Tonight, we’ll read poems by John Keats starting with one titled “Sleep and Poetry.”

John Keats’ work is a cornerstone of English Romantic poetry, rich with symbolism, sensual detail, and allusions to Greek and Roman myth as well as romanticised tales of chivalry. His verse overflows with vivid imagery—nightingales, Grecian urns, moonlit fields—while also contemplating beauty, truth, and life’s transience.

Born in London in 1795, Keats trained as a surgeon before devoting himself entirely to poetry. In just four years, he produced the works that would secure his place in literary history, though in his lifetime his books sold barely two hundred copies. Today, his name is among the most revered in English literature.