Transsexual Dreamer

             "Ode on a Grecian Urn" by John Keats is the memory of a young woman who has died, and how that memory affects the entire town. The Grecian urn is the canvas which Keats writes a testimony to her and it is unclear whether he himself is in love with her. The setting for the poem is directly described.
             Several conflicts exist throughout the poem. The first is the woman herself. She is described by Keats as a virgin who never had a chance to bear children and was untouched by any man. However, he uses words that have definite sexual tones like "wild ecstasy", "mad pursuit", "sensual ear", "bliss" and "panting human passion".
             Another conflict is the amount of sound throughout the piece. Keats describes the quiet and silence of the glade where she is honored. He uses the words "heard melodies are sweet, but those unheard are sweeter", "ditties of no tone", "streets for evermore will silent be" and "silent form" to present the lack of noise in the community. When describing her life and its impact on those she touched, he talked about organs and drums playing while writing "heard melodies", "pipe to the spirit" and "piping songs".
             A third conflict is the life and death of the woman. The town will painfully miss her "heart sorrowed never more in their midst", as they move on to future without her. This is lessened by the memories that will stay in their minds.
             The first is the general feeling of the community toward the woman. There was not anyone left at their homes during the funeral as "river town, mountain fortress empty of folk" says. The crowd was so large that it trampled the weeds, and broke branches on the way to the service almost as if a herd was moving through. This feeling would continue long after she was laid to rest as "streets for evermore will sile...

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Transsexual Dreamer. (2000, January 01). In MegaEssays.com. Retrieved 06:55, March 28, 2024, from https://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/93712.html