The Eve of St. Agnes - John Keats
A Romantic Tapestry of Love and Yearning
St. Agnes’ Eve—Ah, bitter chill it was!
The owl, for all his feathers, was a-cold;
The hare limp’d trembling through the frozen grass,
And silent was the flock in woolly fold:
Numb were the Beadsman’s fingers, while he told
His rosary, and while his frosted breath,
Like pious incense from a censer old,
Seem’d taking flight for heaven, without a death,
Past the sweet Virgin’s picture, while his prayer he saith.
His prayer he saith, this patient, holy man;
Then takes his lamp, and riseth from his knees,
And back returneth, meagre, barefoot, wan,
Along the chapel aisle by slow degrees:
The sculptur’d dead, on each side, seem to freeze,
Emprison’d in black, purgatorial rails:
Knights, ladies, praying in dumb orat’ries,
He passeth by; and his weak spirit fails
To think how they may ache in icy hoods and mails.
Northward he turneth through a little door,
And scarce three steps, ere Music’s golden tongue
Flatter’d to tears this aged man and poor;
But no—already had his deathbell rung;
The joys of all his life were said and sung:
His was harsh penance on St. Agnes’ Eve:
Another way he went, and soon among
Rough ashes sat he for his soul’s reprieve,
And all night kept awake, for sinners’ sake to grieve.
... [Excerpted for brevity] ...
Thus whispering, his warm, unnerved arm
Sank in her pillow. Shaded was her dream
By the dusk curtains:—’twas a midnight charm
Impossible to melt as iced stream:
The lustrous salvers in the moonlight gleam;
Broad golden fringe upon the carpet lies:
It seem’d he never, never could redeem
From such a stedfast spell his lady’s eyes;
So mus’d awhile, entoil’d in woofed phantasies.
Awakening up, he took her hollow lute,—
Tumultuous,—and, in chords that tenderest be,
He play’d an ancient ditty, long since mute,
In Provence call’d, “La belle dame sans mercy”:
Close to her ear touching the melody;—
Wherewith disturb’d, she utter’d a soft moan:
He ceased—she panted quick—and suddenly
Her blue affrayed eyes wide open shone:
Upon his knees he sank, pale as smooth-sculptured stone.
[Public Domain: Original poem is longer; this is a selected excerpt.]
John Keats’s poem “The Eve of St. Agnes” takes place on a chilly January evening, invoking the legend that if a maiden follows particular rituals on this night, she will see a vision of her future husband. Amid candlelight and hushed corridors, Keats unfolds a story of secret passion between Porphyro and Madeline, whose trust in this mystic tradition offers a romantic pathway to reunion. Written in Spenserian stanzas, the poem uses rich detail and lavish imagery to evoke an otherworldly atmosphere, blending medieval setting with Romantic sensibility.
At the poem’s center are contrast and tension: the chilled, foreboding environment of Madeline’s family home versus the warmth of Porphyro’s ardent love. Echoes of religious devotion and superstition color the scene, giving the poem a ghostly yet comforting aura. Keats situates the reader in the hush of a stone chapel and the stillness of moonlit halls, heightening the suspense around the lovers’ rendezvous. Faith, dream, and sensuality converge in Madeline’s nighttime vision, reflecting a Romantic desire to merge the tangible world with the domain of the imagination.
In the latter portion of the poem, Porphyro infiltrates Madeline’s room, playing a gentle tune that resonates with her dream. With breathless tenderness, Keats describes the couple’s blissful union and escape, suggesting the triumph of love over cold rigidity and social constraints. Their flight at dawn remains ambiguous: a soft ending that contemplates the blurred line between dream and reality. Ultimately, the poem celebrates the potency of idealized love and the enchanting pull of hope and imagination, even in the face of a harsh world.
Key points
• Highlights the power of ritual, dream, and faith in shaping reality
• Celebrates the intensity of young, idealized love
• Contrasts cold imagery of a frigid castle with the warmth of romantic yearning
• Uses sensuous language and rich detail characteristic of John Keats’s Romantic style
• Explores themes of escape and the threshold between dream and waking life