John Keats, Romantic poet
John Keats was a noted poet from England's influential Romantic period. While he lived for only a relatively short period of time, he managed to polarise the literacy world, which was divided into staunch admirers and harsh critics, although it must be said that many of the criticisms levelled against his works was born more out of political issues than any literary concerns.
John Keats was born on October 31st, 1795 at Moorgate in London to Thomas Keats and Frances Jenning Keats. His father was a hostler by profession and the pub that he operated still stands today, having been renamed "Keats The Grove". It can be found mere yards away from Moorgate Station.
Keats childhood was a generally happy one, particularly his first seven years. When his father died in 1804 however, due to injuries from falling off his horse, Keats life began to become significantly more troubled.
His mother remarried shortly after this tragedy but the union proved to be quite an unhappy one and it wasn't long that she left this new husband with her four children in tow and moved in with Keats' grandmother. It would only be a few short years until Frances died of tuberculosis in 1810 and Keats was left in the care of his grandmother along with his other siblings.
It was during his stay with his grandmother that Keats first developed his intense love of literature, which he would carry throughout the rest of his life. Unfortunately for Keats, the two guardians whom his grandmother appointed for the Keats children transferred him from the school where he first developed his love of reading into an apprenticeship with a surgeon.
He would stay with the surgeon for only a few years before a quarrel with his master would result in him leaving in order to study at a local hospital. While at the hospital, Keats would steadily devote more and more time towards the study of literature.
When Keats brother Tom started to develop signs of tuberculosis, he was charged with taking care of his sibling. During this time he managed to finish his epic poem entitled Endymion upon the completion of which he left for a walking tour of Scotland and Ireland accompanied by his friend Charles Brown. During this trip, he too would develop signs of the disease that had stricken his family and was forced to return to home where he found his brother Tom having taken a turn for the worse.
To make matters worse, he found upon his return that Endymion along with his other work Poems had received very harsh criticism from the literary establishment. Nevertheless Keats would find some admirers of his work in Oscar Wilde, William Butler Yeats, Wallace Stevens and Lord Byron.
Wilde in particular held John Keats in high regard considering his work at par with William Shakespeare and the Greek classical masters. In addition, Yeats was struck by the apparent joy that Keats displayed in his poetry, which was in stark contrast to the unhappy events of his personal life.
John Keats finally died of tuberculosis on February 23rd, 1821.
Original Authors: Doods Pangburn
Edit Update Authors: M.A.Harris
Updated On: 16/05/2008
