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Context Creator / JohnKeats

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1[[quoteright:305:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/john_keats_portrait.jpeg]]
2 [[caption-width-right:305:Posthumous portrait by William Hilton, 1822]]
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4->''"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."''
5-->-- '''John Keats''', from a letter to James Hessey
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7John 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.
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9Keats 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.
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11Keats 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.
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13He 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".
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15Way 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.
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17In 2009, a movie, ''Film/BrightStar'', was made about his relationship with his [[TheMuse Muse]][=/=]GirlNextDoor, Fanny Brawne.
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19Oh, 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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