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Nat Levy

Period 2

5/2/11

Dr. Smith

Ode to a Nightingale

In Keats’s poem, “Ode to a Nightingale”, Keats explores the themes alcohol and death.

Keats talks about alcohol early in the poem but decides that it is not what he needs. Later in the

poem he considers whether death is actually what he needs. The exploration of these themes in

this poem is what makes this poem more than a simple ode.

Keats’s explores the quick escape of alcohol as a theme in “Ode to a Nightingale”. In

Lines 1-2 Keats says “My heart aches and a drowsy numbness pains My sense, as though of

hemlock I had drunk” (1-2). Right out of the gate Keats discusses an escape from life, the bliss of

being numb. This is how he feels it is like to be drunk and he yearns for that feeling. Stanza two

is completely about the joys and downfalls of alcohol and starts out with a blunt statement “O for

a draught of vintage!” (11). This ode to alcohol continues for the rest of the stanza, he makes

many allusions to alcohol including how he wants wine tasting of Flora, the god of flowers. He

alludes to Provencal a famous wine growing region in France and Hippocrene a fountain of the

gods. Keats alludes to all of these to make the theme of alcohol more than just a bottle of wine,

to make it into a more universal theme. After more consideration Keats and then says “Away!

Away! for I will fly to thee, Not charioted by Bacchus and his pards” (Keats 31-32). Keats

decides here, after contemplating age that alcohol is to temporary of a solution, one that he does
not need. While Keats seems to love the effects of the alcohol decides he needs a more

permanent solution.

After rejecting alcohol Keats considers the solution of death for the rest of the ode. He

does not want death to be the solution but he has moments in the poem where he sees it as the

only solution, this may reflect how Keats feels in life. Keats mentions death many times past the

second stanza, he talks about how he is “half in love with easeful death” (52) and that he envies

the nightingale for being “not born for death” (61). Keats, like most people, does not have a clear

point of view on death and never actually states he wants to die, he just contemplates how great

it would be to end all his suffering. He discusses death for the whole second half of the poem

and then ends with the question of “Do I wake or sleep” (80). This line reflects how he does not

know anything about his life anymore, how that he cannot figure out even the most basic thing

about his life and that if he was dead he would not even know.

Keats takes the normal experience of looking at a nightingale and turns it into a very deep

and interesting poem. He realizes alcohol, despite being lovely in his opinion, is not what he

wants. He then contemplates death and realizes that death may be a great experience but when

he dies he will not even know it. This deep ode is defined by the Keats discussions of death and

alcohol.

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