Story dependant on the poem "on the grasshopper and the cricket
Answers
Who said “life has to end”? It surely wasn’t John Keats. In his poem, “On the Grasshopper and the Cricket,” Keats uses two insignificant creatures to represent the life cycle of the earth. The actions and voices of the grasshopper and cricket throughout the poem create an atmosphere that unveils nature’s vibrancy and life’s never ceasing movement.
Keats deliberately expresses the theme of the poem in line one where he makes the argument that “The poetry of earth is never dead” (line 1). He uses both metaphor and personification to express to the reader the life or poetry of the earth. The earth’s poetry is a metaphor for the sounds and activities of all of earth’s creatures, and by expressing the thought that poetry never dies, Keats personifies earth with its never-ceasing existence. Keats supports his claim by introducing the reader to what most people would consider an insignificant creature, a grasshopper. Keats, though, personifies the grasshopper and uses its voice and daily activities to represent all of nature. The Grasshopper’s “voice,” he says, “will run from hedge to hedge,” signifying the constant forward movement of nature. Additionally, the “new moan-mead,” which is the work of the grasshopper, shows the tireless activity and efficiency with which the grasshopper works. Although the grasshopper is busy at work during the hot summer day, other creatures pause to rest like the birds who are “faint with the hot sun” (lines 2-4). This represents the natural cycle of life; while “other creatures swoon,” the grasshopper indulges in “summer luxury” (line 6). Imagine a king feasting on his most cherished delicacies; this is the how the grasshopper feels while engaged in his work, and at this moment, he is king of the summer day. In fact, when Keats writes that the grasshopper is “never done with his delights” (lines 6-7), he suggests that the business of the grasshopper’s activities is where he finds his happiness. These lines also support the opening statement that “earth’s poetry is never dead.”
In line seven, however, Keats transitions from the incessant work of the grasshopper, to a grasshopper “tired out with fun.” The grasshopper cannot continue forever, but as in line 8, “can rest at ease,” knowing that he has worked hard and found it pleasurable. Just as a man can rest after a productive life and feel satisfied with his work, the grasshopper can rest on his accomplishments because his work was done well. The “rest” that is described signifies the end of the grasshopper’s life, but as Keats lays the Grasshopper to rest, he reminds the reader that “the poetry of life is ceasing never” (line 9).
The first line of the poem, “The poetry of the earth is never dead” is again mirrored in line 9, “The poetry of life is ceasing never.” However, the order and tense of the words “ceasing never,” in line nine is significant as Keats uses a present participle, “ceasing,” to show that the work of the earth is continually in action and emphasizes his point by placing the adverb, never, at the end of the line. Additionally, this line serves as a transition that shows how earth’s life is not tied to individual creatures, but as one creature dies, another rises up and sings a new song that complements the former. Keats chooses to use the song of the cricket whose “shrills” cry out from the stove to take the lead during the winter season. The shrill voice of the cricket represents the vibrancy of nature, and how it is screaming out that is alive, but it also reflects the harsh environment in which it lives by contrasting with the “silence” of the frost (lines 9 and 10). Keats explains that winter is “lone” and has “wrought a silence” which suggests that much of the summer life is gone. This is a contrast to the first eight lines of the poem. An exception to the cold and lonely environment is the “Cricket’s song, in warmth increasing ever” (line 13). This line reflects the earlier song of the grasshopper and the fact that life within the earth still manages to survive. Keats, though, in the final two comments of the poem, describes one in a state of “drowsiness half lost” who mistakes the song of the Cricket with that of the Grasshopper’s. This is both a criticism of man’s lack of attention to the details of nature and its cycles as well as an indication that life’s never ending cycle is seamless. The sounds of earth’s creatures work harmoniously to create a never ending poetic expression.