Who wrote the book, "Isabella"?
VerifiedAnswer: John Keats
Explanation:
John Keats, one of the most celebrated Romantic poets of English literature, wrote the narrative poem "Isabella; or, The Pot of Basil" in 1818. This beautiful yet tragic work is based on a story from Giovanni Boccaccio's famous collection "The Decameron," specifically the fifth story of the fourth day.
The poem tells the heartbreaking tale of Isabella, a young woman who falls deeply in love with Lorenzo, one of her brothers' employees. When her wealthy merchant brothers discover this relationship, they murder Lorenzo out of concern for their social status and family honor. In a haunting turn of events, Lorenzo's ghost appears to Isabella in a dream, revealing the location of his buried body.
What makes this story particularly memorable is Isabella's desperate act of love and grief. She secretly digs up Lorenzo's body, cuts off his head, and places it in a large pot of basil, which she tends to with obsessive care. Her tears and constant attention make the basil grow unusually lush and fragrant, but her brothers eventually discover her secret and take away the pot, leading to Isabella's death from sorrow.
Keats wrote this poem during his productive period in 1818, when he was just 22 years old. The work showcases his mastery of the ottava rima form, a challenging eight-line stanza pattern that originated in Italian poetry. Through 63 stanzas, Keats weaves together themes of passionate love, social class conflict, family loyalty, and the destructive power of grief.
The poem reflects many characteristics of Romantic poetry, including intense emotion, supernatural elements, and a focus on individual experience over social conventions. Keats's rich, sensuous language brings the medieval Italian setting to life, while his psychological insight makes the characters' motivations and sufferings feel immediate and real to readers even today.
