To Autumn by John Keates - Critical Analysis
...th of death. The poem achieves this by using descriptive and vivid expressions to describe the essence of autumn. The poem uses powerful language to achieve effect. It often makes use of imagery, exaggerated language and onomatopoeia to create an atmosphere of the English autumn, for the reader. Language such as this excerpt from the first stanza, And fill all fruits with ripeness to the core, To swell the gourd, and plump the hazel shells This type of language, especially adjectives such as ripeness and plump, provide the reader with an excellent description of the landscape. Onomatopoeic effect and alliteration are used rather well in the following example, Thy hair soft lifted by the winnowing wind; This use of language creates a rather humble and peaceful atmosphere for the reader. It emphasises the harmony of autumn and this effect, which is used often throughout the poem, could also be a metaphor for the slow down of life during autumn, and the imminent death of the season. The poem follows the traditional framework of an ode. It is overly lyrical and has a rhythmic device, generally common to all three stanzas, with the exception of the first stanza. The poem follows a rhyme scheme of ABAB CDED CCE for the first stanza, and ABAB CDEC DDE for the second and third. It is unclear why Keats chose to follow a different rhyme scheme for the last two stanzas, but it is certainly not an accident. D and C “swap” rhythmic positions from line eight onwards. The poem employs iambic pentameter, each line as ten syllables. The poem compares autumn to spring in the third stanza. Where are the songs of spring? Ay, where are they? Think not of them, thou hast thy music too,- This is where the true meaning of the poem is con...