Funeral blues wystan hugh auden musee
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Every now and then, a poem will come along that has such a memorable line that people just ignore the actual title of the poem. That is the case with Funeral Blues by Wystan Hugh Auden, also often known as “Stop all the Clocks”, which happens to be the first line of the poem. This powerful elegy has become one of the most famous W.H. Auden poems, and so it’s worth a look! In this article, I will examine some of the aspects of this poem such as the author behind it, some of the themes and impact, and, of course, a more in-depth Funeral Blues by Wystan Hugh Auden analysis. If you like this idea, let’s get into it!
Funeral Blues by Wystan Hugh Auden Analysis
| Date Published | 1938 |
| Type of Poem | Elegy |
| Rhyme Scheme | AABB |
| Meter | Variable |
| Topic | Grief and death |
There are many famous poems in the world, but Funeral Blues by Wystan Hugh Auden is one that is still read aloud and recited to this day all over the world. The reason for this
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The poet calls for the clocks to be stopped, the telephone to be cut off, and the dog and pianos silenced. The coffin will be brought out to the mourners with a muffled drum and under the moan of airplanes that spell out the message, “He Is Dead.” Doves are to be decked with bows around their necks, and the traffic policemen are to wear black cotton gloves.
The poet thinks of the deceased as “my North, my South, my East and West,” his work and his rest, his noon and his midnight, his talk and his song. He incorrectly thought their love would last forever.
The stars, moon, sun, ocean, and forests, the poet writes, should be sent away; they are no longer needed, and “nothing now can ever come to any good.”
Analysis
“Funeral Blues” has an interesting composition history. It originally appeared as a song in a play Auden cowrote with Christopher Isherwood called The Ascent of F6. In this form the
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The Messy Genius of W. H. Auden
The poem is also known as “Stop all the clocks,” a reference to its rousing first stanza:
Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone,
Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone,
Silence the pianos and with muffled drum
Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come.
Each of the four stanzas reads like an eloquent study in grief, including the last four lines, which leave a lump in the throat:
The stars 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.
Auden’s poem resonates with readers because it addresses a basic emotional predicament—that after someone dies, the world keeps spinning without them. It’s an alternately affirming and cruel reality, a puzzle that the poem’s narrator, like many who have lost a loved one, seems to feel is not quite right. If a precious life has ceased, the anguished voice at th