John Keats: Collected Lyrics
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Public-domain lyrics

Sonnet

John Keats

“Sonnet” as printed in The Poetical Works of John Keats (1884).

John Keats: Collected Lyrics Text 49 1884 · historical text
Public domainSong lyricsRomantic
Complete public-domain lyrics

This text comes from The Poetical Works of John Keats, a historical songbook transcribed on Wikisource and reproduced from the pinned revision linked below.

Verse 1

O THOU! whose face hath felt the Winter's wind,

Whose eye hath seen the snow-clouds hung in mist,

And the black elm-tops among the freezing stars

To thee the Spring will be a harvest-time.

O thou, whose only book hath been the light

Of supreme darkness, which thou feddest on

Night after night, when Phœbus was away,

To thee the Spring shall be a triple morn.

Verse 2

O fret not after knowledge!—I have none,

And yet my song comes native with the warmth.

O fret not after knowledge!—I have none,

And yet the Evening listens. He who saddens

At thought of idleness cannot be idle,

And he's awake who thinks himself asleep.

Credits

Written by John Keats

Words by John Keats. Historical text published in The Poetical Works of John Keats (1884); public domain. No claim to a modern recording or arrangement.

Source & text edition

The Poetical Works of John Keats (1884), “Sonnet”

Every text in this 1884 collected edition is by John Keats (1795-1821), who died more than 200 years ago, so the text is in the public domain worldwide; the edition carries a Wikisource PD-old determination.

How to read this historical text and its source

Read the source on Wikisource

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Retrieved 2026-10-27. Line spacing and section labels are adapted for reading. The displayed text follows the linked edition. Editorial notes and abstract artwork are by 52lyrics.
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