To Autumn and Ode on a Grecian Urn by John Keats

             These two themes, time passing through the season with a sense of fullness, and an exploration of the border between desire and fulfillment in human life, are illustrated through the analytical interpretation of John Keats' "To Autumn" and "Ode on a Grecian Urn." Stanzas set in iambic pentameter and ideas written specifically in ways that force one to read between the lines are some examples of how Keats' odes grab the attention of audiences and how his concepts are intriguingly construed. Through the comparison of the worlds art, beauty, and truth, versus life's death and decay in Grecian Urn, to being concerned with the much quieter activity of daily observation and appreciation in Autumn, and the mutual similarities of time and change, Keats' ability to express new concepts and stretch his writing capabilities as a romantic poet is exemplified through his work in both of these odes.
             Time is a significant factor in both Grecian Urn and Autumn, and time and change are significantly represented in Autumn, moderately illuminating in the beginning stanzas of both poems. The urn is touched by a slow time, not the real worlds' time, causing moments that seem to last for an eternity. The narrator in Ode on a Grecian Urn is excited about this "vase," yet the attempt to keep his distance is because he wants this amazing moment to last forever; however, all great moments and times change, like love and all four seasons, and the narrator's effort to hold onto these times is completed by trapping them in the urn. Since people change and decay through time, the narrator tries to capture the urns' meaning in a phase. These meanings are dreams and desires, and once caught in the urn, anticipation is eternalized. Given that time is frozen, the narrator cannot grieve his lover, because her beauty will never fade. The comparison of time in Grecian Urn is the power of the urn, which is dreams and desires, and transcends of life, being an actual r...

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To Autumn and Ode on a Grecian Urn by John Keats. (1969, December 31). In MegaEssays.com. Retrieved 02:29, May 20, 2024, from https://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/81542.html