To Autumn Essay

How does Keats' 'To Autumn' engage with the concerns of the Romantic Period?

Keats’ ‘To Autumn’ engages with concerns of the Romantic Period through imagination, emotions and nature. These aspects of Romanticism give an insightful context to the poem. Keats’ main focus is the personification of autumn and the highly structured but irregular rhyme scheme to give a stronger emphasis to the words and expressions he wants the reader to feel.

Imagery is widely used throughout ‘To Autumn’ to help the reader imagine exactly what Keats is explaining and describing in the poem. Imagery is mainly used to emphasise the abundance of autumn for example "With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eves run". This shows the plentiful amount of fruit and vines due to the goodness of autumn. Keats also uses onomatopoeia, for example “oozings”, to picture imagery. Abundance is again shown in his strange example, “poppies” which is a drug known as opium, which states that autumn is intoxicated by the richness of the season. Finally, imagery of abundance is built up throughout the poem using verbs, "bend", "fill", "swell", "plump", "budding", "more" and "still more", which also show the power of nature.

‘To Autumn’ shows the love and power of nature through the human nature in the natural world. Keats personifies “autumn” by calling it the enabler of harvest time and harvest worker. The relationship between natures is also shown; “Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness, Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun". This shows the relationship between the sun and autumn. Nature is shown as very abundant and plentiful throughout the poem but as each stanza ends, the ghost of death, winter, is anticipated to come eventually, changing the entire mood of the poem in one line.

The mood is being changed dramatically throughout ‘To Autumn’ giving a more sophisticated understanding to the poem. The abundance of nature is also shown through emotion throughout the poem for example, “mourn” is used to show how Keats is mourning or crying for the beautiful weather of autumn. Anticipation is also frequent in this poem as Keats is always accepting the inevitable at the end of each stanza which is that the ghost that haunts him and that which will end autumn and all abundance, will come and that is death. This is shown at the end of each stanza for example; "For summer has o'er-brimm'd their clammy cells" and "Thou watchest the last oozings hours by hours”. These clearly show the dreading feeling Keats creates.

In Conclusion, Keats clearly shows imagination, nature and emotion throughout poem. He also shows the abundance of nature around the human nature in this natural world. Keats love for nature is shown throughout each stanza but also his acceptance of the inevitable ghost of death and winter. Overall, Keats is watching the final days of autumn and enjoying and celebrating the beauty of it.