# Apollonius — Poetry character guide

> Apollonius in Poetry by John Keats.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Sage, Apollonius sage, old Apollonius

**First appearance:** 0052-ii

## Snapshot

A white-bearded sage whose calm, unsparing gaze can strip illusion from beauty, he guards the boundary between enchantment and truth.

## Who they are

Apollonius moves through the poem's later feast-world as the one guest unmoved by Lamia's dazzling spell, a philosopher whose stillness unsettles the room. Where others see a bride of impossible radiance, he sees a gordian knot of serpent and woman, and his refusal to be enchanted becomes the quiet threat that the wedding cannot survive. His presence forces the poem to ask whether love built on magic can outlast a single clear-eyed look.

## In the story

### [Lamia](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_14_se/chapters/lamia)

Lycius's tutor, who sees through Lamia's disguise and exposes her, causing her disappearance and Lycius's death.

### [Lamia's Transformation and the Meeting with Lycius](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_14_se/chapters/i)

Lycius's tutor, described as a sage with a philosophic gown; his presence causes Lamia to tremble.

### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_14_se/chapters/ii)

Apollonius attends the feast uninvited and exposes Lamia as a serpent, causing her disappearance and Lycius's death.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_14_se/characters/apollonius
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_14_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_14_se/characters