Hyperion (poem) facts for kids

Hyperion is a long poem written by the English Romantic poet John Keats. It's considered one of his most important works.

This poem tells a story from Greek mythology. It's about how the Titan Hyperion, who was the first Greek god of the sun, was replaced by Apollo.

When Was Hyperion Written?

John Keats started writing Hyperion in August and September of 1818. He managed to finish the first two parts, called "Books." Each of these Books was quite long, with about 350 to 400 lines. He also wrote part of a third Book.

However, Keats wasn't happy with what he had written. He kept trying to rewrite parts of it until April 1819. Eventually, he decided to stop working on it for a while.

Why Keats Stopped Writing

Some experts believe that Keats originally planned for Hyperion to be a very long poem, similar to his earlier work, Endymion, from 1817.

But as he wrote, Keats's ideas about poetry changed. He wasn't as interested in writing the kind of long, mythological poems, known as epics, that were popular at the time.

The Fall of Hyperion

Keats later tried to rewrite the poem in a new way. He called this second version The Fall of Hyperion. He worked on this new version during the last six months of 1819.

Even though he wrote over 500 lines for this second attempt, he still wasn't satisfied. Sadly, Keats was never able to finish either version of the poem in a way that made him happy.

How the Poem is Written

Keats wrote Hyperion using a style called blank verse. This means the poem does not rhyme.

Even though neither version of Hyperion was ever completed, many critics think that parts of it contain some of Keats's best writing. For example, the powerful and sad opening lines of the first Hyperion are often praised:

Deep in the shady sadness of a vale

Far sunken from the healthy breath of morn,

Far from the fiery noon, and eve's one star,

Sat gray-hair'd Saturn, quiet as a stone,

Still as the silence round about his lair;

Forest on forest hung about his head

Like cloud on cloud.

In these lines:

• "vale" means valley
• "morn" means morning
• "eve" means evening