“Oh, cruelty, to steal my basil-pot away from me!”: The Reflection of Bereavement in John Keats’ Isabella, or the Pot of Basil

Abstract

This paper analyses John Keats’ Isabella, or the Pot of Basil through the theories of bereavement and attachment as a poetic reflection of these processes with regard to Isabella’s grief after the unanticipated death of her lover Lorenzo and her (in)ability to cope with and how she maintains an unhealthy process of bereavement. Attachment styles, which begin with a human’s first relationship with the mother, represent the type and nature of the emotional bond with the significant other. Losing the attachment figure is associated with different reactions during bereavement. In this respect, it will be discussed that Isabella does not experience a healthy bereavement process as a result of her anxious attachment style and she cannot make sense and cope with her lover’s death. Therefore, she continues her bond with Lorenzo in a delirious manner, that is, through cutting his head and putting it into a pot in which she grows the basil. The poem has been examined in terms of Isabella’s insecure attachment style, emotions, reactions, and continuing bonds, along with a traumatic and sudden loss.

Keywords

• Attachment Style
• Bereavement
• Continuing Bonds
• John Keats
• Isabella
• Or The Pot of Basil