A Brief Analysis of Keats’s View of Love in His Works

【Abstract】In my thesis， I would like to elaborate on this view of love in his works. The thesis consists of four parts. The thesis starts from a brief introduction of Keatss life experience and his masterpieces. Following the introduction come the detailed descriptions of his ideal love， and the poem Bright Stat is used to exemplify his ideal love. Later， his negative attitude to love will be introduced.

【Key words】Keatss view of love； ideal love； negative attitudes to love

I. Introduction

A number of ideas are exhibited in Keatss works， and this thesis briefly analyzes the view of love in Keatss works， especially in his master piece： Bright Star The present thesis covers Keatss values of love and psychology when he falls in love with Fanny Brawne. The study is based on his life experiences and the background of his literary creation.

John Keats was born in a lowly family. Thomas John， Keatss father was an employee of a livery stable in London. His father married his employers daughter， Frances Jennings， in 1794.The next year， John Keats was born. Soon， his two brothers and one sister followed.

John Keats began his study career at Clarkes school when he was seven and spent a carefree childhood there. But when he was nearly ten， the first tragedy took place on a London Street. His father was thrown off his horse and died of injury， which changed his character. But， it was just the beginning. Within two months after his fathers death， his mother remarried a fortune hunter named Rawlings. Then Keats and the other children lived with their grandmother in Enfield. At this moment， Keatss happy life was interrupted by depressed moods， and his whole attitude to the world and his belief to love suddenly changed. However， Keats was a kind person， and his devotion to his mother didnt change. When his mother came back to live with the children， he accepted her. But the fate seemed to be keen on playing tricks on him. Soon after his mothers return， she was caught by a fatal disease. While Keats was in school， the news of his mothers death came. It was a catastrophic attack on him， which influenced his attitude towards females in his whole life.

Then， Keats realized that he had to assume the responsibility for his family. He chose the profession of medicine and became an apprentice to a surgeon named Hammond. It was a tough period. Every day， he had to keep company with these anguished and deadly patients. He heard nothing but groan. The form of negative capability is largely based on this experience.

In the autumn of 1818， he met Fanny Brawne， a close neighbor in Hampstead， who was his most beloved woman in his life. But Fannys mother didnt consent to their marriage because of Keatss not-so-prosperous class and his poverty； even worse， Keatss deadly disease gave no hope of their love.

II. The Philosophy of Love——Ideal Love

In Keatss early age， his philosophy of love is ideal and permanent. His love pattern stems from his childhood experience and his character. Keats has had a negative attitude towards marriage since his mother remarried. In addition， his bashful character made him feel uneasy among women and kept less contact with them. In this period， he pursued pure and eternal love. The outlet for his emotion was writing mythological and romantic poems. Endymion， a beautiful Greek myth， was written in this period.

2.1 The Reflection of His Ideal Love in Bright Star

Ideal love also appears in Bright Star. In this sonnet， he uses images to conceive a wonderful woman who is a constant lover.

In the first four couples， there are a lot of descriptions about objects found in nature， such as bright star， moving water， snow， and these objects are related to each other. The bright star looks at moving water and fluttering snow eternally and steadily. Such images， along with the word steadfast， provide the feeling of permanence and security. In poets mind， star always stays in the sky overlooking the changeable world. Besides， steadfast bright star is related to constancy that is moving waters at their priest like task. This image suggests that water always runs in the same direction without change. So Keats wishes that the sweethearts should protect each other without abandoning.

In the 5th couple， although the poet appreciates steady quality of bright star， he feels regret for its solitude and indifference. Star is not human； it is impossible to have emotions like mankind. But Keats is a mortal； he has passion and desire and he lives in the realistic world. He has to elaborate on his own definition of “unchangeable” and “forever” in realistic life. Pillowed upon my fair loves ripening breast and still to hear her tender-taken breath portray a feeling of passion when the poet and his lover keep company with each other. He is so close to her and even can hear her breath. It is peaceful and tranquil. Keats wants to stay with his woman and he prays that this moment can last forever.

The view of Keatss ideal love is eternal and imperishable， but he lives in a world where life is filled with agony and everything is changeable. This is a contradiction with no solution， which leads to anguish and helplessness. So the idea of death occurs to him. Since there is no possibility for the sweethearts to love each other forever， to die together is a sound alternative.

In Bright Star， Keats combines the theme of ideal love with physical sensations， such as sight， hearing， touch， and sexuality. He also associates love and pain in this poetry. His ideal love is not an ideology but mingled with characters of archetype. His philosophy of love is based on realistic life.

2.2 A Summary of His Ideal Love

In Bright Star， we can learn that Keatss philosophy of ideal love is negative. He is more possessive with his woman than loves her. His pursuit of love is too perfect that no one can afford it. The world can afford anything but perfection， so he is always tortured by his perfectionism. The sonnet Bright Star reveals his negative attitudes about ideal love. In Bright Star， he cant see any hope of eternal love in the realistic world. The only way to self liberation is to die together with his woman. In conclusion， his ideal love originates from his doubt and negative attitude to love； he would like to indulge in his imagination to evade pains and changes brought by realistic love.

III. His Negative Attitudes to Love

Keats wrote his negative feelings about love to his friends Reynolds on September 22nd， 1818.

I never was in love， yet the voice and shape of a woman has haunted me these two days- at such a time when the relief， the feverous relief of poetry， seems a much less crime. This morning poetry has conquered- I have relapsed into those abstractions which are my only life-I feel escaped from a new， strange， and threatening sorrow， and I am thankful for it. There is awful warmth about my heart， like a load of immortality.

He wrote this letter after his mothers death， he and his sisters and brothers lived beyond their means. Keats， as the eldest child in the family， had responsibility for making money. From his words， we can feel that there is no mood for him to pursue a realistic love under the heavy burden. Besides， he hardly believes in the realistic love and women after he goes through the trauma of his mothers remarriage soon after his fathers death. He neither wants to recall his experience in his childhood nor believes in love in the realistic life. So he chooses to indulge himself in poetry and imagination to ease anguish in his life.

3.1 The Causes of His Negative Attitudes to Love

Keats had been a carefree and warmhearted child before ten years old. When Keats was nearly ten， the first of tragedies changing his character took place on a London street. His father was thrown off his horse and died of injuries. After his fathers death， he became silent and was afraid of loss and death. He darent love anyone because he couldnt bear the fact that some day he had to suffer separation. Within two months after his fathers death， his mother remarried a fortune hunter named Rawlings. His fathers death gave him a scare， while his mothers remarriage destroyed his belief in love.

3.2 His Longing for Maternal Love

After his fathers death， his mother got remarried and abandoned her children. Keats and the other children lived with their grandmother in Enfield. Then， Keats was ten years old. He couldnt endure these tragedies so that he became sentimental and depressed. He didnt know why his mother abandoned him and his brothers and sister. When he saw his schoolmates dinners prepared by their mothers， nobody could understand how desperately his longs for his mothers return. Some days later， his mother really came back， which made him so delighted， but the fate seemed to like playing trick on him. Soon after his mothers return， she was caught by a fatal disease. While Keats was in school， the news of his mothers death came.

The catastrophe fully destroyed his hope of life coupled with his vision of love and females. The crux of his possessive desire for love lies in the fact that he didnt gain enough maternal love in his childhood and there is no outlet for him to express his longing for maternal love， which leads him to demand. His tendency to seek his missing maternal love transforms his lover transforms his love into possessive desire.

IV. Conclusion

From the above-mentioned information， readers can be much impressed by John Keatss philosophy of Love. This thesis analyzes John Keatss works in the light of his view on love. He is a melancholic poet， and the themes and styles in his works are not like those of other poets in English Romantic Period. His unique genre， especially his opinion on love， is influenced by his life experience. He is a self-made poet without any cultural and social advantages.

At Keatss early age， his philosophy of love is ideal and permanent and he sees himself in a deep contemplation of sensuous and natural beauty. Beauty comes from real life， and is created by truth mingled with love. It is the main idea in Bright Star.

The root of Keatss melancholy lies in the fact that he always struggles between a utopia world and a real world. He is hardly able to strike a balance between the two worlds. Whenever he wants to indulge in the perfection of the imaginary world， the cruel reality always reminds him to come back. The contradiction between the utopia and realistic world always exists in Keatss life， and he is unable to extricate himself. But we are mortal， and we cant live permanently and there isnt an everlasting love in the world. The world really cant offer what Keats wants. So it seems that only death can help him relieve from this dilemma.

References：

[1]Blades，John.Analyzing Texts John Keats，England：Macmillan Distribition Ltd，2002.

[2]Cox，Jeffrey N.Keratss Poetry And Prose，London：W.W.Norton & Company，2008.

[3]Nagar，Anupam.Recritiquing John Keats，India：Prabhat Kumar Sharma，2005.

[4]朱光潛.詩論[M].北京：漓江出版社，2011.

作者簡介：王麗璟（1990-），女，漢族，上海人，在職研究生，研究方向：英語語言文學。