To Autumn Flashcards
Who was To Autumn written by?
John Keats
When was To Autumn written?
1819
What are some context points about John Keats?
- Romantic poet
- Family issues: parents died at 14
- Suffered with financial problems when he was writing To Autumn
- Inspired by real life event, he walked along the River Itchen on 19 September 1819
- Marks the stage of his poetic career
- Died of tuberculosis in 1821 aged 25
What is the significance of the title of To Autumn?
Title suggests an ode, Romantic poet signing praises to a season and nature
What semantic field is there in the first stanza of To Autumn?
Abundance: “fruitfulness” “bless” “fruit” “fill” “ripeness” “swell” “plump” “sweet” “more” “flowers” “never cease” “o’erbrimmed” - relating to abundance of Autumn
“mists and…
…mellow fruitfulness!”
“Conspiring…
…with him how to load and bless”
“fruit the vines…
…that round the thatch-eaves run”
“fill all fruit…
…with ripeness to the core”
“they think warm…
…days will never cease”
“Summer has…
o’erbrimmed their clammy cells”
What is significant about the structure of To Autumn?
11 instead of 10 lines portrays Autumn as bountiful
“thee oft…
…amid thy store”
“half-reap’d…
…furrow”
“while thy…
…hook spares the next swath”
“last oozings…
…hours by hours”
What semantic fields are in the second stanza of To Autumn?
Work: “granary” “half-reap’d furrow” “hook” “gleaner” “cyder-press”
Rest: “sitting careless” “sound asleep” “drows’d”
Personifies Autumn as a worker who works themselves to exhaustion and works harder than man in harvest
“Where are…
…the songs of Spring? Ay, where are they?”
“barred clouds…
…bloom the soft-dying day”
“wailful…
…choir the small gnats mourn”
“sinking as…
…the light wind lives or dies”
“lambs…
…loud bleat”
“hedge-crickets…
…sing”
“treble soft…
…the red breast whistles”
“gathering…
…swallows twitter”
What is significant about the structure of To Autumn?
The progression in each stanza suggests Autumn cannot last forever and time will always pass
Lots of enjambment suggests immense passion about Autumn from the persona
What is To Autumn about?
Romantic poet Keats, traces the progression of Autumn to explore the theme of the passage of time. He ends in a mournful tone as Autumn ends, which might have been him reflecting on the end of his writerly career
