To Sleep: Synopsis and Commentary

The poem’s speaker apostrophises a personified Sleep, describing it as the soft and benign provider of ‘forgetfulness’ for the troubled human spirit. The speaker calls on Sleep to end his wakefulness, otherwise he will be disturbed by thoughts of the day that has passed and his own examination of his conscience, which throw up unhelpful memories like a molehill. Instead, the speaker asks Sleep to lock up the ‘casket of my soul’.

In a letter (dated May 1819) to his brother George and his wife, Keats commented: 

 

 

We can see Keats experimenting with form in this sonnet.

embalmer: To embalm means to preserve a corpse from decay, originally with spices and subsequently by injecting a preservative into the corpse’s arteries. Here the word means more generally someone who prepares a body for a funeral (including shutting its eyes).

embowered: surrounded or sheltered, especially with trees or climbing plants

soothest: Invented by Keats, this term means ‘most soothing’ but its sound also helps to convey a sense of ‘smoothness’.

poppy: The medically trained Keats would be familiar with opiates produced by the opium poppy which were used to reduce pain or induce sleep.

wards: the ridges or bars in a lock

casket: a small ornamental box or chest for holding jewels or other valued objects.