jonbrammer's review against another edition
5.0
Auden famously stated that "poetry makes nothing happen", which could be read or humility or a defense of art for art's sake. The latter makes more sense, as Auden was clearly hoping for a place in the lineage of his poetic antecedents, and a permanent home in the canon. And while he wrote big, important poems, his most direct influences were from those slightly older poets - Eliot and Yeats - who were concerned with creating a connection between personal faith and the decline of Western civilization.
Auden was writing poetry through the rise of fascism and Stalinism, along with the global trauma of World War 2, but he makes scant and oblique references to world events. He was more concerned with the personal and how it interacted with culture. While he ambitiously tried his hand at many different poetic forms, he most commonly can be seen in the mode of contemporaries like Elizabeth Bishop and Robert Lowell, only with a more British kind of emotional reserve, and a sharp sense of cultural context.
The last stanzas of "In Memory of W.B. Yeats" contradict Auden's belief in the limited power of poetry:
Follow, poet, follow right
To the bottom of the night,
With your unconstraining voice
Still persuade us to rejoice;
With the farming of a verse
Make a vineyard of the curse,
Sing of human unsuccess
In a rapture of distress;
In the deserts of the heart
Let the healing fountain start,
In the prison of his days
Teach the free man how to praise.
Does Auden think that poetry save humanity? Or his he lauding the generous spirit of the artist?
Auden was writing poetry through the rise of fascism and Stalinism, along with the global trauma of World War 2, but he makes scant and oblique references to world events. He was more concerned with the personal and how it interacted with culture. While he ambitiously tried his hand at many different poetic forms, he most commonly can be seen in the mode of contemporaries like Elizabeth Bishop and Robert Lowell, only with a more British kind of emotional reserve, and a sharp sense of cultural context.
The last stanzas of "In Memory of W.B. Yeats" contradict Auden's belief in the limited power of poetry:
Follow, poet, follow right
To the bottom of the night,
With your unconstraining voice
Still persuade us to rejoice;
With the farming of a verse
Make a vineyard of the curse,
Sing of human unsuccess
In a rapture of distress;
In the deserts of the heart
Let the healing fountain start,
In the prison of his days
Teach the free man how to praise.
Does Auden think that poetry save humanity? Or his he lauding the generous spirit of the artist?
mugren's review against another edition
2.0
Some of his stuff might be dry. But, it's brilliant when he's on point. I'd recommend reading a collection of his short poems rather than this.
bowienerd_82's review against another edition
4.0
Auden tends to either hit the mark with great skill, or be totally off base.
It's nice to have the whole collection of poems, but there are a lot of totally forgettable ones in here.
However, some of his work is so starkly and utterly beautiful, this is a collection I'll always want to have with me.
"Lullaby" alone makes this a treasured book.
It's nice to have the whole collection of poems, but there are a lot of totally forgettable ones in here.
However, some of his work is so starkly and utterly beautiful, this is a collection I'll always want to have with me.
"Lullaby" alone makes this a treasured book.
herleva's review against another edition
5.0
Forever one of my favourites. I frequently revisit this collection, as well as the Christopher Isherwood biography. Auden is a remarkably talented spirit. Glad this is as thick as it is.
aurorasgrande's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.0
My favourite poems in this collection:
Missing (30)
Too dear, too vague (39)
The question (56)
Adolescence (64)
Have a good time (68)
Ode (70)
Legend (73)
As I walked out one evening (133)
Twelve songs: IX (141)
Heavy date (259)
Law like love (262)
Ten songs: IX (271)
Their lonely betters (583)
The more loving one (584)
The shield of Achilles (596)
Dichting und Wahrheit (647)
After reading a child's guide to modern physics (740)
Two songs: II. Song of the devil
Archaeology (894)
Missing (30)
Too dear, too vague (39)
The question (56)
Adolescence (64)
Have a good time (68)
Ode (70)
Legend (73)
As I walked out one evening (133)
Twelve songs: IX (141)
Heavy date (259)
Law like love (262)
Ten songs: IX (271)
Their lonely betters (583)
The more loving one (584)
The shield of Achilles (596)
Dichting und Wahrheit (647)
After reading a child's guide to modern physics (740)
Two songs: II. Song of the devil
Archaeology (894)
natalisalaytah's review against another edition
5.0
"The Question" and "As I Walked Out One Evening" are so boss.
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