Greek Effect on the Poetry of John Keats or Keats Hellenism or The Hellenistic Approach of Keats or The Greek Note in Keats

Paper on the Greek Effect on the Poetry of John Keats

The German knowledge voracious exclaims after the covetable first glimpse of the eternal beauty of Helen:

“Was this the face that launched a thousand ships,

  And burnt the topless towers of Ilium…”

In this utterance, though a paradoxical truth, we have conspicuous evidence of a passion for beauty. Again, when we pay attention to one closing paradoxical and many a time anthologised:

“‘Beauty is truth, truth beauty,’ that is all

   Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know.”

Here we find the same passion for beauty, beauty that is truth. John Keats, whose span of literary career was too short to be another Shakespeare, owed much of his poetry to the ancient Greeks. That is why Shelley was compelled to remark, “John Keats is a Greek.” John Keats suffered a passion for beauty that ended only with his death. Though, we must remember that this passion was not infatuation; Keats knew the truth; Keats knew the beauty! It is a sure truth that Keats followed the ancient Greeks and the mythology created by them. My paper is dedicated to the ‘ever-unfortunate-and-sad’ poet John Keats and his Hellenism.

John Keats was acquainted to the wondrous world of ancient Greek through the translations and the dictionaries only; it means clearly that, then what knowledge he gained about the Greek world was scanty. John Keats, however, read, liked, and owed much of his Hellenism to Chapman. His sonnet, “On First Looking into the Chapman’s Homer” is an example of that.

Though clumsy were the sources, yet Keats’ imagination was phenomenal and he pierced deep into the world of ancient Greeks. A Pagan, for whom the only truth was beauty, be that beauty in ugliest creature like the serpent, or in the wonderful ‘Grecian Urn’, he started seeing every possible personification in the nature. It was the effect of his Greek reading that Keats saw the image of ‘Selene’ each time Keats saw the moon. He saw the nymphs dancing and ‘Dryads’ when he saw forest or a tree. Often we find Keats listening to Orpheus in his verses, giving a divine shape to ‘Autumn’, making a Goddess of human ‘Psyche’ and doing all sort of acts that force us to go in a state of nostalgia and live in the world of ancient Greeks!

Apart from his view of Gods present everywhere in nature, we find another Greek effect on his poetry in the form of his deep interest in Greek mythology. Keats was such fascinated with the myths of Greek that rare are his protracted verses those are orphan of Greek myths! The beauty of ‘Endymion’ and the act of ‘Selene’ we find in his first composed long and loosely handled narrative romance “Endymion.” This long poem is very famous for the opening line that strikes every bosom with the enormous beauty and a solace:

“A thing of beauty is a joy forever.”

“Endymion” throughout moves in the setting of ancient Greek myths and amid the Greek Gods. Other poems of Keats that ploy with the Greek myths are “Lamia”, “Hyperion”, and the “Fall of Hyperion” majorly in the lengthy poems. As the very titles of these pieces evoke, these deal with and lull ancient Greek mythology with painting of Keats’ imagination and his gifted gift of powerful lyricism! Among these, “Lamia” again countersigns the revival of ancient Paganism of Greeks in John Keats. Keats, in “Lamia” tries to favour the beauty even in the ugliest creature like serpent. The beauty, for a poet of beauty in pure sense, does never end, and in this poem, Keats presents the resemblance of grand opening line of “Endymion”:

“And soon his eyes had drunk her beauty up,

 Leaving no drop in the bewildering cup,

 And still the cup was full…”

Here, amid the setting of nymphs, monsters, and ancient Greek, Keats also carries the Greek hoisting flag of beauty with full swing.

Apart from the long narratives, the shorter poems of Keats also display conspicuous Greekness. The best known of them is perhaps “Ode on a Grecian Urn”. This ode sings of an ancient urn that displays the marvellous beauty to the eyes of the poet Keats. However, with beauty, Keats love is bare for the ancient Greek arts and once again, he displays it in the “Ode on a Grecian Urn”. Keats speaks of his love for the beauty for ancient Greek Urn in a manner like this:

“Heard melodies are sweet, but those unheard

  Are sweeter; therefore, ye soft pipes, play on:

  Not to the sensual ear, but, more endear’d,

  Pipe to the spirit ditties of no tone…”

The lines reflect the apparent passion of Keats for the ancient Greeks, their art, their creation, and everything about Greek! Keats, in short, suggests in his ode that art is superior to experience and men must realize it and not underestimate the value of ancient art.

He paints the war amid Greek Gods in “Hyperion” without any secure knowledge save some scanty readings and his imagination. Keats delights in the world of ancient Greeks and in the ‘vales’ where he finds nymphs, and trees raising their hands and dancing; he finds the sea Goddess in water, God Bacchus in wine, and the life in everything sought! Keats is a true Greek in his poems, in his imagination, in his perception, in his Paganism, and by birth! He found the truth in beauty, and beauty in the ancient ruins of the once glorious Greeks; therefore, he followed the footsteps of the ancient Greek masters and mixed his fancy and lustre of dazzling imagination to produce the poetry that was meant to lead the modern poets and fulfil the wish of young poet to remain in the list of English Poets after his death.

At last, to deduce the argument about the Greek effect on the poetry of John Keats, I have to add that a young learner, who was sad about the decaying virtue- beauty, found no other way than escaping the age and remain in the nostalgia of ancient glory. His poetry, that is fulgent with meaning and a pure Greek adoration of beauty, will ever be a landmark for the newcomers. However, some critics and poets, even one like Byron, claims the passion of Keats in the vulgar phrase: “Poetic masturbation.” It is nothing but only the pain of not realizing the truth! Keats is a pure poet who has indeed a passion for beauty. His art, his poetry is for the sake of poetry and nothing else. He is an English Greek…

                                                  An Apology for Keats and His Greekness

On Keats being a Greek

Let him live in solace, in nostalgia

Where he finds his Truth- beauty,

To adore that truth is his duty,

Whither shalt thou or they judge?

He remains the sole to glean

The myriad beauty so calm and clean,

And present the pure painted reminiscence

To the ignorant eyes of unknown immense!

Paper by Alok Mishra

(Author and Poet)

Pursuing MA in English from Nalanda College Biharsharif