Chapter-4 A Thing of Beauty By- John Keats

John Keats – A Short Biography

John Keats was one of the main figures of the second generation of Romantic poets, along with Lord
Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley. His work included Endymion, Isabella, Lamia, The Eve of St. Agnes,
and Other Poems. He died at a very early age of twenty-five of tuberculosis after leaving an indelible
mark on English poetry.

Theme / Central Idea of the Lesson. Analysis of A Thing of Beauty

A thing of beauty is a source of constant joy. Beauty can be found everywhere. It is something that
has the ability to transform lives. It also highlights the fact that beauty has a therapeutic quality, i.e.
the ability to remove negativity. It can be any object, nature, tales or even noble deeds of our
ancestors.

Form
`A Thing of Beauty’ belongs to the Romantic genre. The poem is written in rhyming couplets and the
rhyme scheme is AABB.

Source
‘A Thing of Beauty’ is an excerpt from his poem, `Endymion: A Poetic Romance’ which was first
published in 1818. It begins with the line “A thing of beauty is a joy forever”.odes “ lyrical poem”.
Summary
Lines 1-5)
A Thing of beauty is a joy forever
Its loveliness increases, it will never
Pass into nothingness; but will keep
A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams, and health, and quiet breathing.
Explanation:-
The poet says that beauty stays forever. It never fades away and it increases with the
passing time. The poet means to say that an object of beauty never goes off with the
passing time, rather it multiplies with passage of time. According to the poet, beauty is like a
beautiful tree under whose shade all the creatures can sleep peacefully, enjoy good health
and relaxed breathing.
Lines 6-7)
Therefore, on every morrow, are we wreathing
A flowery band to bind us to the earth,
Explanation:-
The poet says that with every passing day, it is the beauty which fills us with immense joy to
live on this earth. With the object of beauty providing us sustenance of life, we are being
attached to the earth like all the flowers remain attached to each other in a garland of
flowers.

Lines 8-11)
Spite of despondence, of the inhuman dearth
Of noble natures, of the gloomy days,
Of all the unhealthy and o’er-darkened ways
Made for our searching: yes, in spite of all,
Explanation:-
The poet means to say that a beautiful object has such magnetic charm that it tends to
overpower everything. In spite of being depressed, in spite of having shortness of virtuous
people, in spite of our sad days, trials and tribulations which tend to restrict us to find those
things of beauty, we overcome all limitations and find joy in recollecting the moment of
happiness in our lives.
Lines 12-13)

Some shape of beauty moves away the pall

From our dark spirits.
Explanation:-
The poet emphasizes on the fact that in spite of all shortcomings of life, all the hurdles of life,
in spite of all, an object of beauty that is found in nature, takes away our pain from our
depressed mind.

Lines 14-19)
Such the sun, the moon,
Trees old, and young, sprouting a shady boon
For simple sheep; and such are daffodils
With the green world they live in; and clear rills
That for themselves a cooling covert make
‘Gainst the hot season; the mid forest brake
Rich with a sprinkling of fair musk-rose blooms
Explanation :-
The poet gives the examples of the sun, moon , trees , daffodils, and small rivers and forest
fern- which are the things of beauty found in nature and they are responsible for creating
beautiful memories for us during our bad phase of life. For example, tress both young and old
provide shades to young sheep, daffodils by their green surroundings are a source of
perennial joy for us, clear streams provide cool breeze and give relief from the hot season. The
forest fern of musk roses is also a refreshing treat for the eyes.

Lines 20-24
And such too is the grandeur of the dooms
We have imagined for the mighty dead;
All lovely tales that we have heard or read;
An endless fountain of immortal drink,
Pouring unto us from the heaven’s brink
Explanation:-
While talking about the objects of nature that give us immense pleasure, the poet takes
reference from our everyday life to justify that there is presence of joy even in the
remembrance of famous people who are dead. They continue to inspire us with their
contribution in the world even though they are no longer with us. The poet further says in this
reference that all beautiful stories of great people that we have heard or read are a source of
perennial ( endless) pleasure for us as these stories continue to inspire us and help us sustain
the hard times of life. These stories are like endless flow of water from a fountain, which are
showered upon us from the almighty God. We experience heavenly bliss when we take
recourse to the life stories of great personalities. They are like endless fountain from which
mankind can drink elixir of life.

Poetic Devices – A Thing of Beauty

Metaphor:

• ‘bower quiet’-refers to a quiet shady part in the garden

• ‘sweet dreams’-happy dreams
• ‘wreathing a flowery band’-connecting to nature
• `pall’-a covering like a shroud
• ‘endless fountain of immortal drink’- refers to the deeds of great men and women that have
made them a source of inspiration for people of all times
• The list of beautiful things is metaphors and symbols of nature.

Alliteration:

• `noble natures’
• ‘cooling covert’
• ‘band to bind’

Imagery:

• ‘flowery bands’
• ‘shady boon’
• ‘clear rills’
• ‘daffodils in green world’
• ‘grandeur of dooms’
• ‘cooling covert’
• ‘endless fountain of eternal drink’

Symbol:

• ‘simple sheep’ — refers to mankind as Christ is considered the shepherd who leads human
souls out of the dark world of sins and temptations

Transferred epithet:

• ‘gloomy days’ • ‘unhealthy and o’er darkened ways’

Oxymoron
 • ‘mighty dead’