[[quoteright:305:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/john_keats_portrait.jpeg]]
[[caption-width-right:305:Posthumous portrait by William Hilton, 1822]]

->''"I have written independently without Judgment. I may write independently, and with Judgment, hereafter. The Genius of {{Poetry}} must work out its own salvation in a man: It cannot be matured by law and precept, but by sensation and watchfulness in itself — That which is creative must create itself — In Endymion, I leaped headlong into the sea, and thereby have become better acquainted with the Soundings, the quicksands, and the rocks, than if I had stayed upon the green shore, and piped a, silly pipe, and took tea and comfortable advice. I was never afraid of failure; for I would sooner fail than not be among the greatest."''
-->-- '''John Keats''', from a letter to James Hessey

John Keats (31 October 1795 – 23 February 1821) was an English poet who is seen as part of the second generation of Romantic poets, alongside Creator/LordByron and Creator/PercyByssheShelley. His work was indifferently received in his lifetime, but his fame grew rapidly after his death.

Keats was born in Moorgate, London to Thomas and Frances Keats, the eldest of four surviving children; his younger siblings were George, Thomas, and Frances Mary. The elder Thomas worked for his father-in-law at the stables attached to the Swan and Hoop Inn, which he eventually managed and where the growing family lived for some years. Keats was baptised at St Botolph-without-Bishopsgate, and sent to a local dame school as a child.

Keats died of tuberculosis when he was only 25. Given what he accomplished in only that time, [[WhatCouldHaveBeen there is much speculation about what he could have done with a full career]] -- for example, he was in progress on an epic poem, ''The Fall of Hyperion'', which had the potential to become a classic on the level of ''Literature/ParadiseLost'' but was left unfinished when he died. We'll never know.

He is most famous for his series of odes, which remain very popular today. They include "Ode on a Grecian Urn", "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrAGCJJkNbE Ode to a Nightingale]]", and "Ode on Melancholy". He also wrote many other poems, including "Bright star, would I were steadfast as thou art", "La Belle Dame sans Merci" and "Literature/TheEveOfStAgnes".

Way over on the idealistic side of the SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism. Big fan of BeautyEqualsGoodness, very much not a fan of MeasuringTheMarigolds. Like other Romantics, NatureLover featured a lot. Tropes applying to him in real life include TooGoodForThisSinfulEarth, and VindicatedByHistory. He and Creator/LordByron were the SensitiveGuyAndManlyMan of the Romantic poets, respectively.

In 2009, a movie, ''Film/BrightStar'', was made about his relationship with his [[TheMuse Muse]][=/=]GirlNextDoor, Fanny Brawne.

Oh, and if you notice that a ScienceFiction fan knows anything at all about him, credit the ''Literature/HyperionCantos'', which collectively constitute a primer on the life and desires of John Keats, and includes him ([[RobotMe kinda]]) as a significant character.

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