First I must say that it is quite handy to be living in the ‘Google Age’ where typing in ‘John Keats’ and clicking ‘Search’ yields so many fascinating results. I thought I would check out the Wikipedia entry on John Keats to get some basic information on the man that Wiki described as “one of the principal poets of the English Romantic movement.” If you are like me and have heard about John Keats but don’t know, or remember, much about him it is a good place to get a general overview.
John-Keats.com is an interesting site to peruse as well. The introduction to the site has a wonderful little opening on “Virtual Romanticism” which acknowledges that "It may seem odd to read romantic poetry on a 17-inch Computer-Screen," and goes on to give brief introductions to the different aspects of the site. It also offers a suggestion of how to read poetry that I found fairly interesting,
“Of course, one can accept this poem without any further word about it. And that may even be the best way to get in contact with any piece of art: solely, leaving behind all prejudice, opinion and theory. However, in reality, we often feel rather helpless confronted with a poem with its mysterious beauty. A book - even one written on elephant-skin - stays silent at our awe.”
John-Keats.com has a biography, links to poems and letters, and even biographical context links for certain ones. If you find yourself really enthused, there is even a forum.
A site entitled The Life and Work of John Keats also has links to biographies, poems, and letters, but you can also view images of portraits of him, as well as original manuscript images.
There are many other interesting links on the page to investigate as well such as The Final Months: Keats on his Deathbed, and for those reluctant readers a ‘Why read John Keats’ section.
So if you have any spare time here near the end of term, or perhaps just need a subject for procrastination that makes you feel a little less guilty for putting off writing a paper or studying for an exam take a look at a these sites and hopefully you’ll find something interesting.
