The persona of the poem shows great admiration for autumn and praises all its aspects. The poet describes a variety of items in the season of autumn, which allow the reader to be able to imagine the world that the poet is placing before them and to understand what it is that makes the persona glorify and compliment the season. This is done through a use of linguistic techniques or figurative language, including personification, auditory imagery, rhetorical questions, metaphors, similes and more.

The main theme running throughout ‘Ode To Autumn’ is the beauty of the season (alth

ough there are other themes). The author concentrates on giving autumn a personal and unique touch to allow readers to be able to see all the wonders of autumn. Autumn is frequently described as dark, callous and often conveying death; here, the writer praises autumn, showing its splendour and elegance to all. This is seen when the author describes autumn as a “Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness”. This being the first line in the poem, introduces the idea that autumn is not as menacing as it is usually assumed, but a soft, mature season full of abundance and productivity. The use of alliteration and sibilance also used in this quote creates a slow, lethargic feeling, showing the reader the season’s quiet nature. This occurs several times in this stanza, but not only using these linguistic techniques. For example, at the end of four of the lines, the use of assonance also contributes to the languid sensation offered to the reader:

This stanza, as a whole, is crammed full of descriptions and imagery to enhance the reader’s feeling of the autumn season. The extensive use of these images is referred to even by Keats’ himself with the use of the word “clammy” on the last line of the stanza, with reference to the beehive, as well as suggesting an excessive dose of description.

There is a stark contrast between this stanza and the previous two; this stanza seems to endorse the stereotypical perception of autumn, as opposed to the other two stanzas, where autumn is apparent in a different light. Various references are made to death (a fourth theme). For example:

Some topics in this essay:
JOHN KEATS’, ‘ode autumn’, season autumn, autumn season, stanza ‘ode, poem introduces, stanza ‘ode autumn’, personification autumn, reader experience, rhetorical question, images autumn, allows reader,