Ode to a Nightingale by John Keats
Categories: WB SLST 2025 English Prep – Class IX & X
About Course
Master “Ode to a Nightingale” by John Keats for West Bengal SLST 2025 (Class IX–X) with our specialized online course. This comprehensive course offers line-by-line explanations, detailed summaries, literary analysis, and exam-focused MCQs aligned with the WB SLST English syllabus. Designed for self-paced learning and exam readiness, the course explores key themes such as mortality, transcendence, imagination, and the contrast between the real and the ideal. It also delves into Keats’s use of rich imagery, sensuous language, and Romantic philosophy. Ideal for WB SLST aspirants, English literature students, and school-level educators, this course provides structured, syllabus-based content to deepen understanding and boost confidence for the exam.
What Will You Learn?
- Line-by-line explanation of Ode to a Nightingale
- In-depth literary and thematic analysis (Romanticism, mortality, imagination, etc.)
- Explanation of poetic devices: imagery, symbolism, allusions, etc.
- Context of composition and Keats’s poetic vision
- Comprehensive MCQs and short-answer practice based on WB SLST pattern
- High-scoring answer writing techniques and question-solving strategies
Course Content
Full Text
Ode to a Nightingale
By John Keats
My heart aches, and a drowsy numbness pains
My sense, as though of hemlock I had drunk,
Or emptied some dull opiate to the drains
One minute past, and Lethe-wards had sunk:
'Tis not through envy of thy happy lot,
But being too happy in thine happiness,—
That thou, light-winged Dryad of the trees
In some melodious plot
Of beechen green, and shadows numberless,
Singest of summer in full-throated ease.
O, for a draught of vintage! that hath been
Cool’d a long age in the deep-delvèd earth,
Tasting of Flora and the country green,
Dance, and Provençal song, and sunburnt mirth!
O for a beaker full of the warm South,
Full of the true, the blushful Hippocrene,
With beaded bubbles winking at the brim,
And purple-stainèd mouth;
That I might drink, and leave the world unseen,
And with thee fade away into the forest dim:
Fade far away, dissolve, and quite forget
What thou among the leaves hast never known,
The weariness, the fever, and the fret
Here, where men sit and hear each other groan;
Where palsy shakes a few, sad, last gray hairs,
Where youth grows pale, and spectre-thin, and dies;
Where but to think is to be full of sorrow
And leaden-eyed despairs;
Where Beauty cannot keep her lustrous eyes,
Or new Love pine at them beyond to-morrow.
Away! away! for I will fly to thee,
Not charioted by Bacchus and his pards,
But on the viewless wings of Poesy,
Though the dull brain perplexes and retards:
Already with thee! tender is the night,
And haply the Queen-Moon is on her throne,
Clustered around by all her starry Fays;
But here there is no light,
Save what from heaven is with the breezes blown
Through verdurous glooms and winding mossy ways.
I cannot see what flowers are at my feet,
Nor what soft incense hangs upon the boughs,
But, in embalmed darkness, guess each sweet
Wherewith the seasonable month endows
The grass, the thicket, and the fruit-tree wild;
White hawthorn, and the pastoral eglantine;
Fast fading violets cover’d up in leaves;
And mid-May’s eldest child,
The coming musk-rose, full of dewy wine,
The murmurous haunt of flies on summer eves.
Darkling I listen; and, for many a time
I have been half in love with easeful Death,
Call’d him soft names in many a musèd rhyme,
To take into the air my quiet breath;
Now more than ever seems it rich to die,
To cease upon the midnight with no pain,
While thou art pouring forth thy soul abroad
In such an ecstasy!
Still wouldst thou sing, and I have ears in vain—
To thy high requiem become a sod.
Thou wast not born for death, immortal Bird!
No hungry generations tramp thee down;
The voice I hear this passing night was heard
In ancient days by emperor and clown:
Perhaps the self-same song that found a path
Through the sad heart of Ruth, when, sick for home,
She stood in tears amid the alien corn;
The same that oft-times hath
Charm’d magic casements, opening on the foam
Of perilous seas, in faery lands forlorn.
Forlorn! the very word is like a bell
To toll me back from thee to my sole self!
Adieu! the fancy cannot cheat so well
As she is fam’d to do, deceiving elf.
Adieu! adieu! thy plaintive anthem fades
Past the near meadows, over the still stream,
Up the hill-side; and now 'tis buried deep
In the next valley-glades:
Was it a vision, or a waking dream?
Fled is that music:—Do I wake or sleep?
Line by line analysis of the poem
🌙 Ode to a Nightingale – Line-by-Line Analysis
🔶 Stanza 1
1. My heart aches, and a drowsy numbness pains
→ The poet feels emotional and physical exhaustion; a deep melancholy grips him.
2. My sense, as though of hemlock I had drunk,
→ He compares his numbness to the effect of poison (hemlock) that dulls the senses.
3. Or emptied some dull opiate to the drains
→ Suggests taking a strong sleeping drug or narcotic that causes drowsiness.
4. One minute past, and Lethe-wards had sunk:
→ He feels like he’s sinking into Lethe, the river of forgetfulness in Greek mythology.
5. ’Tis not through envy of thy happy lot,
→ He clarifies: he doesn’t envy the bird’s happiness.
6. But being too happy in thine happiness—
→ Instead, he is overwhelmed by the bird’s joyful song.
7. That thou, light-wingèd Dryad of the trees
→ He calls the bird a Dryad (tree spirit), emphasizing its connection to nature.
8. In some melodious plot
→ The bird is imagined in a beautiful, musical garden or grove.
9. Of beechen green, and shadows numberless,
→ Surrounded by green beech trees and countless shadows.
10. Singest of summer in full-throated ease.
→ The bird sings freely and joyfully about the summer.
🔶 Stanza 2
11. O, for a draught of vintage! that hath been
→ The poet wishes for wine—an old, intoxicating drink.
12. Cool’d a long age in the deep-delvèd earth,
→ Wine stored deep underground, cool and aged.
13. Tasting of Flora and the country green,
→ Wine that tastes of flowers and countryside.
14. Dance, and Provençal song, and sunburnt mirth!
→ Reminds him of joyful southern France (Provence): dancing, singing, laughter.
15. O for a beaker full of the warm South,
→ He yearns for the warmth and joy of southern lands through wine.
16. Full of the true, the blushful Hippocrene,
→ Refers to the mythic fountain of poetic inspiration—Hippocrene.
17. With beaded bubbles winking at the brim,
→ The wine bubbles at the surface, glistening.
18. And purple-stainèd mouth;
→ Drinking it stains one’s mouth with deep purple—a symbol of intensity.
19. That I might drink, and leave the world unseen,
→ He longs to escape reality by drinking.
20. And with thee fade away into the forest dim:
→ He wants to disappear into the bird’s forest, away from worldly pain.
🔶 Stanza 3
21. Fade far away, dissolve, and quite forget
→ He desires to dissolve and forget his earthly existence.
22. What thou among the leaves hast never known,
→ The bird does not know of human suffering.
23. The weariness, the fever, and the fret
→ Human life is full of tiredness, sickness, and anxiety.
24. Here, where men sit and hear each other groan;
→ People live in a world of shared pain and complaint.
25. Where palsy shakes a few, sad, last gray hairs,
→ The old are sick and weak—life declines.
26. Where youth grows pale, and spectre-thin, and dies;
→ Even the young fade and die early.
27. Where but to think is to be full of sorrow
→ Merely thinking leads to sadness.
28. And leaden-eyed despairs;
→ People carry heavy burdens in their eyes—hopelessness.
29. Where Beauty cannot keep her lustrous eyes,
→ Beauty fades quickly in a painful world.
30. Or new Love pine at them beyond to-morrow.
→ Even new love dies quickly in a world of suffering.
🔶 Stanza 4
31. Away! away! for I will fly to thee,
→ He longs to escape and fly to the bird.
32. Not charioted by Bacchus and his pards,
→ Not by wine (Bacchus is the Roman god of wine, usually drawn by leopards).
33. But on the viewless wings of Poesy,
→ He will escape through the power of imagination and poetry.
34. Though the dull brain perplexes and retards:
→ His mind is slow and confused, holding him back.
35. Already with thee! tender is the night,
→ He imagines he is already with the bird. The night is gentle and serene.
36. And haply the Queen-Moon is on her throne,
→ The moon, imagined as a queen, is in the sky.
37. Cluster’d around by all her starry Fays;
→ Stars are imagined as fairies surrounding the moon.
38. But here there is no light,
→ Yet where he is, it's dark—no light shines.
39. Save what from heaven is with the breezes blown
→ Only a little starlight comes through the trees.
40. Through verdurous glooms and winding mossy ways.
→ Through green shadows and mossy, twisting paths.
Summary of the poem
📝 Summary of "Ode to a Nightingale" by John Keats
“Ode to a Nightingale” is one of John Keats’s most celebrated odes, written in 1819. The poem explores the contrast between the poet’s sorrowful human condition and the nightingale’s eternal, blissful song.
🔹 Opening Mood: Pain and Longing
The poem begins with the poet feeling a deep ache and numbness—almost like he’s intoxicated or drugged. However, he clarifies that this is not due to jealousy of the nightingale, but because he is “too happy” in the bird’s happiness. The nightingale represents an ideal world—natural, carefree, and unburdened by the pain of human life.
🔹 Desire for Escape
Keats wishes for a “draught of vintage” (wine) that would help him escape from the harshness of reality and transport him into the bird’s idyllic world. He fantasizes about leaving the world of suffering behind and fading into the bird’s forest, where joy and beauty seem everlasting.
🔹 Contrast Between Human and Bird Life
Keats reflects on the hardships of human existence: aging, disease, death, despair, and the fleeting nature of youth, beauty, and love. In contrast, the nightingale appears to exist outside this cycle of decay. The bird’s song is eternal and untouched by the troubles of human life.
🔹 Imagination as Escape
Instead of wine, Keats turns to poetry (“the viewless wings of Poesy”) as a means of spiritual escape. He imagines flying into the night with the nightingale, where the world is dark and mysterious, but emotionally rich. Yet, even imagination has its limits, and reality begins to intrude again.
🔹 Awareness of Mortality
The poet contemplates death and even expresses a wish to die gently, listening to the nightingale’s song. He views death not as something terrifying, but as a peaceful release from worldly suffering. However, he also realizes that while he may die, the bird’s song will continue, eternal and unchanged.
🔹 Timelessness of the Bird’s Song
Keats romanticizes the nightingale’s voice as immortal. He imagines that the same song may have been heard in ancient times, by emperors, clowns, and biblical figures like Ruth. This idea gives the bird a mythical, almost divine, status.
🔹 Return to Reality
As the poem nears its end, the poet returns from his imaginative journey. The nightingale flies away, and its enchanting song fades. The spell is broken. Keats is left wondering whether his experience was real or a dream: "Was it a vision, or a waking dream? / Fled is that music:—Do I wake or sleep?"
🎯 Themes in the Poem
The fleeting nature of life and beauty
The contrast between reality and imagination
The eternal power of art and nature
Death as both an escape and a mystery
The role of the poet and poetic inspiration
Written and published year
📅 Written Year: 1819 (specifically in May 1819)
📚 Published Year: 1820
“Ode to a Nightingale” was composed during one of the most creatively productive periods of John Keats’s life in 1819. It was first published in "Annals of the Fine Arts" in July 1820 as part of his collection Lamia, Isabella, The Eve of St. Agnes, and Other Poems.
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