In Memory of W. B. Yeats (Masterplots II: Poetry, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: W. H. Auden
- First Published: 1939
- Type of Work: Ode
- Genres: Poetry, Lyric poetry, Ode
- Subjects: Authors or writers, World War II, Poetry or poets, 1930’s, Death or dying, Mysticism, Ireland or Irish people, Time, Winter, Celtic Twilight
The Poem
The Irishman William Butler Yeats was the most famous and important poet writing in English at the time of his death in January, 1939, and W. H. Auden sought to make a living memorial to Yeats through this ode. The ode form is traditionally reserved for important and serious subjects and is written in an elevated style, so Auden gave Yeats great value and dignity by using this genre. The poem was written within one month of Yeats’s death and published shortly thereafter. It has three distinct parts; Auden radically revised the third part by eliminating three entire...
[The entire page is 1387 words long]
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