In Memory of W. B. Yeats
Summary and Analysis
The poem ‘In Memory of W.B. Yeats’ was shortly written after Yeats’s death, as a tribute to one of the most influential poets in English literature. Divided into three sections, the poem is a typical elegy. It has the themes of life after death, the power of poetry, and the human condition. It is a three-part poem that is further divided into stanzas of different lengths.
The first section of the poem opens with an account of the circumstances and setting of Yeats’ death. He died in winter. Brooks were frozen and airports were deserted. The death of Yeats was considered as an ordinary event. His death had no effect on the order of things. He lives through his poetry, scattered among cities and unfamiliar readers and critics. They interpret his life and poetry through their own understandings. When the rest of civilization keeps moving, a few thousand will remember his death.
In the second section, there is a personal address to Yeats. He was silly like all poets and suffered like all sensitive people. For Yeats, poetry was a gift that survived everything other than itself, even Yeats’ own physical degeneration, the misinterpretations of rich women, and Yeats’ own failings. He spent a lot of time and energy for Irish nationalism. But Ireland still remains the same. Auden agonizingly considers that poetry cannot correct the course of history. It is obvious that the uselessness of poetry in the material world is very obvious. He claims that the poetry survives in the human imagination. Even though Yeats died physically, he exists in the imagination through his poetry.
His body was empty of the poetry once it held. Meanwhile, the European nations were isolated from one another basking in their individual hatred. Nothing pleasant was occurring at that time in the world. The poet celebrates Yeats’ ability to persuade us to rejoice in existence. The poem ends with an optimistic note that life is like a prison and that by spending time with Yeats’ poetry, one can learn how to praise, or be hopeful.
‘In Memory of W. B. Yeats’ is a powerful poem not only about Yeats but also about all poets whose work can teach us how to praise. This poem focuses on the function of poetry to unify the collective minds of the readers in a world that is handicapped with modern technology and warfare. The poet’s lamentation in the poem is not only directed to Yeats’ death but also towards the world that is threatened by its own destructive potential.
Auden begins his poem with a group of typical images that associates with winter and death. The setting is filled with winter and death which are linked by alliteration of ‘d’ sounds. Alliterating negative words and phrase include ‘disappeared’, ‘death’, ‘deserted’, ‘disfigured’, ‘dying day’, and ‘death’. This repetition establishes a powerful scene of anguish to mirror Yeats’ death. The image of the healing fountain is used to that nurtures our souls.
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