This poem written by John Keats is constructed in three stanzas; in the first speech on the sadness, the distress and on the death since he introduces Proserpine, Roman goddess of hell.

But simultaneously he speaks about a “light”, the light of melancholy, to whom, he is dedicating the poem, which as the poet says: “That fosters the droop-headed flowers”. And it contributes a hope to satisfy this distress. Finally he invites us to living enjoying the lasting things as beauty, happiness and pleasure.

Keats speaks about life and death as part of this one and, with help of the elements that they find in nature, invites us to take delight with the fruits of Mother Earth.

The poet immerses us in the world of Greek and Roman mythology introducing places as Lethe, river of the oblivion in the infernal world; prominent figures as Proserpine, Roman goddes of hell; and Psyche, modal to the philosophy, term with which the Greeks refer to the spirit of the human race, I mean, the reason.

The language used in the poem is not of excessive difficulty but it possesses some phrases that are difficult to deal: “And hides the green hill in an April shroud; Then glout thy sorrow on a morning rose” but in its entirety it can be understood easily.

The poem is divided in three stanzas. The verses have the following rhyme:

ABAB/CDE/CDE.

The poet uses several images to make the visualization of the words easy:

- First stanza: “ For shade to shade... soul”: With this image, we can see ourselves in an unknown place, full of shades and experimenting a strong fear.

- Second stanza: “That fosters... all”: We can see, reading this verse, a valley full of all kinds of death flowers but when the sun shines, all these flowers turn up its “heads” and become alive.

- Second stanza: “Or on the rainbow... wave”: This is a beautiful image that shows us a big sea with a big shining rainbow in its horizon.

- Third stanza: “She dwells... die”: This image shows us a woman, a beautiful woman, she is the personification of Beauty.

Personal opinion

I chose this poem, after seeing some different John Keats’ poems, and this was the one that when I read it, made me feel something different. It’s full of contrasts the world of shadows shown in the first stanza but in the second and in the third he makes us see the beautiful world in which we are living. And he is inviting us to enjoy this world before death comes to find us. The use of the elements of nature makes us easy to understand his way of observing the world around him.

John Keats. 1795–1821

628. Ode on Melancholy

NO, no! go not to Lethe, neither twist
Wolf's-bane, tight-rooted, for its poisonous wine;
Nor suffer thy pale forehead to be kist
By nightshade, ruby grape of Proserpine;
Make not your rosary of yew-berries,	5
Nor let the beetle, nor the death-moth be
Your mournful Psyche, nor the downy owl
A partner in your sorrow's mysteries;
For shade to shade will come too drowsily,
And drown the wakeful anguish of the soul.	10
But when the melancholy fit shall fall
Sudden from heaven like a weeping cloud,
That fosters the droop-headed flowers all,
And hides the green hill in an April shroud;
Then glut thy sorrow on a morning rose,	15
Or on the rainbow of the salt sand-wave,
Or on the wealth of globèd peonies;
Or if thy mistress some rich anger shows,
Emprison her soft hand, and let her rave,
And feed deep, deep upon her peerless eyes.	20
She dwells with Beauty—Beauty that must die;
And Joy, whose hand is ever at his lips
Bidding adieu; and aching Pleasure nigh,
Turning to poison while the bee-mouth sips:
Ay, in the very temple of Delight	25
Veil'd Melancholy has her sovran shrine,
Though seen of none save him whose strenuous tongue
Can burst Joy's grape against his palate fine;
His soul shall taste the sadness of her might,
And be among her cloudy trophies hung.	30

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