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Auden’s Birthday

By Alan Jacobs • February 21, 2013, 10:44 AM

W. H. Auden in Greenwich Village, by Richard Avedon

Let us celebrate the birthday of W. H. Auden, that immensely gifted poet and thinker!

My first book was about him, and I have edited two of his long poems, The Age of Anxiety and (coming soon) For the Time Being: A Christmas Oratorio.

Why do I think so highly of him and return to him so often? Well, here are some essays and reviews that might help to explain:

Also, you might be interested in the syllabus for a course Auden taught at the University of Michigan in 1941.

But above all, read the poems!

Posted in Literature. Tagged W. H. Auden.

7 Responses to Auden’s Birthday

Richard W. Bray says:

February 21, 2013 at 11:33 am

Thanks for the links.

No poet consistently knocks me on my tailbone the way Auden does. “Death’s Echo” makes me want to lie down in the fetal position and turn out all the lights. “As I Walked Out this Evening”–each stanza is a masterpiece–leaves me with some hope, however. At my lowest points, I try to remind myself that life remains a blessing although I cannot bless.

Here’s me on Auden’s “The More Loving One”

http://laughterhopesockintheeye.wordpress.com/2012/06/30/for-all-they-care/
Aaron Gross says:

February 21, 2013 at 12:20 pm

I got an Auden question. I haven’t read much of his work (yeah, yeah, I know), but I have read a lot of stuff by his friend Hannah Arendt, and I was wondering if there was much intellectual influence in either direction? Have scholars studied that?

This is from Auden’s review of Arendt’s The Human Condition:

Every now and then, I come across a book which gives me the impression of having been especially written for me. In the case of a work of art, the author seems to have created a world for which I have been waiting all my life; in the case of a ‘think’ book, it seems to answer precisely those questions which I have been putting myself.

Arendt, on her part, dedicated at least one of her essays to Auden. So you’d think there’d be some influence.
R. K. Hodgen says:

February 21, 2013 at 2:29 pm

Of course, birthday celebrations also require toys like, say, a W. H. Auden doll. You know, for kids.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/111474075/wh-auden-doll-collectible-art-miniature?
Jesse A. says:

February 21, 2013 at 9:41 pm

I love Auden’s work. I also love this photo of him. I’m especially taken by the Hebrew sign for Kosher meat above his right shoulder. (left side of the photo). I assume that is a butcher shop on the corner. Any clue where exactly in the village this photo was taken?
jim says:

February 22, 2013 at 7:31 am

A few years ago, a friend gave me a copy of W.H. Auden’s “Lectures on Shakespeare.”

It’s outstanding–An extremely smart guy discussing the work of one of the smartest guys ever–highly recommended.
Alan Jacobs says:

February 22, 2013 at 10:37 am

I believe it was quite near his apartment on St. Mark’s place.
B. Minich says:

February 22, 2013 at 1:13 pm

I quite enjoyed reading the linked poems. Thank you! Auden is a name I know, but I haven’t really read. This post helped me change that a bit, and will make me interested in Auden’s work in the future.