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济慈《希腊古瓮颂》的美学解读
想起了古希腊文学家艾梅洛尼斯·洛克贝尔-帕利斯的《希腊古瓮颂》，便会
被其中淋漓尽致的美学魅力所折服，此篇作品拘留住古希腊文学的精华，以及文学家个人的心血，其中有了丰富的美学内涵。
《希腊古瓮颂》以一个充满阳光的希腊小镇有关的故事作为Wordis，整个市
民用传统的技艺将一只古瓮装饰得很漂亮，本质上，作品凸显出古希腊文学的价值：以节日的热烈和家园的宁静来庆贺生活的美好。
作者对古瓮的周围环境进行了形象而又真实地描述，巧妙地把正念与神话融为一体。
特别要指出的是，作者将古瓮与黎明、月亮和阳光这些元素紧紧连接在一起，使得古瓮有了更强烈的寓意。
例如：“月光充斥在古瓮上，庄严而真实，仿佛把外部世界留在边缘，带来了一种迷人的宁静”。
也暗示了古希腊文学的精神意蕴：热情追求完美。
此外，作者充分发挥想象力，运用符号语言将此故事上升到一种更高的层次与
范畴，一切发生的场景和人物的话语，都有可能起到一种类似于智性的作用，这在其他作品里找不到，是真正的古文学的魅力所在。
综上所述，古希腊文学家艾梅洛尼斯·洛克贝尔-帕利斯的《希腊古瓮颂》是
一篇非常优秀的古文学作品，其中蕴含着丰富的美学内涵，既有雷同神话的传统价值，又融入了对完美的寄寓，将文学提升到另一个高度，这正是《希腊古瓮颂》所表达的美学意义。
从修辞学角度简析《希腊古瓮颂》摘要诗歌语言凝练生动，意象纷呈，富有张力，给读者充分的想象空间和相对开放的理解向度。
本文从修辞学角度着笔，通过分析解读济慈的《希腊古瓮颂》中的修辞格，探索诗歌语言独有的特点和魅力。
关键词：《希腊古瓮颂》修辞格诗歌语言中图分类号：i106.2 文献标识码：a引言约翰·济慈（john keats，1795-1821），与拜伦、雪莱齐名，是继华兹华斯、柯勒律治之后英国19世纪浪漫主义诗坛上又一具有深远影响的天才诗人。
济慈的诗优美动人，极富想象力。
本篇拟从修辞学角度，解读济慈《希腊古瓮颂》中的修辞格，探索诗歌语言的魅力。
1819年，济慈创作了伟大的系列颂体诗，《希腊古瓮颂》是其中的一首；诗人以生动的笔触再现了一尊古希腊时期的大理石古瓮上所描绘的田园故事。
全诗共五个诗节，每个诗节有10行。
诗歌的魅力并不在于诗人用诗歌语言绘画古瓮本身，而在于诗歌所散发出的独特魅力以及诗人借古瓮发幽情的精神追索。
一济慈颂歌体1 颂歌是一种抒情诗，最早是一种配合音乐而写的古老文字形式，有不同的五音步诗行长度，没有固定的押韵体系，表达丰富崇高的思想。
英国颂体诗最初模仿的是诗人贺瑞斯，他用这种形式写了许多不同主题的沉思冥想的抒情诗。
济慈的颂歌体源于古希腊诗人平达罗斯；其颂歌体由一个“莎士比亚体前四行”和一个“彼特拉克体后六行”组成，避免了诗体韵律的单调沉闷，让思想、情感尽情驰骋。
2 韵律：五音步抑扬格《希腊古瓮颂》其韵律为五音步抑扬格，是英诗及其他许多语言的诗歌中最普遍的韵脚。
它包括两个音节，一个短的或非重音的音节跟着一个长或重音音节。
五音（pentameter）是一个由五个韵脚构成的诗行。
如：thou still|un rav|ished bride|of qui|et ness,thou fos|ter child|of si|lence and|slow time.二《希腊古瓮颂》中的修辞格修辞格是一种语言文字的表达模式，可增加美感或加强情感强烈程度，其语言运用不是停留在字面意义。
永恒的颂歌——《希腊古瓮颂》之文学赏析摘要：约翰·济慈一直被认为是英国浪漫主义运动中最杰出的诗人代表之一。
他的诗歌体现了济慈对大自然的强烈感受和热爱，其中他的颂歌一直被学术界所推崇，尤其是其代表作《希腊古瓮颂》被认为是济慈写作天赋最自然的和最高超的体现之一。
通过对古瓮上所刻画的风土人情，田园风光的独特描绘，来展现其完美的写作风格和创作技巧。
本文将通过对《希腊古瓮颂》的韵律结构、主题、意象三方面的赏析来揭示济慈诗歌中“永恒的美”这一主题。
关键词：《希腊古瓮颂》；约翰·济慈；永恒的美约翰·济慈被誉为19世纪最伟大的英国浪漫主义诗人之一。
他才华横溢，与雪莱、拜伦齐名。
济慈于1816年发表处女作《哦，孤独》，1817年出版首部诗集《诗歌》，其中因名篇《蝈蝈与蛐蛐》而令他在诗坛崭露头角。
虽然他在25岁时就英年早逝，却留下了不少脍炙人口的诗篇，如颂歌《夜莺颂》《希腊古瓮颂》《忧郁颂》《秋颂》，十四行诗《白天逝去了》等。
他的诗想象丰富，色彩绚丽，构架宏大，洋溢着对自由的渴望。
他主张诗人以“美的梦幻”、“自由的想象”进行创作，表现“永恒的美的世界”，他的诗对后世抒情诗的创作影响极大。
其代表作《希腊古瓮颂》写于1819年，于1820年出版，它与《夜莺颂》一起，经常被视为济慈诗歌成就的杰出体现。
通过诗歌济慈以其丰富的想象力给人们呈现了一个美好的世界。
一、《希腊古瓮颂》的韵律结构《希腊古瓮颂》共有五小节，每小节包含十诗行十个音节。
与同时代的颂相比，这首颂以其复杂多变的韵律结构向读者展示了济慈精湛的写作技巧，也完美的诠释了永恒的美这一主题。
颂的每一小节前四行韵律采用abab式结构；第一和最后一小节后六行采用了cdedce模式; 而第二、三和第四小节的后六行则以cdecde格局结束。
济慈诗歌的写作手法主要受文艺复兴时期斯宾塞、威廉·莎士比亚、约翰·弥尔顿、但丁等人的影响，希腊古瓮颂就是最好的展现。
希腊古瓮颂你委身“寂静”的、完美的处子，受过了“沉默”和“悠久”的抚育，呵，田园的史家，你竟能铺叙一个如花的故事，比诗还瑰丽：在你的形体上，岂非缭绕着古老的传说，以绿叶为其边缘，讲着人，或神，敦陂或阿卡狄？呵，是怎样的人，或神！在舞乐前多热烈的追求！少女怎样地逃躲！怎样的风笛和鼓铙！怎样的狂喜！听见的乐声虽好，但若听不见却更美，所以，吹吧，柔情的风笛；不是奏给耳朵听，而是更甜，它给灵魂奏出无声的乐曲；树下的美少年呵，你无法中断你的歌，那树木也落不了叶子；卤莽的恋人，你永远，永远吻不上，虽然够接近了——但不必心酸；她不会老，虽然你不能如愿以偿，你将永远爱下去，她也永远秀丽！呵，幸福的树木！你的枝叶不会剥落，从不曾离开春天，幸福的吹笛人也不会停歇，他的歌曲永远是那么新鲜；呵，更为幸福的、幸福的爱！永远热烈，正等待情人宴飨，永远热情的心跳，永远年轻；幸福的是这一切超凡的情态：它不会使心灵餍足和悲伤，没有炽热的头脑，焦渴的嘴唇。
这些人是谁呵，都去赴祭祀？这作牺牲的小牛，对天鸣叫，你要牵它到哪儿，神秘的祭司？花环缀满着它光滑的身腰。
是从哪个傍河傍海的小镇，或哪个静静的堡寨的山村，来了这些人，在这敬神的清早？呵，小镇，你的街道永远恬静；再也不可能回来一个灵魂告诉人你何以是怎么寂寥。
哦，希腊的形状！唯美的观照上面缀有石雕的男人和女人，还有林木，和践踏过的青草；沉默的形体呵，你象是“永恒”使人超越思想：呵，冰冷的牧歌！等暮年使这一世代都凋落，只有你如旧；在另外的一些忧伤中，你会抚慰后人说：“美即是真，真即是美，”这就包括你们所知道、和该知道的一切。
(查良铮译，选自《济慈诗选》，人民文学出版社，1958年)一个古瓮会给我们带来什么呢？造型的美丽和雕饰的华美？一般来说只有这些。
但是，在英国大诗人济慈（1795年---1821年）眼里可就不一样了，竟然铺叙出一篇华美的乐章——《希腊古瓮颂》。
“瓮”是古希腊人用来盛放骨灰或作为装饰品的一种大理石或玻璃器皿，上面多画有人与物的形象。
浅析《希腊古瓮颂》中的“消极感受力”《希腊古瓮颂》是希腊著名诗人西蒂姆尼迪斯的一首诗歌作品，是古希腊诗歌中的经典之作。
这首诗歌以富有感情的文字描述了人们对生活的消极感受力，其中蕴含着深刻的人生哲理。
本文将从多个角度对《希腊古瓮颂》中的“消极感受力”进行浅析。
我们可以从文学形式的角度来分析《希腊古瓮颂》中的“消极感受力”。
这首诗歌采用了典型的古希腊抒情诗的形式，通过韵律和节奏来表达情感。
诗歌以生动的语言描绘了人们对生活的厌倦和消极情绪，表现出一种对现实的不满和悲观情绪。
在诗歌开头部分中作者写道：“君看我歌声尽是悲，尽是悲，可有情于人心乎。
”这种形式上的表达方式，使诗歌更加真实、深刻地揭示了人们内心的消极情感。
我们可以从文学内容的角度来分析《希腊古瓮颂》中的“消极感受力”。
诗歌中描述了人们面对世事变迁、人生起伏所表现出的无奈和悲观。
诗中写到：“人生苦短，当珍惜，不必挑剔。
”这种对生活的无奈和悲观情绪，反映了人们对生活的种种痛苦和不满。
诗歌中也充满了对“理想国”的向往和追求，但又深知现实与理想之间的巨大落差，这种对现实的认知与理想的追求之间的矛盾也成为了诗歌中消极感受力的重要表现形式。
我们可以从哲学思考的角度来分析《希腊古瓮颂》中的“消极感受力”。
在古希腊哲学中，对生活的幻灭和对现实的不满是常见的主题。
《希腊古瓮颂》中所表现出的主观消极情感，是对生活本质的深刻反思，也是一种对现实的客观评价。
作者以悲观的笔调表达了对人生的迷惘和对现实的不满，这在一定程度上引发了人们对人生意义和生活方式的思考。
这种悲观情感所蕴含的哲学思考，是诗歌中的一大亮点。
希腊古瓮颂翻译及简要赏析希腊古瓮颂修辞赏析希腊古瓮颂你委身“寂静”的、完美的处子，受过了“沉默”和“悠久”的抚育，呵，田园的史家，你竟能铺叙一个如花的故事，比诗还瑰丽：在你的形体上，岂非缭绕着古老的传说，以绿叶为其边缘，讲着人，或神，敦陂或阿卡狄？呵，是怎样的人，或神！在乐舞前多热烈的追求！少女怎样地逃躲！怎样的风笛和鼓铙！怎样的狂喜！听见的乐声虽好，但若听不见却更和美，所以，吹吧，柔情的风笛；不是奏给耳朵听，而是更甜，它给灵魂奏出无声的乐曲；树下的美少年呵，你无法中断你的歌，那树木也落不了叶子；卤莽的恋人，你永远，永远吻不上，虽然够接近了——但不必心酸；她不会老，虽然你不能如愿以偿，你将永远爱下去，她也永远秀丽！呵，幸福的树木！你的枝叶不会剥落，从不曾离开春天，幸福的吹笛人也绝不停歇，他的歌曲永远是那么新鲜；呵，更为幸福的、幸福的爱！永远热烈，正等待情人宴飨，永远热情的心跳，永远年轻；幸福的是这一切超凡的情态：它不会而使心灵餍足和悲伤，没有炽热的头脑，焦渴的嘴唇。
这些人是谁呵，都去赴祭祀？这作牺牲的小牛，对天鸣叫，你要牵它到哪儿，神秘的祭司？花环缀满着它光滑的身腰。
主要是从哪个傍河傍海的小镇，或哪个静静的堡寨的山村，来了这些人，在这敬神的清早？呵，小镇，你的街道永远恬静；再也不可能将回来一个灵魂告诉人你何以是怎么寂寥。
哦，希腊的形状！唯美的观照上面缀有石雕的男人和女人，还有林木，和践踏过的青草；沉默的形体呵，你象是“永恒”使人超越思想：呵，冰冷的牧歌！等暮年使这一世代都凋落，只有你如旧；在另外的一些深沉中，你会抚慰后人说：“美即是真，真即是美，”这就包括你们所知道、和该知道的一切。
(查良铮译，选自《济慈诗选》，人民文学出版社，1958年)一个古瓮会给我们带来什么呢？造型的浪漫和雕饰的华美？一般来说只有这些。
但是，在英国大点诗人济慈（1795年---1821年）眼里可就不一样了，竟然铺叙出一篇华美的乐章——《希腊古瓮颂》。
古瓮颂中文赏析班级：姓名：学号：分数：《希腊古瓮颂》赏析摘要美是济慈的毕生追求，《希腊古瓮颂》是诗人对美的颂歌。
诗歌通过诗人对古瓮观感以及与古瓮的对话，得出了“美即是真，真即是美”的结论。
济慈的这句名言向来颇有争议，很值得思考。
在这首诗中，古瓮之美不仅仅在于“优美”和“美妙”：三幅画面中既有人神狂欢和少年求爱的美好画面，也有小镇倾城献祭的凄凉街景。
诗中的美是艺术之美。
作为艺术品，这首诗和古瓮是美的，这美源自有悲也有乐的生活，这便是真。
生活的本真是艺术美的源泉，艺术之美则使生活的本真得以永存。
这句话也可看作诗人一生的写照。
济慈出生寒微，在创作过程中不断受到死亡的威胁，但他以短暂的生命创作出大批具有强烈美感的名篇佳作。
他的艺术成就是他在生活之真中追求美的结果，他所创造出来的艺术美则使他的一生不朽于世。
关键词：《希腊古瓮颂》济慈美一、介绍约翰·济慈（1795～1821）英国诗人，他出生于伦敦，父亲是马厩的雇工领班。
济慈自幼喜爱文学，由于家境窘困，不满16岁就离校学医。
1816年，他认识了李·亨特、雪莱等著名诗人，受到他们的影响。
11月，他弃医从文，走上了诗歌创作的道路。
终于成为当时英国文坛上一颗光彩夺目的巨星。
《希腊古瓮颂》是英国浪漫诗人约翰·济慈的诗作，作于1819年5月，1820年1月出版。
它与《怠惰颂》、《忧郁颂》、《夜莺颂》、《赛姬颂》和《秋颂》并称为济慈传世的六大颂诗。
在创作晚期，济慈不满足于早期诗歌体例，于是发展出全新的颂体，即以他的六首诗为代表。
他在阅读英国作家及画家本杰明·罗伯特·海登的二篇文章后，灵感泉涌而提笔写下此诗。
济慈十分喜爱古希腊艺术作品，曾以埃尔金石雕之名作诗；他对古希腊艺术的理想主义哲学的信仰，以及对希腊古风之美的刻画，构成了此诗的基础。
济慈诗才横溢，与雪莱、拜伦齐名。
他年仅25岁，可是他遗下的诗篇一直誉满人间，被认为完美地体现了西方浪漫主义诗歌的特色，并被推崇为欧洲浪漫主义运动的杰出代表。
希腊古瓮颂翻译及简要赏析|希腊古瓮颂修辞赏析希腊古瓮颂你委身“寂静”的、完美的处子，受过了“沉默”和“悠久”的抚育，呵，田园的史家，你竟能铺叙一个如花的故事，比诗还瑰丽：在你的形体上，岂非缭绕着古老的传说，以绿叶为其边缘，讲着人，或神，敦陂或阿卡狄？呵，是怎样的人，或神！在舞乐前多热烈的追求！少女怎样地逃躲！怎样的风笛和鼓铙！怎样的狂喜！听见的乐声虽好，但若听不见却更美，所以，吹吧，柔情的风笛；不是奏给耳朵听，而是更甜，它给灵魂奏出无声的乐曲；树下的美少年呵，你无法中断你的歌，那树木也落不了叶子；卤莽的恋人，你永远，永远吻不上，虽然够接近了——但不必心酸；她不会老，虽然你不能如愿以偿，你将永远爱下去，她也永远秀丽！呵，幸福的树木！你的枝叶不会剥落，从不曾离开春天，幸福的吹笛人也不会停歇，他的歌曲永远是那么新鲜；呵，更为幸福的、幸福的爱！永远热烈，正等待情人宴飨，永远热情的心跳，永远年轻；幸福的是这一切超凡的情态：它不会使心灵餍足和悲伤，没有炽热的头脑，焦渴的嘴唇。
这些人是谁呵，都去赴祭祀？这作牺牲的小牛，对天鸣叫，你要牵它到哪儿，神秘的祭司？花环缀满着它光滑的身腰。
是从哪个傍河傍海的小镇，或哪个静静的堡寨的山村，来了这些人，在这敬神的清早？呵，小镇，你的街道永远恬静；再也不可能回来一个灵魂告诉人你何以是怎么寂寥。
哦，希腊的形状！唯美的观照上面缀有石雕的男人和女人，还有林木，和践踏过的青草；沉默的形体呵，你象是“永恒”使人超越思想：呵，冰冷的牧歌！等暮年使这一世代都凋落，只有你如旧；在另外的一些忧伤中，你会抚慰后人说：“美即是真，真即是美，”这就包括你们所知道、和该知道的一切。
(查良铮译，选自《济慈诗选》，人民文学出版社，1958年)一个古瓮会给我们带来什么呢？造型的美丽和雕饰的华美？一般来说只有这些。
但是，在英国大诗人济慈（1795年---1821年）眼里可就不一样了，竟然铺叙出一篇华美的乐章——《希腊古瓮颂》。
“瓮”是古希腊人用来盛放骨灰或作为装饰品的一种大理石或玻璃器皿，上面多画有人与物的形象。
但在诗人笔下，古瓮上的人与物已经不是简单的形象和干枯的线条，而是具有鲜明个性的生命。
开始，诗人点明这个瓮的古老：它曾“委身寂静的、完美的处子，受过了沉默和悠久的抚育”，经过“田园的史家”再造，“竟能铺叙一个如花的故事，比诗还瑰丽”，于是，在它的形体上，“岂非缭绕着古老的传说，以绿叶为其边缘，讲着人，或神，敦陂或阿卡狄？”诗人叹赏道：“呵，是怎样的人，或神！在舞乐前多热烈的追求！少女怎样地逃躲！怎样的风笛和鼓铙！怎样的狂喜！”这是诗人对古瓮热烈的感情，为整首诗定下基调。
据说，诗人曾看到过数种不同的希腊古瓮。
他凝视着古瓮上那些栩栩如生的画面曾长长地陷入沉思，在冥冥的想象中，他看到古希腊的古老传说——敦陂和阿卡狄谷地人神共处的那种奇瑰的生活，即古希腊人田园诗般的生活。
这是一个何等纯洁，何等美丽，何等自由，何等欢乐的世界啊！那里树木长青，鲜花盛开，人们欢乐地歌唱，跳舞，姣美的少男少女无拘无束地恋爱，到处充满狂热、幸福的气氛！诗人被深深地激动了，他情不自禁地为这种生活唱起赞歌。
在整首诗中，诗人以“永恒”和“超越思想”为着眼点，从声觉和视觉两方面铺写开来。
在声觉方面，诗人写道：“听见的乐声虽好，但若听不见却更美，所以，吹吧，柔情的风笛；不是奏给耳朵听，而是更甜，它给灵魂奏出无声的乐曲；树下的美少年呵，你无法中断你的歌”。
“幸福的吹笛人也不会停歇，他的歌曲永远是那么新鲜”。
“这作牺牲的小牛，对天鸣叫，你要牵它到哪儿，神秘的祭司”。
在视觉方面，诗人写道：“那树木也落不了叶子；卤莽的恋人，你永远，永远吻不上，虽然够接近了——但不必心酸”。
“呵，幸福的树木！你的枝叶不会剥落，从不曾离开春天”。
“是从哪个傍河傍海的小镇，或哪个静静的堡寨的山村，来了这些人，在这敬神的清早”。
这些描写，加上超时空的笔调，让人感觉既神秘，又优美。
而这首诗中，诗人着墨最多的，还是对少男少女无拘无束的恋爱的描写。
如：“树下的美少年呵，你无法中断你的歌，那树木也落不了叶子；卤莽的恋人，你永远，永远吻不上，虽然够接近了——但不必心酸；她不会老，虽然你不能如愿以偿，你将永远爱下去，她也永远秀丽！”“他的歌曲永远是那么新鲜；呵，更为幸福的、幸福的爱！永远热烈，正等待情人宴飨，永远热情的心跳，永远年轻；幸福的是这一切超凡的情态：它不会使心灵餍足和悲伤，没有炽热的头脑，焦渴的嘴唇！”既生动，又热烈。
诗篇最后，诗人理性地思考了“永恒”的问题。
艺术能获得永久的生命，是因为它已凝固在这永恒的画面中，它不仅是“唯美的观照”，而且真实地再现了古希腊的生活。
正因为它具有美和真的品格，因而才能“永恒”。
诗人从艺术和生活相互为用，完美结合，因而双双获得永久魅力的情形受到启发，写出了“美即是真、真即是美”这样高度哲理化的结句，成为诗歌艺术中的万古绝唱。
诗人济慈从古希腊艺术获取灵感，经过想象力的再创造，在读者眼前展现出一幅意象鲜明、色彩斑斓的风景画；同时，诗人又以激情奔放的诗句歌颂这瓮上的画。
真正做到了诗中有画，画中有诗，不愧为传世佳作。
Ode on a Grecian Urn“Ode on a Grecian Urn” is a poem by John Keats, written in 1819 and first published in January 1820. Its inspiration is considered to be a visit by Keats to the exhibition of Greek artifacts accompanying the display of the “ElginMarbles” at the British Museum.[citation needed] The poem captures aspects of Keats”s idea of “Negative Capability”, as the reader does not know who the figures are on the urn, what they are doing, or where they are going. Instead, the speaker revels in this mystery, as he does in the final couplet (mentioned below), which does not makeimmediate, ascertainable sense but continues to have poetic significance nonetheless. The ode ultimately deals with the complexity of art”s relationship with real life.The poem begins:Thou still unravish”d pide of quietness,Thou foster-child of Silence and slow Time,and ends with the famous lines:“Beauty is truth, truth beauty, - that is allYe know on earth, and all ye need to know.”Because this ending couplet is in direct contrast to many of Keats” poems, for example “La Belle Dame Sans Merci” or “Lamia”, in which a man is deceived by a woman”s beauty, literary critics have begun interpreting it in a new way. It is now believed that the narrator, representative of Keats, was criticizing the Urn, saying that all it will ever need to know is that beauty is truth and truth beauty. This is also a sign of jealousy as the narrator admires this simplicity just as he criticizes yet admires the characters on the urn, who will never achieve climax yet are forever passionate.StyleThe ode is an ancient form originally written for musical accompaniment. The word itself is of Greek origin, meaning “sung.” While ode-writers from antiquity adhered to rigid patterns of strophe, anti strophe, and epode, the form by Keats”s time had undergone enough transformation that it really represented a manner-rather than a set method for writing a certain type of lyric poetry. In general, the ode of the Romantic era is a poem of 30 to 200 lines that meditates progressively upon or directly addressesa single object or condition. In addition to “Ode on a Grecian Urn,” Ke ats wrote odes about the season of autumn and the song of a nightingale as well as about indolence, melancholy, and even the poet John Milton”s hair.Keats”s odes are characterized by an exalted and highly lyrical tone, and while they employ specific stanza forms and rhyme schemes, these can vary from ode to ode.Notes Compiled by Michael J. Cummings...? 2005Type of Work.“Ode on a Grecian Urn” is a romantic ode, a dignified but highly lyrical (emotional) poem in which the author speaks to a person or thing absent or present. In this famous ode, Keats addresses the urn and the images on it. The romantic ode was at the pinnacle of its popularity in the 19th Century. It was the result of an author’s deep meditation on the person or object. The romantic ode evolved from the ancient Greek ode, written in a serious tone to celepate an event or to praise an individual. The Greek ode was intended to be sung by a chorus or by one person to the accompaniment of musical instruments. The odes of the Greek poet Pindar (circa 518-438 B.C.) frequently extolled athletes who participated in athletic games at Olympus, Delphi, the Isthmus of Corinth, and Nemea. Bacchylides, a contemporary of Pindar, also wrote odes praising athletes. The Roman poets Horace (65-8 B.C.) and Catullus (84-54 B.C.) wrote odes based on the Greek model, but their odes were not intended to be sung. In the 19th Century, English romantic poets wrote odes that retained the serious tone of the Greek ode. However, like the Roman poets, they did not write odes to be sung. Unlike the Romanpoets, though, the authors of 19th Century romantic odes generally were more emotional in their writing. The author of a typical romantic ode focused on a scene, pondered its meaning, and presented a highly personal reaction to it that included a special insight at the end of the poem (like the closing lines of “Ode on a Grecian Urn”).Writing and Publication Dates“Ode on a Grecian Urn” was written in the spring of 1819 and published later that year in Annals of the Fine Arts, which focused on architecture, sculpture, and painting but sometimes published poems and essays with themes related to the arts. Structure and Meter“Ode on a Grecian Urn” consists of five stanzas that present a scene, describe and comment on what it shows, and offer a general truth that the scene teaches a person analyzing the scene. Each stanza has ten lines written in iambic pentameter, a pattern of rhythm (meter) that assigns ten syllables to each line. The first syllable is unaccented, the second accented, the third unaccented, the fourth accented, and so on. Note, for example, the accent pattern of the first two lines of the poem. The unaccented syllables are in lower-cased blue letters, and the accented syllables are in upper-cased red letters.thou STILL un RAV ished BRIDE of QUI et NESS,thou FOS ter - CHILD of SI lence AND slow TIMENotice that each line has ten syllables, five unaccented ones in blue andfive accented ones in red. Thus, these lines--like the other lines in the poem--are in iambic pentameter. Iambic refers to a pair of syllables, one unaccented and the other accented. Such a pair is called an iamb. “Thou STILL” is an iamb; so are “et NESS” and “slow TIME.” However, “BRIDE of” and “FOS ter” are not iambs because they con sist of an accented syllable followed by an unaccented syllable. Pentameter--the first syllable of which is derived from the Greek word for five--refers to lines that have five iambs (which, as demonstrated, each have two syllables). “Ode on a Grecian Urn,” then, is in iambic pentameter because every line has five iambs, each iamb consisting of an unaccented syllable followed by an accented one. The purpose of this stress pattern is to give the poem rhythm that pleases the ear.Situation and SettingIn England, Keats examines a marble urn crafted in ancient Greece. (Whether such an urn was real or imagined is uncertain. However, many artifacts from ancient Greece, ones which could have inspired Keats, were on display in the British Museum at the time that Keats wrote the poem.) Pictured on the urn, a type of vase, are pastoral scenes in Greece. In one scene, males are chasing females in some sort of revelry or celepation. There are musicians playing pipes (wind instruments such as flutes) and timpels (ancient tambourines). Keats wonders whether the images represent both gods and humans. He also wonders what has occasioned their merrymaking. A secondscene depicts people leading a heifer to a sacrificial altar. Keats writes his ode about what he sees, addressing or commenting on the urn and its images as if they were real beings with whom he can speak. Text, Summary, and AnnotationsEnd-Rhyming Words Are HighlightedSummary and AnnotationsStanza 1Keats calls the urn an “unravish’d pide of quietness” beca use it has existed for centuries without undergoing any changes (it is “unravished”) as it sits quietly on a shelf or table. He also calls it a “foster-child of silence and time” because it is has been adopted by silence and time, parents who have conferred on the urn eternal stillness. In addition, Keats refers to the urn as a “sylvan historian” because it records a pastoral scene from long ago. (“Sylvan” refers to anything pertaining to woods or forests.) This scene tells a story (“legend”) in pictures fr amed with leaves (“leaf-fring’d”)–a story that the urn tells more charmingly with its images than Keats does with his pen. Keats speculates that the scene is set either in Tempe or Arcady. Tempe is a valley in Thessaly, Greece–between Mount Olympus and Mount Ossa–that is favored by Apollo, the god of poetry and music. Arcady is Arcadia, a picturesque region in the Peloponnesus (a peninsula making up the southern part of Greece) where inhabitants live in carefree simplicity. Keats wonders whether the imageshe sees represent humans or gods. And, he asks, who are the reluctant (“loth”) maidens and what is the activity taking place?Stanza 2Using paradox and oxymoron to open Stanza 2, Keats praises the silent music coming from the pipes and timpels as far more pleasing than the audible music of real life, for the music from the urn is for the spirit. Keats then notes that the young man playing the pipe beneath trees must always remain an etched figure on the urn. He is fixed in time like the leaves on the tree. They will remain ever green and never die. Keats also says the bold young lover (who may be the piper or another person) can never empace the maiden next to him even though he is so close to her. However, Keats says, the young man should not grieve, for his lady love will remain beautiful forever, and their love–though unfulfilled–will continue through all eternity. Stanza 3Keats addresses the trees, calling them “happy, happy boughs” because they will never shed their leaves, and then addresses the young piper, calling him “happy melodist” because his songs will continue forever. In addition, the young man”s love for the maiden will remain forever “warm and still to be enjoy’d / For ever panting, and for ever young. . . .” In contrast, Keats says, the love between a man and a woman in the real world is imperfect, pinging pain and sorrow and desire that cannot be fully quenched. The lover comes away with a “burning forehead, and a parching tongue.”Stanza 4Keats inquires about the images of people approaching an altar to sacrifice a “lowing” (mooing) cow, one that has never borne a calf, on a green altar. Do these simple folk come from a little town on a river, a seashore, or a mountain topped by a peaceful fortress. Wherever the town is, it will be forever empty, for all of its inhabitants are here participating in the festivities depicted on the urn. Like the other figures on the urn, townspeople are frozen in time; they cannot escape the urn and return to their homes.Stanza 5Keats begins by addr essing the urn as an “attic shape.” Attic refers to Attica, a region of east-central ancient Greece in which Athens was the chief city. Shape, of course, refers to the urn. Thus, attic shape is an urn that was crafted in ancient Attica. The urn is a beautiful one, poet says, adorned with “pede” (paiding, empoidery) depicting marble men and women enacting a scene in the tangle of forest tree panches and weeds. As people look upon the scene, they ponder it–as they would ponder eternity–trying so hard to grasp its meaning that they exhaust themselves of thought. Keats calls the scene a “cold pastoral!”–in part because it is made of cold, unchanging marble and in part, perhaps, because it frustrates him with its unfathomable mysteries, as does eternity. (At this time in his life, Keats was suffering from tuberculosis, a disease that had killed his pother, andwas no doubt much occupied with thoughts of eternity. He was also passionately in love with a young woman, Fanny Brawne, but was unable to act decisively on his feelings–even though she reciprocated his love–because he believed his lower social status and his dubious financial situation stood in the way. Consequently, he was like the cold marble of the urn–fixed and immovable.) Keats says that when death claims him and all those of his generation, the urn will remain. And it will say to the next generation what it has said to Keats: “Beauty is truth, truth beauty.” In other words, do not try to look beyond the beauty of the urn and its images, which are representations of the eternal, for no one can see into eternity. The beauty itself is enough for a human; that is the only truth that a human can fully grasp. The poem ends with an endorsement of these words, saying they make up the only axiom that any human being really needs to know。
