John Keats

Keats was born on October 31, 1795 in London, England. He devoted his very short life to writing the perfect poem. His poetry was characterized by imagery, sensuous appeal and an attempt to describe his own philosophies. In 1818 Keats went walking in the Lake District of England. His overexertion and exposure to the elements eventually lead to tuberculosis.
Keats' poetry is known for the understanding of the human conditions. This understanding was developed after his father was killed by a run-away horse. After his father's death, the financial security of his family was disrupted. His mother quickly remarried and lost a great deal of money. When he second marriage failed, Keats' mother left her children the care of their grandmother.
Keats attended Enfield Academy where he proved to be a very talent writer and a voracious reader. John Clarke, the headmaster, encouraged Keats' inters in literature but in 1910 Keats left school and began studies to be a surgeon. He received his apothecary license in 1816.
Keats loved literature and in 1817 he met Percy Bysshe Shelley and used this friendship to publish Poems by John Keats. In 1818 he published Endymion that was a four thousand line poem based on the Greek myth Endymion.
Keats published Isabella a poem that recites the story of a woman who falls in love with a man beneath her social station. He later published To Autumn that was filled with contemporary Romantic ideas. He published three volumes of poetry but only managed to sell 200 copies. His last book of poetry Lamia, Isabella, The Eve of St. Agnes, and Other Poems was printed in 1820.
Keats died on February 23, 1821 after being subjected to bloodletting, and a diet of one anchovy and one piece of bread a day.