It seem'd no force ....... who know it not. | Hyperion By John Keats | Eureka Study Aids

It seem'd no force could wake him from his place;

But there came one, who with a kindred hand

Touch's his wide shoulder, after bending low

With reverence, though to one who know it not. 

It seem'd no force .......... who know it not.

Reference
(i) Poem: Hyperion
(ii) Poet: John Keats
Context
(i) Occurrence: Book I (Lines 22-25/357)

(ii) Content: The Titans are a pantheon of gods. They include Saturn, Ops, Thea, Enceladus, Oceanus, Clymene and Hyperion. They are dethroned by the new Olympian gods and mourn at their lost empire.  Saturn is prostrate with grief. Hyperion, the sun god, is the only Titan who is still powerful. He continues his struggle but must eventually accept defeat. He is replaced by Apollo, whose emergence into godhead is perished by Mnemosyne.

Explanation

     In these lines the the speaker of the poem describes Saturn's despondency after his defeat. The Titans were defeated by the Olympians in a war. Saturn, the chief of the Titans, had taken shelter in a remote and shady place in a valley, where he now sat, quiet as a stone. Perfect silence prevailed around him. He was feeling absolutely listless, and his right hand lay nerveless on the ground, looking like the hand of a dead body. There was no longer the divine rod of authority in his hand. He sat there in a state of deep despondency, with his eyes closed. It seemed that no force would be able to wake Saturn from his trance. But there did come somebody to wake him up. The visitor was goddess Thea, the wife of the sun-god, Hyperion. She too was a member of the defeated party, and she too was grief-stricken. She woke up Saturn from his listlessness and wanted to know how he was feeling. She told him that he could continue sleeping and that she would sit at his feet and weep. 

Notes Prepared By: Prof. Shahbaz Asghar