Truth And Beauty example essay topic

Romantic literature, particularly poetry, often sees man in communication with natural world, rather than with other men. It trusts instincts, the emotions and the heart rather than reason, intellect and head. "The romantic believes and trusts only himself, believing that society and civilization corrupt humanity's natural innocence and instinct for good". (English Literature-Martin Stephen. 220) John Keats in his poems is captured by love, truth and beauty. "It appears to suggest that the whole meaning of life can be summed up by the definition and expression of what is beautiful, and that the real truth and real beauty are the same thing, where one is to be found, so will the other".

(English Literature, M.S. 235). Keats is trying to say that beauty is what life has to offer, and search for it should be the spiritual aim of all men. Like he said in his poem Ode on a Grecian Urn "Beauty is truth-truth is beauty-that is all Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know". However, one of the famous philosophers gave very good definition of love, stating that Love is scariness to lose someone or something. If we think little bit deeper about this definition, (which I believe is the best one I ever heard), when are we really afraid that we are going to lose someone? It is when person is about to leave, and when everything is over.

It is like living in memories all your life. This is what Keats is doing. He is using his imagination to keep thinking and remembering his wife, which is already dead. It is like living in the past for as long as he lives. The moment you realize that the person you love will be with you, your feelings towards her change for the simple reason that she will always be with you. That is the moment when you don't love her any more but you are trying to keep someone new that you think you can't live without.

Basically it's an illusion. The moment when you reach it disappears. Keats is trying to reach unreachable, and the moment he gets it isn't what he wanted. This is because people like everything more, before they can have it.

Keats illusions can be compared with doing forbidden actions. Once they become legalized no one does them no more, again, it's because they are not forbidden no more. He is talking about love and beauty as they are facts and truth, but to me those are illusions that come and go. If they are the truth, love and beauty shouldn't change. What is truth once, should be the truth forever. However that is not the case with love or beauty of someone.

Something is beautiful to us until we get to have it. We are so sure about it and we say it's truly beautiful. Imagine yourself going to store to buy a shirt. You would say it's truly beautiful and you have to have it no matter how much it costs. In a few weeks you don't like it, as much, in a few months you don't even pay attention to it. However if anyone takes it from you, you will missed more than the first day that you got it.

This is what the love and beauty is. It's like trying to ketch your shadow. Walt Whitman, unlike Keats, is creator of new space where every reader can have his own world in which everything can be just the way he wants it. It sounds like impossible but it really is. Whitman is enjoying in everything and anything in this world and that is what he wants reader to do. He is not limiting the reader by telling him what to live for like Keats did, but he gives him millions of keys to open any world he wants and enjoys in it, like Whitman did for himself.

"And I know I am deathless, And I know I am solid and sound I do not trouble my spirit to vindicate itself or be understood I see that the elementary laws never apologize I exist, as I am, that is enough I am the poet of the body I am the poet of the soul" (W.W. Song of my self. 21) Whitman is giving to the reader self confidence, understanding and the right to create the things that please him. Even if society doesn't understand you do it because that is you, and what you want to be. Walt is expecting us to read his poems not from his perspective but to understand them from our own point of view, which is big sign of freedom that some people even nowadays do not have it. "You shall no longer take things at second or third hand, nor look Through the eyes of the dead, nor feed on the spectres in books, You shall not look through my eyes either, nor take things for me, You shall listen to all sides and filter them from yourself". (Essential Whitman by Galway Kin nell) In his world, Whitman is king and slave, east and west, left and right.

He is trying to tell us that we are creating the world, and what we are going to be in it. We don't have to limit or joy and happiness because we are slaves or because we are kings, because we are rich or poor. He is showing us the way to find what we like, to see who we are. If we compare this thoughts with today's society we will see a big contrast. Each of us is trying to be like everyone else, or trying to like what everyone else does it, or even feel what everyone else does it. However is that us, or is it the ways we think we suppose to be because that's what others do.

In the introduction is stated that according to romanism, society and civilization corrupt humanity's natural innocence. In today's life there is not too many people like Whitman was. Most of the things and people are stereotyped and follow the rules of others, which is the reason for lack of creativity. Opposite of Keats Whitman invites us in the world where you can feel like millionaire without penny in your pocket. You can keep a company even if you are lonely or find the happiness even if you are sad. Comparing John Keats and Walt Whitman, is like comparing one way street and huge intersection or comparing freedom and reason.

Keats is forcing us to believe that beauty is all what is worth of leaving. While Whitman is opening our eyes to see everything we want to see, or like he said "there are millions of suns left" and we can chose and take as many as we want. This theory is similar to the one that Shakespeare wrote, in Hamlet, "Life is not the way it is but the way we want it to be". It is not beauty it is not truth or love, it is what we want it to be.

Unlike Whitman, Keats is offering only one sun for all people in the world, which is truth and beauty. And the worst thing about this only sun is that we realize that we had one, only when it's gone.