When I have Fears
John Keats
Julia Buehler
Yunjin Lee
John Keats
John Keats was born in Finsbury
Pavement near London on October 31st,
1795. Many of John’s family members
died, so he lived with his Grandma. John
wanted to be a surgeon, but changed his
mind and pursued literature. John then
died in December 1818.
Colvin, Sir Sydney. "Biography - Index." JohnKeats.com. Web. 24 Feb.
2011. <http://www.johnkeats.com/biografie/biografie_index.htm>.
Poem
When I have fears that I may cease to be
Before my pen has glean'd my teeming brain,
Before high-piled books, in charactery,
Hold like rich garners the full ripen'd grain;
When I behold, upon the night's starr'd face,
Huge cloudy symbols of a high romance,
And think that I may never live to trace
Their shadows, with the magic hand of chance;
And when I feel, fair creature of an hour,
That I shall never look upon thee more,
Never have relish in the faery power
Of unreflecting love;--then on the shore
Of the wide world I stand alone, and think
Till love and fame to nothingness do sink.
"When I Have Fears Analysis." Writing Workshop, or Something. Web. 07
Feb. 2011. <http://www.eliteskills.com/c/4341>.
Paraphrase
I fear that I will die
Before I write what’s on my mind,
Before books have my poems;
When I look up at the sky,
I find inspiration for my poems,
I think I won’t have time to write
About these thoughts,
that I don’t where they came from;
I am only around for right now,
I am a normal human being,
I won’t be around long enough to see that girl
One who doesn’t return my love;
I am alone in the world,
My love and fame disappear to nothing.
Diction
When I have Fears is a formal and
concrete poem that is vague.
There are many words that have
associations beyond the standard
deviation.
Example: The word be in the first line
doesn’t just mean to cease to be, but also
exercising the true experience.
Tone and Mood
Tone: He is sad and filled with regret and
disappointment for not being able to do all
that he wanted to do in life.
Mood: This poem gets the readers to feel
bad for the writer.
Rhetorical Situation
The author is the one that is speaking and
he is speaking directly to the reader. He is
telling them how he is afraid you won’t live
long enough to do everything he wants to
do.
Figurative Language
Personification and similes are used in this
poem.
One example of personification being used in
line two when he said “my pen has glean'd my
teeming brain” because he is stating that the
pen has the ability to read his mind.
One example of a simile being used was in line
four when he said “hold like rich garners the full
ripen'd grain”
Imagery
Imagery was used in line five when he
said “night's starr'd face”. This paints a
picture of a starry night in you head. This
symbolizes a feeling of mystery.
Sound
Examples of Alliteration:
And when I feel, fair creature of an hour,
Of the wide world I stand alone, and think
Structure of the Poem
It isn’t free verse it has four stanzas.
Rhyme Scheme: ABAB CDCD EFEF GG
This poem has a standard form of a
sonnet.
Personal Reactions
I did not enjoy this poem. It didn’t give me
a new perspective and it didn’t relate to
me. I try not to think about my death and if
I will accomplish everything I want to or
not.