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A Thing Of Beauty By John Keats for class 12 English CBSE (Detailed summary, poetic devices, vocabulary and stanza based question-answer)

   

A THING OF BEAUTY

By John Keats

(31 October 1795 – 23 February 1821)



DETAILED SUMMARY, EXPLANATION, EXTRACT-BASED QUESTIONS, AND THEIR ANSWER, VERY SHORT QUESTIONS AND THEIR ANSWER, WORD MEANINGS AND POETIC DEVICES USED IN “A THING OF BEAUTY”.





"A Thing of Beauty" revolves around the idea that beauty can uplift and provide solace amid life's trials and tribulations. Keats suggests that beauty can be a source of joy and inspiration even in a world filled with suffering and sorrow. He considers beauty eternal and divine.


About the poet

John Keats, a famous English poet of the Romantic Age,  lived in the early 19th century. His writing often explores the themes of beauty, love, and nature. Even though he died young at just 25, his poetry has left a lasting impact on literature, making him one of the most beloved poets in English literature.




DIFFICULT WORDS AND THEIR MEANING

  • Bower - A shady place under the tree

  • Morrow - morning

  • Wreathing - weaving/ encircling/ arrangement of flowers in circular shapes

  • Spite - malice / ill will/ hatred

  • Despondence - sadness/ depression

  • Gloomy - sad

  • Pall - covering/shroud

  • Boon - blessing

  • Rills - a small stream

  • Brake - fern/thicket/brushwood

  • Grandeur - glory

  • Mighty - great / Powerful

  • Brink - edge



POETIC DEVICES:

Metaphor

  • Bower quiet

  • Wreathing a flowery band

  • Endless fountain of immortal drink


Alliteration

  • Noble nature

  • Cooling covert

  • Band to bind


Transferred epithet

  • Gloomy days

  • Unhealthy and over-darkened ways

Imagery

  • Flowery bands

  • Shady boon

  • Clear rills

  • Daffodils in green world

  • Cooling covert

  • Grandeur of dooms

  • Endless fountain of immortal drink


Anaphora

  • Of noble nature,of the gloomy days

Of all the unhealthy and o'er darkened ways


Antithesis

  • Trees old and young


Personification

  • Clear rills that for themselves…

Oxymoron 

  • Mighty dead


A Thing of Beauty is a joy forever…………. and health and quiet breathing.


  • According to the poet, beauty endures eternally. It never fades. Instead, it becomes more fascinating as time goes on. A beautiful thing doesn't diminish with time; on the contrary, it just gets more beautiful. Further, the poet expresses that beauty is like a lovely tree that provides shade, allowing all living things to rest happily and prosper. 


Q. How is a thing of beauty 'joy forever'?

Ans. Anything beautiful has an everlasting effect on us. Its charm and magic never vanish.

Q. Whose loveliness will keep on increasing?

Ans. The loveliness of a beautiful thing will keep on increasing.

Q. Which poetic device has been used in the expression “bower quiet for us”?

Ans. Metaphor

Q. Identify the expression which says that beauty is immortal.

Ans. It will never pass into nothingness.

Q. What is a 'bower'?

Ans. A shady place under a tree.

Q. What does the expression “full of sweet dreams” mean?

Ans. Pleasant and peaceful sleep.

Q. What is the example of a beautiful thing in these lines?

Ans. Bower

Q. Why do we need a ―flowery band? 

Ans. To continue our lives happily despite the sadness that surrounds us.


Therefore, on every morrow, are the wreathing……….. From our dark spirits.


  • The poet says that beauty gives us the will to live every day despite the sad and harsh situations around us. It is beauty that gives us the power and energy to survive and thus we remain connected with the earth. The poet tries to convey that without beauty, the world will be filled with wretched individuals and depressingly dark situations. God has created beauty to enable us to remove all our miseries, troubles and sufferings.


Q. Why do we need a flowery band? 

Ans. To continue our lives happily despite the sadness that surrounds us.

Q. Why do we need to tie ourselves to the Earth? 

Ans. It is because Earth is full of beauty.

Q. 'inhuman dearth' shows that there is:  

Ans. lack or shortage of humanity or good values. 

Q. Which phrase has the poetic device expressed in “leaping lizard? 

Ans. “noble nature”

Q. Which poetic device has been used in the expressions, “ gloomy day” and “over darkened ways ”

Ans. Transferred epithet

Q. Why are the days gloomy?

Ans. It is because of human activities. He has become inhuman and materialistic.

Q. How can sadness be removed from our lives?

Ans. If we remain connected with beautiful things.

Q. What kind of life are we living?

Ans. Life is full of troubles and miseries.

Q. Which poetic device has been used in the lines, 

Of noble natures………

Of all the unhealthy………

Ans. Anaphora.


Such the sun, the moon……….. 'Gainst the hot season.

  • The poet here speaks of the lovely things that exist. These include the sun, moon, trees, daffodils or flowers, and rivers. According to the poet, all of these things are like a blessing God has bestowed upon all living beings. The sun brings us a new hope after the dark night while the moon removes the darkness of the night. The trees whether old or young provide shade and shelter to the wild animals. Further the poet expresses that streams, rivers and other water bodies give us relief from the hot summer. Moreover, flowers provide beauty and fragrance. These are all examples of the natural wonders that are beneficial to humans.


Q. What are some beautiful things the poet has mentioned?

Ans. Some beautiful things that the poet speaks of are daffodils, clear rills, mid-forest ferns, lives of our forefathers who showed exemplary courage and those who glorified themselves by their noble deeds.

Q. How are clear rills beneficial for us?

Ans. They give us relief from hot weather.

Q. Which poetic device has been used in the expression, “cooling covert”?

Ans. Alliteration

Q. Which poetic device has been used in the expression, “and clear rills That for themselves”?

Ans. Personification( Here 'clear rills' has been personified)


…….. the mid forest brake….. Pouring unto us from heaven's brink.


  • The poet continues to describe some of the earth's lovely and beautiful things like the musk roses, which are fragrant and beautiful. 

  • After that, he tells stories of great warriors who sacrificed their lives to save their nations or humanity. Thus they have glorified themselves through noble and great deeds. When we hear or read about them, we feel inspired. According to him, God has given us all these wonderful things as gifts. These are those beauties that are immortal and give us a reason to live on this planet even though we experience a great deal of sorrow in our lives. They are the elixirs of life.


Q. Which phrase has the poetic device expressed in “deafening silence”? 

Ans. Mighty dead (Oxymoron)

Q. What do musk roses do?

Ans. Musk roses spread beauty and fragrance.

Q. How can “mighty dead” be a thing of beauty?


Ans. Our forefathers glorified themselves by their noble deeds and displaying extraordinary courage. We are filled with a sense of pride and feel elated when we read about them.

Q. What does the line, “Therefore are we wreathing a flowery band to bind us to earth suggest to you?

Ans. It implies that we develop an attachment to the lovely things around us and create a lovely band that connects us to life and serves as our justification for existing.

Q. What makes human beings love life despite troubles and suffering?

Ans. We find joy and pleasure in the timeless beauty of many things. Despite all of life's difficulties and hardships, it helps us to love life.

Q. Why is grandeur associated with the mighty dead?

Ans. The brave men's selfless acts, which cost them their lives, continue to serve as an example for us. The grandeur that is connected to the mighty dead is the lovely legacy of their valour.

Q. Do we experience things of beauty only for short moments or do they make a lasting impression on us?

Ans. The poet asserts that beauty is a source of unending joy. Even if we only catch a glimpse of it for a brief period, we are eternally changed by the lovely memory it leaves behind. Despite the cruelty of life, it motivates us to live.


Also Read:


Class 12 English CBSE
Literature

Flamingo Prose


Lost Spring                                        
Deep Water                                                                          
 Indigo                        
Poets And Pancakes                          
The Interview                                                                              


Flamingo Poetry

My Mother At Sixty Six .

Keeping Quiet 

Vistas


Writing Portion

Article Writing
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