Life and Poetry of Wystan Hugh Auden

Aden was not only a great poet during his life but an author as well as a playwright. An Interesting fact about Aden was that he was most well-known for his Hamilton-like ability to write poems in almost every verse form. This talent was one of the many reasons that he will be remembered as one of the leading literary influences in the 20th century. Sense of Loss He has left behind a legacy of work that has the ability to touch on and give written account to thoughts and emotions that, at times seem too difficult to express in our own words.

One such time would be at a funeral, where one would be hard pressed to convey their emotions in a way that is clear but beautiful in the way that it is conveyed. I would believe it is only proper to quote a portion of Addend’s own poem hat deals directly with this subject; its title being Funeral Blues. “He was my North, my South, my East and West, My working week and my Sunday rest, My noon, my midnight, my talk, my song: I thought that love would last forever; I was wrong.

The starts are not wanted now; put out every one, Pack up the moon and dismantle the Sun, Pour away the ocean and sweep up the wood; For nothing now can ever come to any good. ” Humorous stories/ Recollections In High school, many of us were, to put it bluntly, forced to read poetry that all in all seemed boring, dealt with feelings and meanings we didn’t care to comprehend ND had a rather gloomy or outright obsessive focus on love and relationships.

I was one of those people who rather hated reading poetry and verse like Romeo and Juliet let alone spending an entire class trying to discuss the deep meanings pertaining to love and things of the like. Love Is great and all but does poetry about It need to be so Enter the poetry of W. H. Aden as a lovely shot of reality in the world of poetry on the subject of love. There is a quote from Aden that seems to summarize perfectly his approach to poetry, specifically poetry pertaining to love. “Thousands have lived thou love, not one without water. This quote not only summarizes his approach but his tone with his poetry about love as well as other topics. Addend’s ability to write about love without breaching the wall of dreamed fantasy or idealistic perfection is what truly set his apart. While love is important, as any emotion is, it is not a life sustaining forces as many Romantic poets’ writings would lead people to believe. It is in his poetry that Addend’s dry, blunt and sometimes sad sense of humor would shine though. Perhaps some found it a little strange and difficult to understand as humor, but it was uniquely him.

Encourage the Living W. H. Aden was an artist the likes of which only comes around once in a great while. Even though he is no longer with us we can still experience him through his words and ideas. Through the ages his poems will continue to inspire people through his unique approach on poetry topics and humor. His poems have helped many to see Romantic poetry in a different light and with a more realistic view point and a bit of humor. In closing I would like to leave you with one of his quotes, “We are all here on Earth to help others; what on Earth the others are here for, I don’t know. “