The Eve of St Agnes
Outline : 1- John Keats is an influential poet during the Romantic Era. 2- Keats managed to integrate thought, and the sequence of events. 3- The Eve of St Agnes is rich of description. 4- Keats focuses on the feeling of romantic. 5- Keats emphasized on the mystical idea of elves and fairies.
Style and Imagery
John Keats is an influential poet during the Romantic Era. He is known for his love of the country and sensuous descriptions of the beauty of nature. He had a unique style, putting an emphasis on sensual description. He also, was able to describe things overflowing with emotion and draws descriptions of detail from many sources, from his own mind. Creatively, Keats managed to integrate thought, and the sequence of events. The movement, sound and imagery of the language he uses enforce his thought. The rich thought comes to us with vitality and immediacy. The Eve of St Agnes is rich of description and prominent for its elaborate pictorial and musical effects. His words indicate sensuousness and an imagery that draws strong rich ideas. The poem distinguished by sensual pleasures, attention to detail, and the thought of true love. Imagery is the life and pulse of imagination. Skillfully images are used like features that bring alive a whole world that succeeded in conveying it to us Keats ' poetry is characterized by sensual imagery that ranges among all our physical sensations. He managed to combines different senses in one image.
Keats focuses on the feeling of romantic and that is by using effective images of adventure, mystery and the unknown as in the words "frozen grass, numb fingers," and "frosted breath," where it enhanced the romantic feel of the poem. He also, uses the image of the owl to set a tone of the mysterious and unknown, which gives the romantic feel.
In addition, the image of the beadsman praying for the virgin is odd; the thought of someone is being paid to pray for someone long dead is a romantic idea and the word virgin itself brings up feelings of curiosity and romance.
Furthermore, the romantic feel enhanced when the hero is trying to find Madeline. The romantic feel continue improving by the use of the words that are full of wonder and mystery: "Thou must hold water in a witches sieve, and be liege-lord of all the Elves and Fays."
Moreover, Keats emphasized on the mystical idea of elves and fairies by capitalizing the words "Elves and Fays" which give us the feelings of adventure; which is part of romance. He uses phrases that give an impression of darkness and unknown details as in "He cursed thee and thine, both house and land." and "the sculptured dead seem to freeze." In addition, the image of the old crone kept a closed wondrous book of riddles emphasized the romantic feel.
References:
http://ocw.nd.edu/political-science/mary-wollstonecraft-and-mary-shelley/biographies-1/john-keats http://www.bartleby.com/126/ http://www.alpheratz.f2s.com/keats-poetry-agnes2.htm http://www.northallertoncoll.org.uk/english/alit/keats/life.htm http://www-math.mit.edu/~vempala/family/Keats.html http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/english/melani/cs6/keats.html http://www.studyworld.com/newsite/reportessay/literature/Poem%5CThe_Eve_Of_St__Agnes-401455.htm
References: http://ocw.nd.edu/political-science/mary-wollstonecraft-and-mary-shelley/biographies-1/john-keats http://www.bartleby.com/126/ http://www.alpheratz.f2s.com/keats-poetry-agnes2.htm http://www.northallertoncoll.org.uk/english/alit/keats/life.htm http://www-math.mit.edu/~vempala/family/Keats.html http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/english/melani/cs6/keats.html http://www.studyworld.com/newsite/reportessay/literature/Poem%5CThe_Eve_Of_St__Agnes-401455.htm
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