Final answer:
Yes, Keats' poetry reflects his fear of dying young. In 'Ode to a Nightingale', he expresses a longing for immortality and escape from the ephemeral nature of life. 'To Autumn' and 'When I Have Fears That I May Cease to Be' also reveal his fears about the brevity of life and not fulfilling his potential as a poet before an early death.
Step-by-step explanation:
Yes, Keats' poetry reflects his fear of dying young. In his poem 'Ode to a Nightingale', Keats expresses a longing for immortality and escape from the ephemeral nature of life. He writes, 'O for a beaker full of the warm South, Full of the true, the blushful Hippocrene, With beaded bubbles winking at the brim, And purple-stained mouth; That I might drink, and leave the world unseen, And with thee fade away into the forest dim' (lines 11-17). This desire for escape and immortality suggests his fear of an early death.
In 'To Autumn', Keats acknowledges the transience of life and its fleeting beauty, possibly reflecting his fear of dying young. He writes, 'Where are the songs of Spring? Ay, where are they? Think not of them, thou hast thy music too,— / While barred clouds bloom the soft-dying day, / And touch the stubble-plains with rosy hue' (lines 23-26). This recognition of the changing seasons and the fading beauty of autumn may reflect his own awareness of the brevity of life.
In 'When I Have Fears That I May Cease to Be', Keats directly expresses his fears about not fulfilling his poetic potential before an early death. He writes, 'When I have fears that I may cease to be / Before my pen has gleaned my teeming brain, / Before high piled books, in character, / Hold like rich garners the full ripened grain' (lines 1-4). Here, Keats expresses his anxieties about not having enough time to fully develop as a poet before his life is cut short. These examples from Keats' poetry demonstrate his fear of dying young and the themes of transience and mortality that are present in his works.