With the related concept of the unknown soldier, it is the soldiers physical remains, or dead body, that cannot be identified. English poet, playwright, critic, and librettist wystan hugh auden exerted a major influence on the poetry of the 20th century. Most of his verse dramas of this period were written in collaboration with christopher isherwood. Auden wrote the unknown citizen while living in new york, and the poem gives evidence of his culture shock when suddenly confronted with americanstyle chaos and consumerism.
This piece is written in third person omniscient to project a nonbias perspective and that way transmit the truth without being affected by feelings or personal point of views. It describes an average citizen in a governmentcontrolled state. Just before world war ii broke out, auden emigrated to the united states where he met the poet chester. His work is noted for its stylistic and technical achievements, its engagement with moral and political issues, and its variety of tone, form. Audens the unknown citizen a critical analysis the unknown citizen 1 by w. Auden was a leading literary influencer in the 20th century. Auden reads the unknown citizen youtube the unknown citizen modern interpretation duration.
Audens poetry was noted for its stylistic and technical achievement, its engagement with politics, morals, love, and religion, and its variety in tone, form and content. Auden, was an angloamerican poet, born in england, later an american citizen, regarded by many critics as one of the greatest writers of the 20th century. One against whom there was no official complaint, and all the reports on his conduct agree. In 1939 auden settled in the united states, becoming a u. Download 4page term paper on unknown citizen by wh auden 2020. The sight of all those unnamed dead, remembered only in their capacity as soldiers, is of course unspeakably tragic, but i find there to be also something quite estranging there, because there are no names, no faces, no. Auden is a 32 line poem that utilizes a number of different rhyming patterns. One against whom there was no official complaint 3, and all the reports on his conduct agree. That, in the modern sense of an oldfashioned word, he was a saint. The unknown citizen 1940 is one of audens most famous poems. The unknown citizen lyrics to js07 m 378 this marble monument is erected by the state he was found by the bureau of statistics to be.
Download as docx, pdf, txt or read online from scribd. Auden to js07 m 378 this marble monument is erected by the state he was found by the bureau of statistics to be one against whom there was no official complaint, and all the reports on his conduct agree that, in the modern sense of an oldfashioned word, he was a saint. His first book, poems, was published in 1930 with the help of t. Get an answer for explain the meaning of the poem the unknown citizen by w. Auden during 1940, is a poem where the speaker, a representative of the state or government, directs a speech to the audience about a monument being erected for a citizen. Summary and analysis the unknown citizen, first published in the listener on august 1939, and later included in the collected shorter poems, 1950, is a satire, not on the citizen, but on the way in which the average man in the street is controlled by the conventions of bureaucracy and the welfare state which ignore the need for a man to be free and happy. Auden, englishborn poet and man of letters who achieved early fame in the 1930s as a hero of the left during the great depression. Its structure is that of a satiric elegy, as though the. This study aims to identify modern bureaucratic government phenomenon expressed in w. The absurdity about the question arises straight from the time when one looks up at the title of the poem, the unknown citizen, ideally the citizen is the states responsibility but in the poem, auden explains how the state treats the citizen as nothing more than a duty that needs to be kept a check upon with the help of a few external. The citizen is first commended by the speaker who carefully chooses his words to reveal a patronizing tone. It comes under the genre of dramatic literary ballad, for it is. For instance, for serving the greater community instead of dying for his country, the citizen became only a number, js07m378, kai, i, the use of tone in w.
Auden in 1939, shortly after he moved from england to the united states. The unknown citizen is a parody of the the unknown soldier, a term used to recognize people whose bodies are found after a battle but cannot be identified. Auden to js07 m 378 this marble monument is erected by the state he was found by the bureau of statistics to be one against whom there was no official complaint, and all the reports on his conduct agree that, in the modern sense of an oldfashioned word, he was a saint, for in everything he did he served the. Auden was admired for his unsurpassed technical virtuosity and ability to write poems in nearly every imaginable verse form. Analysis of the unknown citizen english literature essay. The poem itself celebrates an anonymous ideal citizen from the perspective of a modern. The poem is the epitaph of a man identified only by a combination of letters and numbers somewhat like an american. The poem is dripping with irony, as the speaker lists off accomplishments that arent accomplishments at all. No government statistics can ever answer these kinds of questions. Auden is a satiric epitaph for the individual man in a modern bureaucracy.
Explain the meaning of the poem the unknown citizen by w. Auden, presents multifarious universal themeslove, time and death. The late stanley kunitz received just about every prestigious award and appointment that a poet could achieve. Poems study guide contains a biography of wystan hugh auden, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, character analysis, and a full summary and analysis on select poems. Overall, then, audens the unknown citizen reads as a cautionary tale to. Auden samhita reddy 06d05014 aishwarya ramakrishnan 06011008 2 the unknown citizen w. Auden the unknown citizen to js07m378 this marble monumeht is erected by the state he was found by the bureau of statistics to be. Auden, presents multifarious universal themes love, time and death. The only reason the unknown citizen was a saint was because there was no official complaint against him. During this time a mans possessions and status defined who he was.
The poem is addressed to js07m378, a social security like number, and an allusion to the national monuments for the unknown soldiers who died in battle. By definition, the unknown citizen has no identity. Its hard to pull off rhymes in 20th century poetry. Auden to js07 m 378 this marble monument is erected by the state he was found by the bureau of statistics to be one against whom there was no official complaint, and all the reports on his conduct agree that, in the modern sense of an oldfashioned word, he was a. He was an englishman who moved back to the colonies the u. Born 1907 in england died 1973 in austria anglo american writer poet school and university teacher married erika mann unconsummated love w. The unknown citizen he was found by the bureau of statistics to be. The poem contains examples of both skillfully written rhyming couplets and seemingly patternless portions of verse that are variable in their end rhymes it is impossible to escape the lighthearted nature with which intense subject matter is being tackled in the poem. Auden to js07m378 this marble monument is erected by the state he was found by the bureau of statistics to be one against whom there was no official complaint, and all the reports on. Like the unknown soldier whose body has been destroyedthe.
The unknown citizen written in 1939, the unknown citizen by w. The unknown citizen, was written during world war ii in the 1940s. Auden to js07 m 378 this marble monument is erected by the state he was found by the bureau of statistics to be one against whom there was no official complaint, and all the reports on his conduct agree that, in the modern sense of an oldfashioned word, he was a saint, for in everything he did he served the greater. Auden, is a commentary on government and the materialism of modern man. The poem is written in the form of an obituary inscribed on a monument built by the government in commemoration of an average, upstanding, and decent community member. Auden the unknown citizen essay example bestwritingservice. The poem was first published on january 6, 1940 in the new yorker, and first appeared in book form in audens collection another time random house, 1940. The unknown citizen to js07m378 this marble monument is erected by the state he was found by the bureau of statistics to be one against whom there was no official complaint, and all the reports on his conduct agree that, in the modern sense of an oldfashioned word, he was a saint, for in everything he did he served the greater community. Dharmender is a writer by passion, and a lawyer by profession. Abbas kiarostami, roads, rain and glass, stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone, prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone. The unknown citizen does not follow a standard rhyme scheme.
The unknown citizen 1940 is one of auden s most famous poems. Auden grew up in birmingham, england and was known for his extraordinary intellect and wit. The whole idea of the unknown citizen is a parody of the serious military concept of the unknown soldier, which was created in order to recognize the sacrifice of soldiers who died anonymously. The unknown citizen is a typical audens poem in that it. The unknown citizen was written by the british poet w. The unknown citizen, when i first read its title and opening epigraph, reminded me of the tomb of the unknown soldier in paris, and the nameless graves of northern france. He has has a degree in english literature from delhi university, and mass communication from bhartiya vidhya bhavan, delhi, as well as holding a law degree. Audens title the unknown citizen is ironic because, in fact, much is known about the supposedly unknown citizen. Auden, the citizen, the state, the marble monument.
First, because it sounds oldfashioned, like youre trying too hard to write poetry. Audens poem the unknown citizen, he uses irony to make the reader think about what the unnamed man thought about his life. There is no such thing as the state and no one exists alone. Hunger allows no choice to the citizen or the police. Auden was a selfdestructive chainsmoker, an amphetamine addict, an alcoholic of titanic proportions, an unhappy homosexual, a man who fled embattled england just as the second world war. Auden composed the unknown citizen in 1939, the year of the outbreak. Auden 1940 the poet presents the monotonous life of a man who has conformed himself to the state, losing his happiness and his ability to rebel. Auden, also known as wystan hugh auden, was a poet, author and playwright born in york, england, on february 21, 1907. Often anthologized and read by students in high school and college, it is renowned for its wit and irony in complaining about the stultifying and anonymous qualities of bureaucratic, semisocialist western societies.