Literature Annotations
 |
Keats, John |
 | On-Line Text |
| Genre | Poem |
| Keywords | Death and Dying, Depression, Freedom, Mental Illness, Pain, Suffering, Suicide |
| Summary | Keats urges his reader not to respond to melancholy by committing suicide. He says to avoid poisons like Wolf's-bane, nightshade, and yew berries. Instead, when most depressed, "glut thy sorrow" on the beauty of a rose or the rainbow of salt and sea. Likewise, if your mistress is angry with you, look into her eyes and feast on their ephemeral beauty. Contrast is the key to pleasure. Melancholy is not the moment for death, but an opportunity for a fine experience. It is the fine balance between pain and pleasure that is ideal. The final stanza rephrases this idea. Beauty is always ephemeral; joy is always about to leave, but these are man's highest moments. |
| Commentary | Keats does not tell his readers to avoid pain or to try and cheer themselves up. He urges them to balance their pain with tremendous pleasure and relish the contrast. |
| Source | Poetical Works |
| Publisher | Oxford Univ. Press |
| Edition | 1990 |
| Editors | H. W. Garrod |
| Place Published | New York |
| Alternate Source | The Complete Poems |
| Alternate Publisher | Penguin |
| Alternate Edition | 1977 |
| Alternate Editors | John Barnard |
| Place Published | New York |
| Miscellaneous | First published: 1820 |
| Annotated by | Moore, Pamela |
| Date of Entry | 08/08/94 |
| Last Revised | 05/07/01 |