On The Sea
By John Keats
It keeps eternal whisperings around
Desolate shores, and with its mighty swell
Gluts twice ten thousand Caverns, till the spell
Of Hecate leaves them their old shadowy sound.
Often ‘tis in such gentle temper found,
That scarcely will the very smallest shell
Be moved for days from where it sometime fell.
When last the winds of Heaven were unbound.
Oh, ye! who have your eyeballs vexed and tired,
Feast them upon the wideness of the Sea;
Oh ye! whose ears are dinned with uproar rude,
Or fed too much with cloying melody—
Sit ye near some old Cavern’s Mouth and brood,
Until ye start, as if the sea nymphs quired!
Summary of On the Sea
- Popularity of “On the Sea”: Written back in 1817, “On the Sea” is a suggestive poetic piece by the popular Romantic English poet, John Keats. In this sonnet, he addresses people who are disturbed and irritated from the uproar of life and suggests they should seek comfort by the seaside. The sea’s mystery, power, and vastness will not only comfort their noisiest mind but also transport them to a world of imagination. The poem, however, has won global recognition due to the representation of the sea as a consoling entity.
- “On The Sea” As a Representative of Peace: This poem presents the silent sea as an antidote to everyday life’s disturbances. It begins when the speaker says the sea whispers its tale to a lonely faraway sand. Its high and mighty tides overflow many caves until a powerful moon appears and draws the sea tides out of them, leaving them dark and quiet once again. He further says that when the sea is in a mild mood, it hardly moves, even the tiny seashell from where it landed the last time.
In the second half of the poem, the writer addresses the disturbed and irritated people that if they are fed up with everyday troubles, they should feed their souls with the sea’s vastness. He further suggests that they should seek comfort inside a sea cave if they get unsettled with daily life’s harsh and stupid noise. They should stay there until they startle back to consciousness. To him, the song of the ocean spirits will rejoice in their dull hearts. - Major Themes in “On the Sea”: Man versus nature, comfort, and imagination are major themes of this poem. This simple sonnet discusses two things; natural beauty and the way nature consoles doleful hearts. Keats expresses his views on how nature understands man’s needs and provides the desired comfort. It always opens its arms to those whom the unpleasant sounds of daily life irritate and tease. Therefore, he addresses the disturbed souls and suggests they should seek comfort in the lap of the quietness of the sea. The sea’s vastness, mystery, and quietness will surely evaporate their disturbance and fill their minds with peace. He believes that the song of the ocean spirit will heal their hearts.
Analysis of Literary Devices Used in On the Sea
literary devices bring quality to simple poetic pieces. John Keats inserted many literary devices in this sonnet, whose analysis is as follows. It shows his skill and artistry in using these devices.
- Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /e/ in “Be moved for days from where it sometime fell” and the sound of /o/ in “Oh, ye! who have your eyeballs vexed and tired.”
- Consonance: Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /t/ in “Of Hecate leaves them their old shadowy sound” and the sound of /r/ in “Oh ye! whose ears are dinned with uproar rude.”
- Enjambment: It is defined as a thought in verse that does not come to an end at a line break; rather, it rolls over to the next line. For example;
“It keeps eternal whisperings around
Desolate shores, and with its mighty swell
Gluts twice ten thousand Caverns, till the spell
Of Hecate leaves them their old shadowy sound.”
- Imagery: Imagery is used to make readers perceive things involving their five senses. John Keats used imagery in this sonnet, such as “Oh, ye! who have your eyeballs vexed and tired”, “Feast them upon the wideness of the Sea” and “Of Hecate leaves them their old shadowy sound.”
- Metaphor: It is a figure of speech in which an implied comparison is made between objects different in nature. The poet used the healing power of nature as an extended metaphor to show how it takes our woes and fills our hearts with unknown pleasure.
- Personification: Personification is to give human qualities to inanimate objects. The poet has personified eyes in the poem, such as “Oh, ye! who have your eyeballs vexed and tired.”
- Symbolism: Symbolism is using symbols to signify ideas and qualities, giving them symbolic meanings that are different from the literal meanings. The poem shows symbols, such as problems, natural beauty, satisfaction, and comfort to show how the sea heals man’s spirits through its mystery and vastness.
Analysis of Poetic Devices Used in On The Sea
Poetic and literary devices are the same, but a few are used only in poetry. Here is an analysis of some of the poetic devices used in this poem.
- Diction: It means the type of language. The sonnet shows descriptive, simple, and poetic diction.
- End Rhyme: End rhyme is used to make the stanza melodious. John Keats used end rhyme in this poem, such as; “swell/spell”, “sound/found” and “around/sound.”
- Petrarchan sonnet: A sonnet is a fourteen-lined poem usually written in iambic pentameter. This is a Petrarchan sonnet comprising an octave and a sestet.
- Rhyme Scheme: The sonnet follows ABBAABBA in its octave and CDEDEC rhyme scheme in its sestet.
- Stanza: A stanza is a poetic form of some lines. There are two stanzas in this poem, with each comprising a different number of verses.
- Sestet: A sestet is a six-lined stanza borrowed from Italian poetry. The second part of the poem has a sestet.
- Tone: It means the voice of the text. Initially, the sonnet shows an indifferent tone, but later it turns to a suggestive and advisory tone.
Quotes to be Used
The following lines are useful to quote when praising the bounties of nature spread around us.
“It keeps eternal whisperings around
Desolate shores,—and with its mighty swell
Gluts twice ten thousand caverns,—till the spell
Of Hecate leaves them their old shadowy sound.”
