Identify the voices of poetry in the poem ‘The Poetry of Earth’. How does Keats establish continuity through these voices?

In Keats’ ‘The Poetry of Earth’, the voices of poetry manifest themselves through the song of the grasshopper and the cricket. 

The fact that both the insects remain invisible to the human eye, lens intensity to their song which becomes a voice without form. There is a sense of a distinctive presence that pervades the whole poem. Continuity has been established by connecting the chirping of the grasshopper in the meadows during summer with the similar chirping of the cricket by the fireside in winter. Thus the song of nature is never silent. When the birds are tired, the grasshopper takes lead in enjoyment and when winter frost covers the earth and the gloomy atmosphere silences other voices of the countryside, the cricket’s shrill voice fills the environment with increasing intensity. Thus, the song of nature continues forever.


Why does the poet choose the sonnet form for this poem ‘The Poetry of Earth’? Give reasons.

Keats chose the Petrarchan or Italian sonnet form in ‘The Poetry of Earth’. This sonnet form consists of an octave (the first eight lines) and a sestet (the last six lines). The rhyme scheme is ‘abba’, ‘abba’, ‘cde’, ‘cde’. This form suited his purpose the best because in this form the octave presents the theme of the poem and develops it while the sestet concludes the theme or the idea presented in the octave. In this poem we see, the very first line presents the theme- ‘The poetry of earth is never dead’. Then the theme is elaborated upon where we find the grasshopper taking up the place of the silent birds. The sestet draws a conclusion where one in one’s drowsiness caused by the frost in winter imagines the voice of the cricket as the song of the grasshopper and it becomes the eternal song of nature. So, the reason behind choosing the sonnet form is justifiable.

Keats’ ‘The Poetry of Earth’ is a poem that depicts the continuous celebration through the style of seasons’. Justify the above statement.

What idea do you get about Keats as a Romantic poet of Nature poet in the poem ‘The Poetry of Earth’?


Do you think ‘The Poetry of Earth’ is a romantic poem?

Name the poet who composed The Poetry of Earth’. What is meant by ‘The Poetry of Earth’? How does the poet read The Poetry of Earth’?


What do the grasshopper and the cricket metaphorically stand for in this poem? How they contribute to the earth’s poetry?

Keats has used sensuous imagery to describe the natural world with care and precision. -How far do you agree with this statement?

Discuss Chekhov’s The Proposal’ as a supreme example of a one-act play.

Describe the character of Chubukov as a sensible father.


Give a brief sketch of the character of Lomov in the play The Proposal’.

Sketch the character of Natalya.


“Now, you know, you shouldn’t forget all about your neighbours, my darling.”—Who said this and to whom? Why was the speaker surprised? Comment on the approach of the speaker.

“Then why are you in evening dress, my precious ?”-Who said this? Why was the person spoken to, in his evening dress? What did the speaker assume about the person?


“He’s come to borrow money! Shan’t give him any…”-Who is the speaker? What makes him say this? What features of this character are revealed here?

“Oh, don’t go round and round it, darling! – Who is addressed as ‘darling’? What is it? Who is the speaker? Why does he make this comment?


“I’ve come to ask the hand of your daughter, Natalya Stepanovna, in marriage.”-Who is the speaker? To whom does the speaker say this? What was the reaction of the person spoken to?

“…do you think I may count on her consent ?”-Why is the speaker so uncertain? How does the speaker ultimately get consent?


“She’s like a love-sick cat,”-Who said this and about whom? Analyse the character of the person, referred to here, under the light of the comment above.

“If I give myself time to think, to hesitate, to talk a lot for an ideal, or for real love, then I’ll never get married.”-Who thinks so? When does he think so? Why does the speaker think about it?