To a Sky-Lark

Whereas Keats escaped the pains of living through poetry or listening to the nightingale's song, Shelley longs to be taught the "clear keen joyance" of the sky-lark. Keats begins his poem thinking of himself, then escapes from himself and thinks of the nightingale, and then is snapped back to reality abruptly and his reality is changed from the experience (is he awake or asleep?). In contrast, Shelley begins by describing the sky-lark, moves to trying to compare the sky-lark to different things but never finding the right one, and then comes in the poem as the speaker and asks the bird to "teach me" his gladness, his "harmonious madness," so Shelley can then teach the world using his own harmonious madness, poetry. Both the sky-lark and the nightingale are inspired and removed from the pain the poets feel. The nightingale makes Keats think of death, whereas the sky-lark makes Shelley think of life and joy. Keats ends separated from his nightingale, "fled is the music;" he is removed and his escape is temporary. Shelley ends still listening to the music, "I am listening now;" he continues to try to learn from the sky-lark and keeps listening.