1. A THING OF BEAUTY
BY JOHN KEATS
• THEME:
• Nature is an endless treasure of
beauty and a perpetual source of
joy
• A Thing of Beauty is a poem
written by the famous romantic
poet, John Keats. The poem tells
about how nature and its wonder
3. ENDYMION AN EPIC
• Endymion is an epic poem in English. This
poem by Keats is based on the Greek
mythology of Endymion, the shepherd
beloved by the moon goddess Selene. We
see an elaboration of the original story and
the moon Goddess Selene is named as
“Cynthia”.
• The poem equates Endymion’s original
romantic ardor with a more universal quest
for a self-destroying transcendence in
4. 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.
5. • Very simply put, yet poetic, Keats
describes a thing of beauty as
emanating joy forever. Its beauty only
increases and it will never cease. The
everlasting beautiful sight of beautiful
things is stored in our memory. They
give us peace, just like a quiet shady
place gives us a sleep full of sweet
dreams. The benefits proffered by a
thing of beauty are listed as giving
sound rest with good dreams and
8. POETIC DEVICES
• Literary devices:
• Rhyme scheme: aabbc (forever, never,
keep, sleep, breathing)
• Alliteration: Use of consonant sound at
the start of two words which are close in
series (Sleep-Sweet)
• Metaphor: bower Quiet (calmness of the
bower is compared to the calming effect
of a beautiful thing)
9. Therefore, on every morrow, are we wreathing
A flowery band to bind us to the earth,
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,
Some shape of beauty moves away the pall
From our dark spirits…
10. • The earth minus the beautiful things is a
despondent, spiteful place thriving in callous
insensitive dearth and is harsh toward human
beings. All the beautiful memories of our sweet
dreams help us to strengthen our bond with
Earth. Therefore, every morning we prepare a
wreath of flowers that binds us to Earth more
strongly .
• Every day human beings face gloomy days
packed with unhealthy spite and darkness.
Hopelessness, sadness and lack of noble ways
are a part of human life. However, in spite of all,
a thing of beauty helps remove the dark cloud
11.
12.
13. POETIC DEVICES
• Imagery: creating a sensory effect of beautiful
things lined up in a string ( A flowery band to bind
us)
• Alliteration: Use of consonant sound at the start of
two words which are close in series (‘b’ in Band
Bind, ‘n’ in Noble nature, ‘s’ in some shape).
• Anaphora: Use of same word in two consecutive
lines (of noble natures- Of all the unhealthy)moves
away the pall-Metaphor
• Transferred Epithet : gloomy days
Inversion: normal order of words is reversed ( Are
we wreathing a flowery band)
14. … 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 sparkling of fair musk-rose blooms;
15.
16.
17. • This closing paragraph simply tells us
some of the beautiful things on Earth.
After all, beauty lies in the eyes of the
beholder – Everyone can highlight
something beautiful in anything. The
examples cited by the poet are as such:
the sun, the moon, trees, flowers,
streams, musk-rose blooms, architectural
sepulchers, even fairy tales or heroic
legends. All these are eternal sources of
joy.
• The ‘simple sheep’ are human beings –
the poet sympathizes with the innocence
of human beings. Keats sees the beauty
in innocent humans seeking solace in
18. POETIC DEVICES
• Alliteration: Use of consonant sound at
the start of two words which are close in
series (‘s’ in Sprouting Shady, Simple
sheep, ‘c’ in cooling covert)
• Imagery: Trees giving shade (sprouting
shady boon),
– growing process of daffodils (daffodils with
the green world they live in),
– Clean river streams (Clear rills)
• Antithesis: opposite words placed together
(old and young)
19.
20.
21. 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.
22. • The poet also sees beauty in the death of
martyrs and legends. ‘The mighty
dead’ are those martyrs who have died
bravely for a cause. We honor them by
erecting magnificent, grand sepulchers in
which beauty is seen. The stories about
our ancestors are deemed as heroic and
mighty. If one looks around, there are
innumerable beautiful things to notice –
they have a sublime effect on human
spirit- they seem to flow immortally as a
fountain, from the gods above to help the
pitiable human beings to cope with the
harshness of life.
23.
24. POETIC DEVICES
• Rhyme scheme is used in every stanza of
the poem (forever; never, keep; sleep,
dead; read etc.)
• Alliteration: Use of consonant sound at
the start of two words which are close in
series (‘h’ in have heard)
• Metaphor: Immortal drinks ( beautiful
objects of nature are forever like a
neverending portion of a
• Imagery -Drink
25. • Imagery: Bushes full of musk roses
(sprinkling of fair musk rose blooms),
books describing valor of fighters
(grandeur-..mighty dead), god
providing us with best things (pouring
from the heaven’s brink) endless
fountain of immortal
• Drink – Imagery
• immortal Drink – Metaphor
• endless fountain – Hyperbole
27. • List the things of beauty mentioned in
the poem.
• The Sun
• The Moon
• Shady trees
• Beautiful daffodil –flowers
• Streams of water
• Dense green bushes of forest ferns
where fragrant musk roses grow
• Tales of heroic men who sacrifice their
live
28. • List the things that cause suffering and
pain.
• Desire to offend others
• Hopelessness
• Lack of noble men
• Bad health
• Unhappiness
• Gloom
• Darkness
