September 1, 1939 (Masterplots II: Poetry, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: W. H. Auden
- First Published: 1939
- Type of Work: Lyric/meditation
- Genres: Poetry, Lyric poetry, Meditation
- Subjects: Culture, History, Socialism, Europe or Europeans, Restaurants, bars, taverns, or pubs, World War II, 1930’s, Fear, War, Human behavior, Imperialism, Diplomacy or diplomats, Protestantism or Protestant churches, Peloponnesian War
The Poem
“September 1, 1939” consists of nine stanzas of eleven lines each. The title refers to the beginning of World War II, the day that Adolf Hitler invaded Poland. W. H. Auden uses the occasion to write a farewell to the 1930’s and to meditate on the social and psychological causes of war.
The poem is written in the first person, with the poet addressing the reader directly. Auden claims to be writing the poem in a bar in midtown Manhattan. While the setting may seem, at first, inappropriate for a serious subject, it is typical of Auden, as well as of many...
[The entire page is 1547 words long]
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