew the most important artists of this period, including Shelley.
Life challenges and poetic achievements
He met many difficulties in his life including the death of his mother and brother because of TB. Despite this, he wrote important works in this period:
- The Eve of St Agnes: written in Spenserian stanzas. In it romantic features appear.
- Ode to a Nightingale, Ode on a Grecian Urn, To autumn, Ode on Melancholy, To Psyche: in them the poet analyzes the relations between pleasure and pain, happiness and melancholy.
- La Belle Dame sans Merci
- Hyperion
He died because of TB in Rome, so was buried in the Protestant cemetery in it.
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