To Autumn by John Keates - Critical Analysis Essay example

To Autumn by John Keates - Critical Analysis John Keats once said about Lord Byron â€Å"He describes what he sees - I describe what I imagine, mine is the hardest task† To Autumn is evidence of his way of thinking, as the poem is a vivid, lyrical portrayal of the English autumn, as he imagined it. The poem celebrates autumn as a season of abundance, a season of reflection, a season of preparation for the winter, and a season worthy of admiration with comparison to what romantic poetry often focuses upon - the spring. The poem is rather literal in its meaning as it does not convey a deeper level of meaning that relates to the reader. The poem fails to â€Å"move† the reader in a philosophical, idealistic or moralistic way, and therefore bears†¦show more content†¦It emphasises the harmony of autumn and this effect, which is used often throughout the poem, could also be a metaphor for the slow down of life during autumn, and the imminent death of the season. The poem follows the traditional framework of an ode. It is overly lyrical and has a rhythmic device, generally common to all three stanzas, with the exception of the first stanza. The poem follows a rhyme scheme of ABAB CDED CCE for the first stanza, and ABAB CDEC DDE for the second and third. It is unclear why Keats chose to follow a different rhyme scheme for the last two stanzas, but it is certainly not an accident. D and C â€Å"swap† rhythmic positions from line eight onwards. The poem employs iambic pentameter, each line as ten syllables. The poem compares autumn to spring in the third stanza. Where are the songs of spring? Ay, where are they? Think not of them, thou hast thy music too,- This is where the true meaning of the poem is conveyed. Obviously Keats had recognised the almost clichà © use of spring, as new life in romantic poetry, and of the poetry before this era. His motive behind this poem is to employ an understanding that the autumn, which represents the end of life, is just as important as the spring, which represents new life. The autumn has it’s own music too. The personification of autumn in this poem is