From Here To Eternity

The quest for immortality is one to which many humans dedicate their lives to. From the very beginnings of history, with celebrated characters such as Gilgamesh and Achilles, the desire to achieve immortality has been greatly discussed.
Afterward, a group of people during the early 1800's began a movement denominated Romanticism. The views and ways of this movement would be a strong pillar unto which our modern society would base its interpretation of our existence. Their primary goal would be to find the meaning of life through their soul and their feelings, as opposed to the dominant points of view during their time which defined life through religion or science.
As one would expect, this new perception of life became a great scandal across Europe, as defiant characters such as Percy Byshee Shelley published "blasphemous" articles and celebrities such as Lord Byron made the headlines with their scandalous lives. Other Romantics would resort to opium to produce the most mystical lines of poetry, selling their body for the sake of their spirit. It's precisely what the Romantic Movement was attempting to obtain. They wanted to achieve that perception of the world through their feelings and express the deepest desires of their soul in order to find that enigmatic meaning of life.
A particular member of the Romantics, John Keats, would stand out to pursue one of the greatest quests known to humanity. He set out to achieve immortality. Finding himself ill very early in his life, and refusing to accept the Church's dictations of life after death, he was standing alone in an abyss of nothingness awaiting his last breath. Desperate, he sought a way towards immortality, and finding it finally in the prevalence of art, he died regretting not achieving a masterpiece that would earn him a place in eternity. Fortunately, his quest had not been in vain, for his works became famous soon after his death, and his name was able to create a space for him in the realm of immortality. This great success was a victory to the cause of Romanticism. With Keats's name, as well as many other poets who were able to transcend through time, Romanticism gained a position of veracity as a medium of understanding the world that surrounds us. Additionally, it was able to set forth a new beginning in which originality and self determination are greatly valued, and the individuality of each person can determine his or her own eternity.