A THING OF BEAUTY BY JOHN KEATS

1. *
*BY- JOHN KEATS

2. ABOUT THE POET
John Keats was born in London in the
year 1795 and died in Rome in 1821 at
the young age of 25 due to illness
(tuberculosis). He is a romantic poet
and his poetry is characterized by
sensual imagery in his most popular
work which is a series of odes -(a
lyrical poem which is meant for a
particular subject). Today, his poems
are one of the most sought after
creations in English literature. The
above given poetry is an excerpt from
his poem, -Endymion : A poetic
Romance-(1818), considered to be an
epic poem.

3. BACKGROUND OF THE POEM ‘A THING OF BEAUTY’
Based on Greek mythology about a shepherd named
Endymion, his quest for his love Diana and how in his
quest, he falls in love with an Earthly maiden, who later
turns out to be Diana herself.

4. A thing of beauty is a joy forever
Its loveliness increases, it will never
Pass into nothingness; but will keep
A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams, and health,
and quiet breathing.
Bower: A shady place under the tree

5. The poet says that beauty stays forever. It never fades
away. It etches an indelible mark on the screen of our
mind. Rather, it increases with the passing time and gives
us the same happiness whenever it flashes as a memory.
The perception of the poet regarding beauty is that it
never goes off with the passing time, rather it beautifies
more and more. For the poet, beauty is like a beautiful
shady tree under whose shade all the creatures can sleep
peacefully and enjoy good health.

6. LITERARY DEVICES:
rhyme scheme: aabbc (forever,
never, keep, sleep, breathing)
Alliteration: Use of consonant
sound at the start of two words
which are close in series
(Sleep-Sweet)
Metaphor: bower Quiet
(calmness of the bower is
compared to the calming effect
of a beautiful thing)

7. Therefore, on every morrow,
are we wreathing
A flowery band to bind us to
the earth,
Spite of despondence, of the
inhuman dearth
Of noble natures, of the gloomy
days,
Of all the unhealthy and o’er-
darkened ways
Made for our searching:

8. yes, in spite of all,
Some shape of beauty moves
away the pall
From our dark spirits.
Morrow: The following day
Wreathing: surround, encircle
Despondence: depressed
Gloomy: sad

9. The poet says that every day, it is the beauty which fills us
with the spirit to live. It is the beauty which builds the desire
in us to live though there are sad moments and cruel people
around us. So here the poet wants to say that without beauty
the earth will be full of cruel & selfish people, sad and
gloomy moments. It is the beauty which is created by God
which helps us to remove the sadness from our hearts.
Made for our searching: The negativity is for exploring the
darker side of the world and make a choice what we want to
be and what we need to avoid.

10. LITERARY DEVICES:
Anaphora: Use of same word in two consecutive lines (of
noble natures- Of all the unhealthy)
Alliteration: Use of consonant sound at the start of two words
which are close in series (‘b’ in Band Bind, ‘n’ in Noble
nature, ‘s’ in some shape).
Metaphor: wreathing a flowery band (the beautiful things of
our life bind us to the earth)
Imagery: creating a sensory effect of beautiful things lined up
in a string ( A flowery band to bind us)
inversion: normal order of words is reversed ( Are we
wreathing a flowery band)

11. Such the sun, the moon,
Trees old, and young, sprouting
a shady boon
For simple sheep; and such are
daffodils
With the green world they live
in;

12. Boon: blessing
Rills: a small stream
Brake: a thick mass of ferns /
process to slow down
Covert : an area of thick low
bushes and trees where animals
can hide

13. and clear rills
That for themselves a cooling
covert make
‘Gainst the hot season; the mid
forest brake
Rich with a sprinkling of fair
musk-rose blooms;

14. Here the poet describes the beautiful things which are
present on earth. These are the sun, moon, trees, flowers
(daffodils) and the rivers. Poet says that all these things are
like a blessing bestowed on all the creatures by earth. He
further describes that the trees provide us with their shade,
flowers with their beauty and rivers with their coolness
during the hot summers. All of these are the beauties of
nature which are like a boon for us.

15. Literary devices:
Alliteration: Use of consonant sound at the start of two words
which are close in series (‘s’ in Sprouting Shady, Simple sheep,
‘c’ in cooling covert)
Imagery: Trees giving shade (sprouting shady boon), growing
process of daffodils (daffodils with the green world they live
in), Clean river streams (Clear rills)
Antithesis: opposite words placed together (old and young)

16. And such too is the grandeur of
the dooms
We have imagined for the
mighty dead;
All lovely tales that we have
heard or read;
An endless fountain of
immortal drink,
Pouring unto us from the
heaven’s brink

17. Grandeur: high rank or socially
important
Mighty: enormous
Immortal: never dying
Brink: edge
fountain of immortal drink :
source of inspiration

18. The poet further carries on with the description of the more
beautiful things present on earth. such as the beautiful musk
roses which have such a nice fragrance. Then he describes the
tales of the mighty warriors who laid their lives for their
countries or for humanity. He says that these beautiful things
are the gifts from god for all of us. They are like a nectar given
by god to us and these are those beauties which are immortal
and give us a reason to live on this earth despite having so
many sorrows in our life.

19. LITERARY DEVICES:
Alliteration: Use of consonant sound at the start of two words
which are close in series (‘h’ in have heard)
Metaphor: Immortal drinks ( beautiful objects of nature are
forever like a never-ending portion of a drink)
Rhyme: Rhyme scheme is used in every stanza of the poem
(forever; never, keep; sleep, dead; read etc.)
Imagery: Bushes full of musk roses (sprinkling of fair musk rose
blooms), books describing valour of fighters (grandeur-
..mighty dead), god providing us with best things (pouring
from the heaven’s brink)

20. What does the line, "Therefore are we wreathing a flowery
band to bind us to earth suggest to you?
It means that we get attached to the beautiful things around
us and weave a pretty band which binds us with our life, it
becomes the reason for us to live.

21. What makes human beings love life in spite of troubles and
sufferings?
The eternal beauty of various things gives us happiness and
relaxation. It makes us love life inspite of life's troubles and
sufferings.

22. Why is grandeur associated with the - mighty dead?
The noble deeds of the brave men who sacrificed their lives
are an inspiration for us forever. The beautiful legacy of their
bravery is the grandeur which is associated with the mighty
dead.

23. Do we experience things of beauty only for short moments or
do they make a lasting impression on us?
According to the poet, a thing of beauty is a joy forever. Even
if we see it for a few moments, it has a lasting impression on
us and its beautiful memory stays with us forever. It inspires us
to live, despite the ruthlessness of life.

24. What image does the poet use to describe the beautiful
bounty of the earth?
The beautiful bounty of the earth is described by -endless
fountain of immortal drink- which signifies that God bestows
us with all his beautiful creations which help us live despite
the sad, gloomy aspects of life.