“To Autumn” is a poem of thirty-three lines divided into three stanzas, each consisting of eleven lines. The first stanza presents the gift of autumn; the second stanza introduces the fall activities and the third stanza the sounds. Taken as a woman of skill, she works in partnership with the late summer sun to present her gifts: the juicy grapes and apples, the swollen earth, the sweet hazelnuts, and the honey-filled cells of the bees. In the second stanza, she is busy harvesting. She is seen “sitting carelessly on the floor of a barn” while the wind lifts her hair.
Sometimes, she is also seen in a repeating midfield in a deep sleep. At another point she is found carrying a bundle of harvested crops on her head. She is also open to working at a juice manufacturer. She keeps herself busy with all the conventional activities of the season. The third stanza presents the songs and sounds of women. She does not have the music of spring. But she has her own music. His songs sound like a dirge but they are his.
“To Autumn” is written in the form of an ode. An ode is essentially a lyric poem addressed to someone. The poem has been addressed to ‘Autumn’, the personification of the season. This ode is a private ode written on the model of the Horatian ode. It consists of three regular or uniform stanzas, each of which consists of eleven lines. Its lyrical quality or its music has been achieved through the use of rhyme, onomatopoeia, alliteration and assonance. The rhyme scheme, with a slight variation in the last four lines of the first stanza, is abab cde cdde. There are several lines that produce a musical effect through the use of some figures of speech.
Autumn may not have the sweet songs of spring, but it does have its own music. They may sound more like a dirge, but they are their own music. “To Autumn”, therefore, is a private ode comprising the direction to autumn, lyrical elements, and comfort for her.
“To Autumn” is known for its concrete images. The images in the poem appeal very aptly to the human senses. The first stanza appeals mainly to the sense of taste, although it also appeals to the eye. Ripe grapes and apples, pumpkins, hazelnuts, are concrete images and bring water to the readers’ mouths. Similarly, the image of the overflowing honeycomb is very vivid and appealing to the senses of sight and taste. “To Autumn” is therefore very rich in concrete imagery and sensual appeal.