Analysis Of John Keats Ode On A Grecian Urn

The poem ‘Ode on a Grayson Perry Urn is clear a reference to John Keats poem, ‘Ode on a Grecian Urn’. This can be seen by the way that Tim Turnbull’s poem even the by the format it follows and what it is message is. Tim’s poem was like Keats’s, inspired by a work of pottery, although Keats’s poem was inspired by Greek vase representing aspects of ancient Greek lives while Tim’s represents aspects of modern day british life, working class.

Keats’ Ode was inspired by his contemplation of a Greek vase dating from classical times, depicting scenes from ancient life including lovers, gods, musical celebrations and religious rites, and the vivid sense of life conveyed by these scenes and their stillness.Turnbull’s poem is also about a decorated
As with Keats’ Grecian urn, the artist has managed to convey both the frenetic physicality of these young people and ‘a sense of peace’. The shift is seen in stanza two when concern for the safety of these kids as they indulge in their high-risk thrills emerges in the tender word ‘children’. Yes, their behaviour is anti-social, promiscuous, irresponsible, but they are, after all, only ‘children’, their bravado hiding vulnerability and a hopelessness about the future which is ‘for the rich’. They also seem far more alive than the ‘dead suburban streets’ and the ‘pensioners and parents’ they horrify.Turnbull builds on this idea in the final stanza which imagines a future poet contemplating a Perry urn, as removed from its context as Keats was from the world of ancient Greece. Confronted by Perry’s ‘garish’ celebration of their raw energy, the poem wonders whether this poet will find beauty and inspiration in these young people. The language at this point becomes more formal, more Keatsian in fact: ‘razed/to level dust’, ‘free and bountiful’, ‘How happy were those creatures then’.