Plebeian Gusto, Negative Capability, and the Low Company of ‘Mr. Kean’: Keats’ Dramatic Review for the Champion

Abstract

Argues that Keats’ review of Edmund Kean for the Champion can be seen as a dramatic performance in which Keats portrays himself as Kean. Shows how by presenting the actor as a figure of chivalry and romance, deeply attuned to Shakespearean values, Keats projects Kean as a surrogate figure of his own political and aesthetic agenda, as these are key terms in the Cockney reformist lexicon. Claims this strategy allows Keats to participate in a contemporary public debate in which Kean, as populist and plebeian, counters the neoclassical (and Tory) associations of the actor John Kemble. Observes also that a dual contextual frame emerges, further interfusing aesthetics and politics, when considering that Keats’ “Negative Capability” letter was composed days after the review; Keats’ Kean not only emerges as an energized embodiment of reformist values, but also, in his ability to immerse himself in his roles, provides a fresh insight into the gestation of Keats’ concept of negative capability. Concludes Keats’ review spotlights the contemporary interfusion of poets and politics, as well as Keats’ willingness and ability to perform in this play of public associations.