The speaker of "Ode on Indolence" loves to sleep with his head in the grass. In the poem, he spends a good amount of time praising the joys of a lazy day spent in nature. He'd rather sleep under a tree or stare at the clouds than write poetry, or fall in love, or even achieve fame and fortune. Nothing, he says, compares to a warm May morning. The natural world matches the landscape in his mind, and both are described as places free from rain showers, daily struggles, or annoyances—ah, nature.
Questions About Man and the Natural World
- How does Keats use imagery when describing nature?
- What role does nature play in influencing the speaker's decision not to follow the figures?
- How might a rainy, cold day change the outcome of the poem?
- How does the epigraph support the speaker's feeling about nature? About himself?
Chew on This
The speaker only describes days that involve pleasant weather. Maybe the next time it rains he'll feel differently about giving up fame, love, and his talent.
The weather in England, where Keats was born and raised, is rarely warm and sunny. That's why pleasant days are so important to him.