Analysis of The lake of Innisfree Essay -- English Literature

Analysis of The lake of Innisfree This poem is about an island called Innisfree. It is a beautiful open area surrounded by wildlife. Keats is from Sligo himself and Sligo is very near to the island called Innisfree. The island is very small and is situated in a bay. When Keats writes this poem he is in London at the time, and the poem is circulated around his memories of his island and contrasting it with the dullness of London. An example of this is ‘pavements grey’ which describes the dullness and how London is colourless. This is the contrast as the island is colourful and instead of pavements there would be grass. He then uses the phrase ‘I will arise and go now’ this is emphatic which means he wants to do it immediately. This emphasises his discontent of being in London. He then thinks into the future about how he’s going to build his house there and contrasts it to the London, concrete houses. He says he’ll make it out of clay and wattle, both natural materials. He has a similar fantasy to Robinson Crusoe’s adventure. The idea that he’ll be self-sufficient, growing what he eats and living off nature. He specifies exactly what he’s going to have on the island with the phrase ‘nine been rows will I have there’ gives the idea its something he’s always wanted. Its also a definite number, he doesn’t want 6 or 2 he wants 9. This shows that he’s planned it out carefully and again gives the idea that he feels strongly about this fantasy. ‘And live alone in the bee-loud glade’ - this gives the idea of solitude, living alone but yet not that alone as he has got the bees buzzing. This gives a soft sound as if he wants company and is comparable to an old man with a radio. It also means that unlike L... ...e stands in grim London. The water lapping is another calm sound which suggests tranquillity. It’s as if he’s being tempted by the sounds of nature. Line 11- the grey, dull pavements contrast with the ‘purple noon’ in verse 2. ‘I hear it in my deep hearts core’. the core of an apple is the centre, the soul in a human or the heart. This means that he’s experiencing a desire that fills his whole body and that he really wants to go. The phrase ‘I will arise and go now’ is a quotation from the bible and the story of the prodigal son. The phrase itself comes from the exact part where he’s had enough of cleaning and eating with the pigs and is ‘I will arise and go to my father’ (Luke 15 v18). It means you should do what you really want to do . In the story, the son goes back to his father and in the verse Keat’s wants to return to his homeland (Innisfree).