The Romantic poets: keats Byron and Shelley.

   The Romantic poets: keats Byron and Shelley. 

This blog is part of assignment of Paper 103: Literature of the Romantics 

 Unit 4: Keats, Byron and Shelley 

 Table of content: 

Abstract

Keywords 

Introduction

John Keats 

George Gordon Byron 

William Blake 

Common Themes Among Keats Byron and    Shelley 

Conclusion  

Personal information: 

Name : Vala Nikita 

Batch : M.A Sem -1 (2024-2026) 

Enrollment Number : 5108240038

E-mail Address : nikitavala2811@gmail.com Roll no. - 18 

 Assignment Details : 

Topic : The Romantic Poets—Keats, Byron, and Shelley

Paper and subject code : Paper 103: Literature of the Romantics 

Submitted to : Smt. Sujata Binoy Gardy, Department of English, MKBU , Bhavnagar

Date of submission : November 20, 2024

•  Abstract: 

John Keats, Lord Byron, and Percy Bysshe Shelley are iconic figures of the Romantic movement, representing the second generation of English Romantic poets in the early 19th century. Their poetry embodies the Romantic ideals of intense emotion, a reverence for nature, a celebration of individualism, and a profound use of the imagination. Keats’s work is noted for its lyrical beauty and exploration of the transience of life; Byron’s poetry combines satire with themes of rebellion and freedom, often featuring the iconic Byronic hero; Shelley’s poems are renowned for their idealism, vivid imagery, and advocacy for social and political change. These poets, despite their differences in style and focus, shared common Romantic themes of the sublime, nature's power, and the fleeting nature of human existence, making them central figures in the literary and cultural transformation of the Romantic era. 

•  Keywords: 

Romantic Movement,John Keats,Lord Byron,Percy Bysshe Shelley,Emotion,Nature,Individualism,Imagination,Second Generation Romantics,Byronic Hero,Sublime,Beauty,Mortality,Idealism, Social Change,Rebellion,Transience of Life,Natural World,Lyrical Poetry,English Literature

• Introduction: 

The Romantic movement, which flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, marked a dramatic shift in English literature from the rationality and order of the Neoclassical period to an era that celebrated emotion, imagination, and a deep connection to the natural world. This period emphasized the value of individual experience, the power of creativity, and a reaction against industrialization and social conventions. Central to the second generation of Romantic poets were John Keats, Lord Byron, and Percy Bysshe Shelley, each of whom contributed uniquely to the movement's ideals. John Keats’s poetry is characterized by a rich sensory appeal, exploring themes of beauty, mortality, and the ephemeral nature of life. Lord Byron, known for his adventurous life and satirical wit, introduced the concept of the Byronic hero, a rebellious and complex figure who challenges societal norms. Percy Bysshe Shelley, a radical thinker and idealist, used his poetry to advocate for social change, celebrating the power of human imagination and nature. Together, these poets defined the essence of Romanticism, rejecting the constraints of previous literary norms and exploring the depths of human emotion, freedom, and creativity. Their work continues to influence literature, offering timeless reflections on the human condition and the beauty of the natural world.

• John Keats

poet John Keats (1795 – 1821). A leading English Romantic Poet. Keats became famous after his death for the power and vivid imagery of his Odes and epic Endymion. 

 Selected Poetry of John Keats 

 A Thing Of Beauty

 Bright Star 

 Fancy Happy Insensibilty

 La Belle Dame Sans Merci 

 Ode on a Grecian Urn

 Ode on Indolence

 Ode on Melancholy

 Ode To A Nightingale 

 Ode to Psyche

 On Fame

 Robin Hood. To A Friend

 The Human Seasons 

 This Living Hand 

 To Autumn 

 To Hope

 To Sleep

 When I Have Fears That I May Cease To Be

 John Keats – Biography 

KEATS, JOHN (1795-1821) He was sent to a school at Enfield, and having meanwhile become an orphan, was in 1810 apprenticed to a surgeon at Edmonton. In 1815 he went to London to work in different hospitals. However he was not at all enthusiastic in this profession. Instead he became immersed in literature, meeting like minded poets such as Shelley, William Wordsworth and others. His first work some sonnets appeared in Hunt’s ‘Examiner’, and his first book, ‘Poems’, came out in 1817. This book, while containing much that gave little promise of what was to come, was not without touches of beauty and music, but it fell quite flat, finding few readers beyond his immediate circle. His next work ‘Endymion’ appeared in 1818 but received harsh criticism from leading magazines. Despite Keats’ own self confidence in his poetic powers these harsh criticism took their toll. Because of this and other factors his health broke down leading him to suffer from heredity consumption for the rest of his life. In the hope of restored health, he made a tour in the Lakes and Scotland, from which he returned to London none the better. The death soon after of his brother Thomas, whom he had helped to nurse, told upon his spirits, as did also his unrequited passion for Miss Fanny Brawne. 

In 1820 he published ‘Lamia and Other Poems’, containing ‘Hyperion’ and the odes to the ‘Nightingale‘ and ‘The Grecian Urn‘, all of which had been produced within a period of about 18 months. This book was warmly praised in the ‘Edinburgh Review’. His health had by this time completely given way, however Keats was kindly looked after by close friends, the Hunts and the Brawanes. 

At last in 1821 he set out, accompanied by his friend Severn, on that journey to Italy from which he never returned. After much suffering he died at Rome, and was buried in the Protestant cemetery there. On his desire the following lines were engraved on his tombstone.

 ‘Here lies one whose name was writ in water’

Friends of Keats described him as “eager, enthusiastic, and sensitive, but humorous, reasonable, and free from vanity, affectionate, a good brother and friend, sweet-tempered, and helpful.” In his political views he was liberal, in his religious, indefinite. Though in his life-time subjected to much harsh and unappreciative criticism, his place among English poets is now assured. His chief characteristics are intense, sensuous imagination, and love of beauty, rich and picturesque descriptive power, and exquisitely melodious versification.

 Keats Poetry Bibliography

 Poetry

Collections: The Poetical Works of Coleridge, Shelley, and Keats (1831) 

Endymion: A Poetic Romance (1818)

Lamia, Isabella, The Eve of St. Agnes, and Other Poems (1820) 

Poems (1817) 

The Poems of John Keats (1970)

The Poems of John Keats (1978)

The Poetical Works and Other Writings of John Keats (1883)

•  George Gordon Byron 

George Gordon Byron was born on January 22nd 1788. Lord Byron was an English poet who was a leading figure in the Romantic Movement. 

Lord Byron was active in many different fields of life including politics, he took his hereditary seat in the House of Lords in 1812. However Lord Byron is best remembered for his poetry which includes the classic poetry collections Child’s Harold’s Pilgrimage and Don Juan.

Don Juan was considered to be an epic of its age and was read widely by the Victorians, although to many it was considered to be somewhat shocking. The literary works of Byron were often characterised by characters who had a rebellious, non conformist streak. His heroes often displayed great skills and passion although they often misused their talents. To some extent the hero of Byron’s poems had a degree of autobiography. 

As well as poetry Byron took an interest in social issues in Parliament he often stood up for disadvantaged groups and was one of the few to support the Luddites. The personal life of Byron was a tumultuous affair, attracting a good degree of speculation. Byron had a deep love for animals, in particular he was devoted to his dog Botswain. 

George Gordon Byron was a significant figure in the movement of Romantic poets – along with others, such as Keats, Coleridge and Wordsworth. 

 “There is a pleasure in the pathless woods;

 There is a rapture on the lonely shore;

 There is society, where none intrudes, 

 By the deep sea, and music in its roars:

 I love not man the less, but Nature more…”

Byron died in Greece in 1824. He was preparing to fight on behalf of the Greeks for their independence from the occupying Turks. Before he could enter battle he died from a violent cold and aggravated illness. 

 Poems by Byron 

 All Is Vanity, Saieth the Preacher

 Prometheus 

 She Walks in Beauty

 The Eve of Waterloo 

 When We Two Parted 

• William Blake 

poet William Blake (1757 – 1827) – British mystical Poet.William Blake was a poet, artist, engraver and print-maker. Largely misunderstood during his lifetime, he is now regarded as one of the finest poets of the English language. His unique poetry encompassed a range of emotions and mystical under-currents, shaped by his vision and empathy for the world around him.

 Selected Poems of William Blake 

 Auguries of Innocence 

 A Cradle Song

 A Dream 

 Holy Thursday

 Infant Joy 

 Laughing Song

 Night 

 Nurse’s Song 

 The Four Zoas (Tyger) 

 The Invocation 

 The Little Lamb

 London 

William Blake was a poet, painter, visionary mystic, and engraver. During his life the prophetic message of his writings were understood by few and misunderstood by many. However Blake is now widely admired for his soulful originality and lofty imagination. The poetry of William Blake is far reaching in its scope and range of experience. The poems of William Blake can offer a profound symbolism and also a delightful childlike innocence. Whatever the inner meaning of Blake’s poetry we can easily appreciate the beautiful language and lyrical quality of his poetic vision.

 “To see a world in a grain of sand

 And heaven in a wild flower 

 Hold infinity in the palm of your hand

 And eternity in an hour.” 

William Blake was born in London, where he spent most of his life. His father was a successful London hosier and attracted by the doctrines of Emmanuel Swedenborg. Blake was first educated at home, chiefly by his mother. His parents encouraged him to collect prints of the Italian masters, and in 1767 sent him to Henry Pars’ drawing school. From his early years, he experienced visions of angels and ghostly monks, he saw and conversed with the angel Gabriel, the Virgin Mary, and various historical figures. These memories never left him and influenced his poetry throughout his life.

His early poems Blake wrote at the age of 12. However, being early apprenticed to a manual occupation, journalistic-social career was not open to him. His first book of poems, POETICAL SKETCHES, appeared in 1783 and was followed by SONGS OF INNOCENCE(1789), and SONGS OF EXPERIENCE (1794). His most famous poem, ‘The Tyger’, was part of his Songs of Experience. Typical for Blake’s poems were long, flowing lines and violent energy, combined with aphoristic clarity and moments of lyric tenderness. 

In 1790 Blake engraved THE MARRIAGE OF HEAVEN AND HELL, a book of paradoxical aphorisms and his principal prose work. “If the doors of perception were cleansed everything would appear to man as it is, infinite.” (from The Marriage of Heaven and Hell) The work expressed Blake’s revolt against the established values of his time: “Prisons are built with stones of Law, brothels with bricks of Religion.” Radically he sided with the Satan in Milton’s Paradise Lost and attacked the conventional religious views in a series of aphorisms. But the poet’s life in the realms of images did not please his wife who once remarked: “I have very little of Mr. Blake’s company. He is always in Paradise.” Some of Blake’s contemporaries called him a harmless lunatic. 

The Blakes moved south of the Thames to Lambeth in 1790. During this time Blake began to work on his ‘prophetic books’, where he expressed his lifelong concern with the struggle of the soul to free its natural energies from reason and organized religion. He wrote AMERICA: A PROPHESY (1793), THE BOOK OF URIZEN (1794), and THE SONG OF LOS (1795). Blake hated the effects of the Industrial Revolution in England and looked forward to the establishment of a New Jerusalem “in England’s green and pleasant land.” Between 1804 and 1818 he produced an edition of his own poem JERUSALEM with 100 engravings. 

 “Bring me my Bow of burning gold: 

 Bring me my Arrows of desire: 

 Bring me my Spear: O clouds unfold!

 Bring me my Chariot of Fire.”

In 1800 Blake was taken up by the wealthy William Hayley, poet and patron of poets. The Blakes lived in Hayley’s house at Felpham in Sussex, staying there for three years. At Felpham Blake worked on MILTON: A POEM IN TWO BOOKS, TO JUSTIFY THE WAYS OF GOD TO MEN. It was finished and engraved between 1803 and 1808. In 1809 Blake had a commercially unsuccessful exhibition at the shop once owned by his brother. However, economic problems did not depress him, but he continued to produce energetically poems, aphorisms, and engravings. “The tigers of wrath are wiser than the horses of instruction,” he wrote.

Independent through his life, Blake left no debts at his death on August 12, 1827. He was buried in an unmarked grave at the public cemetery of Bunhill Fields. Wordsworth’s verdict after Blake’s death reflected many opinions of the time: “There was no doubt that this poor man was mad, but there is something in the madness of this man which interests me more than the sanity of Lord Byron and Walter Scott.” Blake’s influence grew through Pre-Raphealites and W.B. Yeats especially in Britain. His interest in legend was revived with the Romantics’ rediscovery of the past, especially the Gothic and medieval. In the 1960s Blake’s work was acclaimed by the Underground movement. T.S. Eliot wrote in his essay on Blake that “the concentration resulting from a framework of mythology and theology and philosophy is one of the reasons why Dante is a classic and Blake only a poet of genius.”

•  Common Themes Among Keats, Byron, and Shelley

 1. Nature: A deep appreciation for the beauty and power of nature, often seen as a source of inspiration, solace, and philosophical insight.

 2. Emotion and Imagination: A focus on intense personal emotions, dreams, and the inner life of the individual, valuing passion and creativity over reason. 

 3. Rebellion and Individualism: A rejection of social conventions, political oppression, and traditional norms, emphasizing the freedom of the individual.

 4. Transience and Mortality: A recurring contemplation of the fleeting nature of life, beauty, and human achievement, often contrasting the eternal with the temporary. 

•  Conclusion

Keats, Byron, and Shelley are central to the second wave of Romanticism, each contributing uniquely to its core ideals. Their poetry, while diverse in style and themes, shares a common emphasis on the sublime, the power of the imagination, and a commitment to exploring the depths of human experience. Together, they helped define Romanticism as a movement that celebrated emotion, the natural world, and the struggle for personal and social freedom, leaving a profound legacy that continues to influence literature and culture. 

 Words : 2,485

 Images : 4 

References

“Blake.” Poetseers, www.poetseers.org/the-poetseers/blake. Accessed 13 June 2025.

“John Keats.” Poetseers, https://www.poetseers.org/the-romantics/john-keats/. Accessed 13 June 2025.

“Lord Byron Poems.” Poetseers, https://www.poetseers.org/the-romantics/lord-byron-poems/. Accessed 13 June 2025.