to autumn

Question 1

who is to autumn written by?

Answer 1

John Keats

Question 2

what movement was Keats part of?

Answer 2

the Romantics

Question 3

what did Keats relish?

Answer 3

the beauty of nature

Question 4

what political stance did Keats take?

Answer 4

a liberal stance- he rejected urban sophistication

Question 5

what does this poem capture the presentiment of?

Answer 5

death and Keats’ hoping he will have an easy passing- as reflected in the final stanza

Question 6

what technique is used that shows that Autumn is addressed with “thou”?

Answer 6

apostrophe

Question 7

what does Keats personify Autumn as?

Answer 7

a goddess

Question 8

why did Keats like nature so much?

Answer 8

it is free to all of us- not just wealthy and upper classes- he did not like those classes

Question 9

how does Keats describe the goddess as?

Answer 9

as an ordinary peasant woman and not a powerful deity

Question 10

what technique is used in the poem with the rhyme scheme?

Answer 10

iambic pentameter
ABAB rhyme- then varies perhaps reflecting on the variety and diversity of nature

Question 11

what type of odes did Keats usually write and what is different about this one?

Answer 11

normally wrote odes with 10 lines- this one has 11- reflecting on the myriad and plethora of nature

Question 12

what is the first line of the poem?

Answer 12

“season of mists and mellow fruitfulness!”

Question 13

what does the first stanza of the poem convey about Autumn?

Answer 13

it has a plentiful nature, Autumn allows for great harvests and there are a multitude of warm, sunny days

Question 14

what is the use of the verb “bless” in the line “conspiring with him how to load and bless”?

Answer 14

Autumn is a gift for the world- Autumn uses its powers to help everyone else

Question 15

what are the 2 lines that convey Autumn as a goddess- “thee sitting careless…

Answer 15

on a granary floor, thy hair soft-lifted by the winnowing wind”

Question 16

what is being conveyed in the first stanza?

Answer 16

a misty, dewy morning- the ripeness and peak of Autumn- where the harvests are great and the flowers are blossoming

Question 17

what is being conveyed in the second stanza?

Answer 17

a sleepy afternoon- Autumn begins to slowly transform into Winter- the season is slowly dying

Question 18

what is being conveyed in the third stanza and what does this link to in Keats’ life?

Answer 18

the evening and the dying of Autumn as Winter approaches- reflective of Keats’ death
- Autumn turning into Winter is a natural process and it happens slowly and peacefully- how Keats wanted to die

Question 19

what is the structure of the poem?

Answer 19

Keats introduces an aspect of nature and then expands on it

Question 20

what is unique about how Keats describes Autumn, especially in the first stanza?

Answer 20

Autumn- in British literature- is usually a melancholy time and a time of death- Keats is describing it as a fruitful time of existence

Question 21

what are some quotes from the poem that convey beauty and the powerful energy of Autumn?

Answer 21

“mellow fruitfulness!”
“load and bless”
“fruit the vines”
“fill all fruit with ripeness to the core”
“plump the hazel shells”
“sweat kernel”

Question 22

what does the idea of “fruit (having) ripeness to the core” produce a parallel to?

Answer 22

the parallel idea of a climax
this is the ultimate glory of Autumn- of sunny days and crisp air- then bleak, gloomy Winter will arrive

Question 23

what does the relaxed tone of voice link to?

Answer 23

Keats acknowledgement and acceptance of his death- it is futile and inescapable

Question 24

why does Keats personify Autumn?

Answer 24

to help the reader understand and empathise with the season- to understand the true power of it

Question 25

what does Keats directly address in the last stanza?

Answer 25

Autumn herself

Question 26

what is Keats implying in the final stanza?

Answer 26

Autumn is mourning the loss of Spring and considers herself to be inferior and not as important as Spring

Question 27

how does Keats explore the belief of Autumn being just as beautiful as Spring?

Answer 27

“think not of them, thou hast thy music too”

Question 28

how does Keats show the beauty of Autumn in the final stanza?

Answer 28

describing the sun setting over the land
the insects that come out at night
the animals that were born in Autumn and are now fully- grown

Question 29

how does the poem also have a deeper, darker meaning?

Answer 29

in the final stanza, the words such as- “soft-dying” and “rosy hue” “mourn” allude to his death

Question 30

what does the language of excess show in the poem?

Answer 30

Autumn can produce a bountiful harvest, but perhaps it is too much and it is on the brink of death- like Keats

Question 31

how is sensory language used in the poem?

Answer 31

especially sound is used in the last stanza to convey the songs of Autumn

Question 32

what is the significance of the swallows in the final stanza?

Answer 32

the swallows are leaving the area- almost how Keats is leaving too
the swallows are replaced by the robins- Keats will be replaced by new life

Question 33

what are the key themes in this poem?

Answer 33

nature- its excess and beauty
death and loss
the passing of time and change

Question 34

what are poems to compare this to?

Answer 34

afternoons
as imperceptibly as grief
the prelude