Bright Star: Love Letters and Poems of John Keats to Fanny Brawne
by John Keats
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Book Summary Information
Author: John KeatsIntroduction: Jane Campion
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Published)
Format: Bargain Price
Published: 2009-09-16
ISBN: N/A
Number of pages: 144
Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics)
Book Reviews of Bright Star: Love Letters and Poems of John Keats to Fanny Brawne
Book Review: Must-read for Keats fans
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm not fond of painful, tortured love stories in fiction, but when faced with someone's actual painful love story, I'm devastated. John Keats has been one of my favorite poets since forever, but this is the first time I've read any of his writing other than poetry. Keats died when he was only 25, and he died without getting to marry his only love, Fanny Brawne. This short volume contains his love letters to Fanny and concludes with several of his love-related poems.
In the letters, Keats keeps saying that he knows Fanny can't feel the same toward him as he does toward her. I haven't read enough of his biography to know if he's being coy and encouraging her to write more about her feelings, or if he actually doesn't think she cares as much for him. Mostly, it seems that he was very much concerned that she would fall for someone who had greater claims to prosperity and respectability. He was poor and without any real hope of advancement because, during his lifetime, his poetry was poorly received and didn't sell. One of the problems the letters keep bringing up is Keats' failing health. He spends so much of his time sick, and while he's convalescing he doesn't know if it would be better to see Fanny or not. Her presence encourages him, but it also saddens him because even if he were to recover, their situation is still hopeless.
Keats is not an entirely perfect man in his letters. He comes across as a bit proud; he's glad that the trifling cares of the world don't matter at all to him, but frustrated because he has to give some thought to worldly provisions if he's ever going to be with his beloved. He himself says that he knows he's not writing proper love-letters, and that he's being "ungallant". Though to a modern reader, his lovely articulate letters seem awe inspiring when we're used to text messages. "I consider it no mean Happiness to have lov'd you thus far" still sounds better than "I miss u, lol, kthxbye!"
After reading these heartbreaking letters, I have to think about their value outside of plain biography. Other than admiring the letters as historical documents or perhaps enjoying them as a tragic love story (again, I don't enjoy tragic love) what can we readers take away from them? First, I think about how John Keats labored in obscurity and wasn't able to make enough money to marry Fanny while they still had the time. I also think about how we should applaud and support excellence and beauty whenever we find them--if some influential patron had decided to support Keats and spread the word about his poetry, who knows how this story might have ended? The other more important lesson I glean from the Bright Star story is how we should appreciate our loved ones fully while we have them--we never have them as long as we think.
This book is a decent introduction to Keats himself, a perfect companion to the film, and a very good introduction to a famous literary love story.
Summary of Bright Star: Love Letters and Poems of John Keats to Fanny Brawne
The epic romance of one of the most celebrated poets in the English languageComing to theatres in September 2009 is the tragic love story of nineteenth-century poet John Keats and the love of his life, Fanny Brawne. Keats died at the young age of twenty-five, leaving behind some of the most exquisite and moving verse and letters ever written, inspired by his deep love for Fanny. Bright Star is a collection of Keat's romantic poems and correspondence in the heat of his passion, and is a dazzling display of a talent cut cruelly short.
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