The Shield of Achilles by W.H. Auden: Critical Appreciation

"The Shield of Achilles" is the title poem in the volume of poems entitled The Shield of Achilles, published in 1955. The lyric is divided into three parts, and each part consists of three stanzas. Thus, there are nine stanzas in all. It is a fine lyrical poem in which Auden puts the classical myth of Achilles and his shield to the service of his art as a modern poet to bring out the contrast between the heroic past and the unheroic present. Auden's handling of the myth is dexterous and highly appropriate in underlying the desolation, cruelty and uninspiring barrenness of the contemporary scene.

Sun, Jul 02 2017

Lullaby by W.H. Auden: Summary and Critical Appreciation

Lay Your Sleeping Head, My Love, entitled Lullaby, is one of the finest love-lyrics of W.H. Auden. It was first published in New Writing, Spring 1937, and later included in the Collected Shorter Poems, 1950. The theme of the poem is love caught at its most intense movement. The poet tells of night of love, but the beauty of that night is impaired by his consciousness that it has been snatched from the chaos. The experience is related to its social setting. The charm of physical love is limited only up to the satisfaction of carnal desires till midnight. Freud’s influence is pervasive, but most evident in the second and fourth stanzas.

Wed, Jun 28 2017

An Irish Airman Foresees his Death by William Butler Yeats: Summary and Analysis

The poem is a short dramatic monologue, a crisp, concise and thrilling soliloquy of its hero, a volunteer Irish airman, Major Robert Gregory, who was killed in action on the Italian front on January 23, 1918. It is originally one of four poems written by William Butler Yeats to honor the death of Major Robert Gregory, son of Lady Augusta Gregory.

Wed, Jun 28 2017

Musee des Beaux Arts by W.H. Auden: Introduction

Musee des Beaux Arts is one of Auden's most distinguished short poems. It was first published in 1939, though written by during winter holidays in Brussels in 1938. This lyrical poem is based on his actual experience. There he happened to see the special Brueghel paintings in the Musees Royaux des Beaux-Arts. Auden was deeply impressed by the paintings of Brueghel, the famous sixteenth century Flemish painter.

Fri, Jun 23 2017

In Memory of W.B. Yeats by W.H. Auden: Summary

The poem In Memory of W.B. Yeats, by W.H. Auden is divided into three sections of varying lengths which form separate poetic units within the poem. The relationship among these units is not very close and organic, as each section is based on somewhat independent strains of thought.

Wed, Jun 21 2017

Truth of Human Life in Yeats's Poetry

William Butler Yeats's later poetry is particularly characterized by a stark, naked, brutal and even coarse truth about the fragmentation of modern human life. The poet was caught "between two worlds." His poetry reflects the clash of opposites. Yeats saw man as torn in conflict. For him, the human existence is made up of antinomies: the spiritual and the physical, the sensuous and the artistic, the past and the present, the personal and the impersonal, physical decay and intellectual maturity. These conflicts are ever present in Yeats' poetry.

Sun, Jun 18 2017

The Salient Features of Yeats's Poetry

William Butler Yeats has been recognized as a great modern poet of the 20th century. J.W. Beach calls him the finest of British poets of the modern age. Edith Sitwell, admiring his poetry, says, "It is forty years since the earliest of these great poems gave new life to the language…. . " G.S. Frazer in his widely known book entitled The Modern Writer and His World claims for Yeats the position of a major English poet, and equates him with Donne, with Milton and with Wordsworth and considers him very greatly superior to Browning, to Tennyson and to Arnold.

Sun, Jun 18 2017

Yeats and the Romantic Tradition

William Butler Yeats is regarded as one of 'the last romantics' who successfully bridged the gap between the romantic tradition of the 19th century and the modernist literature of the 20th century which was produced in direct opposition to that tradition. He was considered both a Romantic and a modern poet. His poetry falls into three distinct categories of phrases.

Sun, Jun 18 2017

William Butler Yeats as a Symbolist

William Butler Yeats is regarded as one of the most important representative symbolist of the twentieth century English literature who was mainly influenced by the French symbolist movement of 19th century. Symbolism as a conscious movement was born in France as a reaction against naturalism and the precision and exactitude of the 'naturalist' school represented by Emile Zola.

Wed, Jun 14 2017

Lapis Lazuli by William Butler Yeats: Critical Appreciation

Lapis Lazuli is dedicated to Harry Clifton, who presented him such a precious stone carved with Chinese old men, climbing a barren mountain on his 70th birthday. Yeats uses the marvelous carving to mediate on the role of art in the face of tragic world.

Thu, Jun 08 2017