Keats Life Tells All

In trying to understand the Keats poem, “Ode to a Grecian Urn” the life of Keats helped shed more light on the possible meaning of the poem than any number of readings. From the Lit 21 CD suggested site, http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/66, Keats biography is available. From his biography, the “ode” form was something Keats used in multiple poems of this same time (1819) when he met and fell in love with Fanny Brawne. This suggests that Keats was very happy and wanted to "sing" out about his new understanding of life and relationships.

Also in the context that Keats had suffered losses of this family (father, mother, and brothers) and then found a true love, in "Grecian Urn" he wanted to explain about the beauty or happiness that exists in the world, even if you may suffer and lose loved ones through death. The poem ends with what Keats has learned, namely he found out there is beauty and love in the world even with all the suffering you may experience in life and that one item is the most important thing to learn or believe in.