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Poems, Selected by John Keats
by
John Keats
John Keats's abiding poetic legacy is one of extraordinary and triumphant richness. Before the moment of `self-will' when he declared his intention to be a poet, Keats (1795-1821) had chosen the medical profession. His apothecary's training influenced his conception of poetry as an art that could mitigate the world's suffering. Keats's generous spirit triumphed over person...more
Audio
Published
February 1st 1993
by Blackstone Audiobooks
(first published 1906)
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Un desiderio soddisfatto nel giro di poche ore. l'unica copia rimasta. "La Temeraire" di Turner in copertina...
Una bella cosa è una gioia per sempre:
La sua bellezza aumenta e mai
Sparirà nel nulla.
Non ho mai provato sensazioni così intense fino ad ora. Ogni volta che ripenso alla sua storia e alla sua fine, non posso fare a meno di piangere e di sentirlo sempre più vicino a me. Credeva di essere un fallito. Credeva che non sarebbe riuscito a lasciare un segno del suo passaggio. La sua morte prema...more
Una bella cosa è una gioia per sempre:
La sua bellezza aumenta e mai
Sparirà nel nulla.
Non ho mai provato sensazioni così intense fino ad ora. Ogni volta che ripenso alla sua storia e alla sua fine, non posso fare a meno di piangere e di sentirlo sempre più vicino a me. Credeva di essere un fallito. Credeva che non sarebbe riuscito a lasciare un segno del suo passaggio. La sua morte prema...more
Bright star, would I were stedfast as thou art--
Not in lone splendour hung aloft the night
And watching, with eternal lids apart,
Like nature's patient, sleepless Eremite,
The moving waters at their priestlike task
Of pure ablution round earth's human shores,
Or gazing on the new soft-fallen mask
Of snow upon the mountains and the moors--
No--yet still stedfast, still unchangeable,
Pillow'd upon my fair love's ripening breast,
To feel for ever its soft fall and swell,
Awake for ever in a sweet unrest,
Sti...more
Not in lone splendour hung aloft the night
And watching, with eternal lids apart,
Like nature's patient, sleepless Eremite,
The moving waters at their priestlike task
Of pure ablution round earth's human shores,
Or gazing on the new soft-fallen mask
Of snow upon the mountains and the moors--
No--yet still stedfast, still unchangeable,
Pillow'd upon my fair love's ripening breast,
To feel for ever its soft fall and swell,
Awake for ever in a sweet unrest,
Sti...more
Hence Burgundy, Claret, and Port,
Away with old Hock and madeira,
Too earthly ye are for my sport;
There's a beverage brighter and clearer.
Instead of a piriful rummer,
My wine overbrims a whole summer;
My bowl is the sky,
And I drink at my eye,
Till I feel in the brain
A Delphian pain -
Then follow, my Caius! then follow:
On the green of the hill
We will drink our fill
Of golden sunshine,
Till our brains intertwine
With the glory and grace of Apollo!
God of the Meridian,
And of the East and Wes...more
Away with old Hock and madeira,
Too earthly ye are for my sport;
There's a beverage brighter and clearer.
Instead of a piriful rummer,
My wine overbrims a whole summer;
My bowl is the sky,
And I drink at my eye,
Till I feel in the brain
A Delphian pain -
Then follow, my Caius! then follow:
On the green of the hill
We will drink our fill
Of golden sunshine,
Till our brains intertwine
With the glory and grace of Apollo!
God of the Meridian,
And of the East and Wes...more
I only read a few of his poems, but from what I've read I can't wait to read more.
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:
Fair youth, beneath the trees, thou canst not leave 15
Thy song, nor ever can those trees be bare;
Bold Lover, never, never canst thou kiss,
Though winning near the goal—yet, do not grieve;
She cannot fade, though thou hast not thy bliss,...more
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:
Fair youth, beneath the trees, thou canst not leave 15
Thy song, nor ever can those trees be bare;
Bold Lover, never, never canst thou kiss,
Though winning near the goal—yet, do not grieve;
She cannot fade, though thou hast not thy bliss,...more
"Heard melodies are sweet, but those unheard
Are sweeter"
I have taken my sweet time in reading this. I wanted to allow the legendary words of Keats to sink in - because the thing is, his beautiful and perfectly lyrical poems demands to be felt in order to be understood.
His writing is eloquent and filled with imaginative power. Every single word of his is so persuasive and tempting; so blissfully seductive. And in the end he of course won me over. With all of my heart. Five stars and all the prais...more
Are sweeter"
I have taken my sweet time in reading this. I wanted to allow the legendary words of Keats to sink in - because the thing is, his beautiful and perfectly lyrical poems demands to be felt in order to be understood.
His writing is eloquent and filled with imaginative power. Every single word of his is so persuasive and tempting; so blissfully seductive. And in the end he of course won me over. With all of my heart. Five stars and all the prais...more
Sep 12, 2012
Jan-Maat
added it
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
the tired, the poor and various huddled masses
I am too old, I think, for Keats what with his Belle Dame sans Merci and I find it difficult to square his elven grotts with his suburban London life.
In my schooling sex, death and poetry were provided courtesy of John Donne and his obvious lustiness and explicit intellectualising is not to be found here where hints and subtly reign.
In terms of the verse I was impressed with the narrative drive of Lamia and found myself in sympathy with the poor snake-woman. Maybe the antipathy of the worlds of...more
In my schooling sex, death and poetry were provided courtesy of John Donne and his obvious lustiness and explicit intellectualising is not to be found here where hints and subtly reign.
In terms of the verse I was impressed with the narrative drive of Lamia and found myself in sympathy with the poor snake-woman. Maybe the antipathy of the worlds of...more
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This one star rating is essentially a judgment on me. Apparently, I'm too much of a barbarian to enjoy a book of poetry by a famous poet. I'm sure the poems, by and large, are meaningful and probing, but a class and a knowledgeable teacher are prerequisites to a mind expanding read for this reviewer.
Yes, among the 216 pages, I did come across the single line, "A thing of beauty is a joy forever ..." And Keat's musings on nature and the universe were intriguing, thinking back about his time from...more
Yes, among the 216 pages, I did come across the single line, "A thing of beauty is a joy forever ..." And Keat's musings on nature and the universe were intriguing, thinking back about his time from...more
The Poems by John Keats is now published in hardback by Penguin Classics. The Poems have been selected by Claire Tomaline. Its ISBN is 1846141435. She provides us with an introduction and a wide selection of Keat's Poems. Although while alive John Keats (1795-1821) was heavily critized he has since his death become a very popular poet. He was a key poet in The Romantic Movement in the early 19th century and his poems heavily influenced later poets like Tennyson and Owen. Keats' Odes are still th...more
John Keats was one of the great Romantic poets. Unlike Wordsworth, he was another of those Romantics who died much younger than he should have (tuberculosis). I bought this many years ago, with a collection of other Romantic poetry. The price tag is still on this volume; it cost 50 cents from the Bradley University Book Store (so I probably bought it in 1968 or 1969)!
There is a very brief introductory essay that provides some context on the poet's works. Then, the remainder of this volume focus...more
There is a very brief introductory essay that provides some context on the poet's works. Then, the remainder of this volume focus...more
Concerning 96% of my regular reading material, I'll often find it hard to stay focused for more than 20 or 30 minutes at a time without daydreaming, refreshing a drink, working on something else, etc. But Keats... I could read Keats for six hours at a time and be consistently content without averting my attentions. He is, I dare say, my "favorite" poet pretty much ever. He presents life and the "real" as profoundly dark and does so in such an eloquent and beautiful songlike manner, that it is di...more
This selection includes some of his famous poems, like "Bright Star" and "Ode to a Nightingale." Keats beautiful words still resonate two centuries later. I could swim in a phrase like,
"And still she slept an azure-lidded sleep, In blanched linen, smooth, and lavender’d." from The Eve of St. Agnes.
His musings on death are all the more poignant because he died when he was only 25. I can't help wondering what he would have written if he'd lived longer.
"And still she slept an azure-lidded sleep, In blanched linen, smooth, and lavender’d." from The Eve of St. Agnes.
His musings on death are all the more poignant because he died when he was only 25. I can't help wondering what he would have written if he'd lived longer.
I really enjoyed finding out about John Keats and I was quite impressed with his ability to write lengthy poetry without once losing my attention. I am talking here about his piece, 'Endymion', which in my view is one of the best poems I have ever read.
Overall, an enjoyable read. I think it would have been nice to receive more of a life history of John Keats, because he was a gifted writer who had his life pulled short when he died of TB at 25.
Overall, an enjoyable read. I think it would have been nice to receive more of a life history of John Keats, because he was a gifted writer who had his life pulled short when he died of TB at 25.
May 03, 2013
Vamsikrishna Tm
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
ebook_own_read
Am not here to give a rating or review for Keats Poetry,Just wanted to share my experience. When i am sixteen, first time read the 'La belle dame sans merci' a ballad by Keats..Amazing imagination....Before reading Keat's poetry...i never know that poetry can have such a powerful impact on a person. I haven't read all the poems of Keats but after reading 'La belle dame sans merci' and 'A thing of beauty is a joy for ever' he has become one of my favourite. 'A thing of beauty is a joy for ever' c...more
Apr 08, 2012
Anne Nikoline
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
whoever enjoys great writing
Recommended to Anne Nikoline by:
a television show
John Keats is like an addiction, especially his Ode to Nightinggale; a poem I keep rereding over and over again with the same joy as the first time I read it. Of course there were poems and stories that I found less pleasant, but that do not make them hideous poems, not at all! All of Keats' work is stunningly beautiful and he knew for sure how to take control of a pen.
This rating is a personal response to Keats' poetry. It bores me to tears and evokes nothing within me. I love poetry- but only that which makes me feel something and his works don't do that for me. Perhaps this is because I was forced to study it for my VCE literature class but I think it's more because its all about fairy clouds and love. It lacks intensity.
Swoon! I can always read Keats. What a master at construction, meter, and rhyme. If you give his poems enough time, I feel they reveal his complex philosophy on life too. It is truly tragic that he died so young and didn't have more time to live his life and expand his craft. Fantastic poetry that's not too hard to work through but ever so rewarding as you do.
Ode a un Usignolo
Qui, dove il tremito scuote gli ultimi, scarsi capelli grigi,
Dove la gioventù impallidisce, si consuma e simile a un fantasma muore,
Dove il pensare stesso è riempirsi di dolore,
E la disperazione regna, dalle ciglia di piombo,
Dove la bellezza vede spenta la luce dei suoi occhi
E l'amore nuovo non riesce a piangerla oltre il domani.
Andarsene, andarsene. E arrivare da te.
Qui, dove il tremito scuote gli ultimi, scarsi capelli grigi,
Dove la gioventù impallidisce, si consuma e simile a un fantasma muore,
Dove il pensare stesso è riempirsi di dolore,
E la disperazione regna, dalle ciglia di piombo,
Dove la bellezza vede spenta la luce dei suoi occhi
E l'amore nuovo non riesce a piangerla oltre il domani.
Andarsene, andarsene. E arrivare da te.
So enjoyable to read Keats poetry, even more so than when it was assigned in school. I leisurely read his poems while eating breakfast and drinking really delicious hot cocoa. It was fun looking at notes I took in school about these poems, and hearing in my head the voice of my favorite professor while he talked about them.
It is sublime, as is only to be suspected. Dipping into the book, you are borne away on half familiar verses (so embedded in our culture is Keats) and on to entirely unfamiliar ones to delight over and over again.
Read the rest of my review here.
Read the rest of my review here.
Keats non può avere meno di 5 stelle. E questo è un dato di fatto.
Più specificamente, la raccolta contiene una splendida selezione (solo, avrei voluto includesse anche il primo libro di Endymion); la traduzione di Mario Roffi, però, per quanto buona, non mi ha soddisfatto a pieno, rendendo spesso in maniera blanda le immagini magnificamente evocative di Keats. Ho avuto il piacere di leggere alcune traduzioni di tutt'altro effetto, e quanto prima le ricercherò in diverse edizioni italiane.
Ma no...more
Più specificamente, la raccolta contiene una splendida selezione (solo, avrei voluto includesse anche il primo libro di Endymion); la traduzione di Mario Roffi, però, per quanto buona, non mi ha soddisfatto a pieno, rendendo spesso in maniera blanda le immagini magnificamente evocative di Keats. Ho avuto il piacere di leggere alcune traduzioni di tutt'altro effetto, e quanto prima le ricercherò in diverse edizioni italiane.
Ma no...more
The verses approach the sublime, especially in the odes, with their sensuous imagery and unexpected metaphors. I found it hard to fully sink my teeth into the narrative poems, inspired by classical mythology; when it comes to rendering the English landscape, though, Keats is quite peerless.
I think this is the first book of poetry I've ever read in its entirety, Arabic or English (And yes, it's pretty short).
It's been pretty clear to me early in life that poetry is not my thing. I was however intrigued about Keats from the many references of him the in the amazing Hyperion series of scifi novels.
The poetry is beautiful, very beautiful. Sadly I'm not yet well equipped to realize the full extent of its majesty due to my inexperience in the format (and the technical orientation of my...more
It's been pretty clear to me early in life that poetry is not my thing. I was however intrigued about Keats from the many references of him the in the amazing Hyperion series of scifi novels.
The poetry is beautiful, very beautiful. Sadly I'm not yet well equipped to realize the full extent of its majesty due to my inexperience in the format (and the technical orientation of my...more
Sep 06, 2011
Ellee
rated it
2 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
200-300pgs,
poetry-megalist
Keats's sonnets were much more enjoyable than his longer work, I think due to their structure. The longer works just felt like someone sat down with a rhyming dictionary and did their best to entertain their friends & loved ones. The descriptive language Keats uses is rich and vibrant. The rhyme just felt forced and was very distracting, whereas with the shorter poems, this was not the case. Perhaps this is because the poetry is written by a young man (he died at 25) still developing his sty...more
Aug 11, 2010
Michael
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
best-books-forever-and-ever
This was my first favorite. When I was a young teen, I carried this collection around everywhere I went. I still have it. It's held together with duct tape.
How many bards gild the lapses of time!
A few of them have ever been the food
Of my delighted fancy,—I could brood
Over their beauties, earthly, or sublime:
And often, when I sit me down to rhyme,
These will in throngs before my mind intrude:
But no confusion, no disturbance rude
Do they occasion; 'tis a pleasing chime.
So the unnumbered sounds that evening store;
The songs of birds—the whispering of the leaves—
The voice of waters—the great bell that heaves
With solemn sound,—and thousand others more,
Tha...more
A few of them have ever been the food
Of my delighted fancy,—I could brood
Over their beauties, earthly, or sublime:
And often, when I sit me down to rhyme,
These will in throngs before my mind intrude:
But no confusion, no disturbance rude
Do they occasion; 'tis a pleasing chime.
So the unnumbered sounds that evening store;
The songs of birds—the whispering of the leaves—
The voice of waters—the great bell that heaves
With solemn sound,—and thousand others more,
Tha...more
Jul 02, 2012
Maria
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Those who seek perfection in words
"Beauty is truth, truth beauty, -that is all
Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know."
~From Ode on a Grecian Urn
John Keats is definitely one of the most talented and the most tragic poets of his time, some might argue of all time. His poems do not require further praise from me, they are perfect works of art - true reflections of Keats' genius.
Some of my favourite lyric poems include On first looking into Chapman's Homer, When I have fears, Happy is England, Why did I laugh to-night?, and...more
Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know."
~From Ode on a Grecian Urn
John Keats is definitely one of the most talented and the most tragic poets of his time, some might argue of all time. His poems do not require further praise from me, they are perfect works of art - true reflections of Keats' genius.
Some of my favourite lyric poems include On first looking into Chapman's Homer, When I have fears, Happy is England, Why did I laugh to-night?, and...more
I like Keats. I think he is one of the more accessible and approachable poets. Certainly his poetry is hit and miss with some being fantastic and some being mediocre. That he died so young and so tragically (but oh so in the Romantic way of things!) is of course sad but I wonder if that doesn't lend some ethereal magicalness to his writings. I suppose the other way to look at it is that if he would have lived longer he surely would have produced more and greater poems.
Far and away my favorite poet.
Some great poems :)
love it!
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John Keats was one of the principal poets of the English Romantic movement. During his short life, his work received constant critical attacks from the periodicals of the day, but his posthumous influence on poets such as Alfred Tennyson has been immense. Elaborate word choice and sensual imagery characterize Keats's poetry, including a series of odes that were his masterpieces and which remain am...more
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“What is this world's delight,
Lightening that mocks the night,
Brief as even as bright”
—
4 people liked it
More quotes…
Lightening that mocks the night,
Brief as even as bright”
