Auden

1
Auden

• Chelsea Wagner
• Sarah Salzman
• Period 5/6

2
Introduction
3
W. H. Auden

• Early interest in science and engineering
  however, his interest in poetry made him switch
  his field of study to English
• In 1928, Eliot accepted Auden's verse play Paid
  on Both Sides A Charade for publication in his
  magazine Criterion.
• Became a teacher when he moved back from Berlin
  to England, then became US citizen in 1939
• Auden won numerous honors and awards, such as
  Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award
• Burried in Poets corner in Westminster Abbey

4
Modern poetry

• British poets relied on familiar verse forms
• Americans experimented with new forms and ideas
  of poetry
• Much dealt with political/cultural subjects
• War
• Socialism
• Depression
• Poetic Characteristics
• Hopelessness/despair
• Sense of loss
• Meaninglessness
• Fragmentation
• Dehumanization- to deprive of human qualities or
  attributes divest of individuality

5
The Unknown Citizen

• He was found by the Bureau of Statistics to be
• One against whom there was no official complaint,
  
• And all the reports on his conduct agree
• That, in the modern sense of an old-fashioned
  word, he was a saint,
• For in everything he did he served the Greater
  Community.
• Except for the War till the day he retired
• He worked in a factory and never got fired,
• But satisfied his employers, Fudge Motors Inc.
• Yet he wasn't a scab or odd in his views,
• For his Union reports that he paid his dues,
• (Our report on his Union shows it was sound)
• And our Social Psychology workers found
• That he was popular with his mates and liked a
  drink.
• The Press are convinced that he bought a paper
  every day
• And that his reactions to advertisements were
  normal in every way.

6
The Unknown Citizen, cont

• Policies taken out in his name prove that he was
  fully insured,
• And his Health-card shows he was once in hospital
  but left it cured.
• Both Producers Research and High-Grade Living
  declare
• He was fully sensible to the advantages of the
  Instalment Plan
• And had everything necessary to the Modern Man,
• A phonograph, a radio, a car and a frigidaire.
• Our researchers into Public Opinion are content
• That he held the proper opinions for the time of
  year
• When there was peace, he was for peace when
  there was war, he went.
• He was married and added five children to the
  population,
• Which our Eugenist says was the right number for
  a parent of his generation.
• And our teachers report that he never interfered
  with their education.
• Was he free? Was he happy? The question is
  absurd
• Had anything been wrong, we should certainly have
  heard.

7
Decoding The Unknown Citizen
8
Lines 1-3
He was found by the Bureau of Statistics to be
One against whom there was no official
complaint, And all the reports on his conduct
agree
9
Lines 4-5
That, in the modern sense of an old-fashioned
word, he was a saint, For in everything he did
he served the Greater Community.
10
Lines 6-8
Except for the War till the day he retired He
worked in a factory and never got fired, But
satisfied his employers, Fudge Motors Inc.
11
Lines 9-11
Yet he wasn't a scab or odd in his views, For
his Union reports that he paid his dues, (Our
report on his Union shows it was sound)
12
Lines 12-15
And our Social Psychology workers found That he
was popular with his mates and liked a drink.
The Press are convinced that he bought a paper
every day And that his reactions to
advertisements were normal in every way.
13
Lines 16-21
Policies taken out in his name prove that he was
fully insured, And his Health-card shows he was
once in hospital but left it cured. Both
Producers Research and High-Grade Living declare
He was fully sensible to the advantages of the
Instalment Plan And had everything necessary to
the Modern Man, A phonograph, a radio, a car
and a frigidaire.
14
Lines 22-27
Our researchers into Public Opinion are content
That he held the proper opinions for the time
of year When there was peace, he was for
peace when there was war, he went. He was
married and added five children to the
population, Which our Eugenist says was the
right number for a parent of his generation.
And our teachers report that he never
interfered with their education.
15
Lines 28-29
Was he free? Was he happy? The question is
absurd Had anything been wrong, we should
certainly have heard.
16
Explanation line by line

• Lines 1-3
• Ironic tone
• Satiric portrait of average citizen
• Lines 4-5
• saint
• Old-fashioned sense means overcomes challenges,
  individual
• Modern sense is one who is anything but
  extraordinary
• Lines 6-8
• Shows how average the citizen is
• Lines 12-15
• Normalcy

17
Explanation Line by Line

• Lines 16-21
• Continues to tabulate the characteristics of the
  modern man
• Lines 22-27
• Clearly states how normal the citizen is
• Mass organizations have power
• Two aspects of the central theme
• The cold and detached scientific approach
  organizations employ to collect information on
  individuals
• Controlled conformity such groups desire
• Lines 28-29
• Encourages citizens to identify happiness and
  freedom by its own terms
• Poem ends on an ironic note

18
Questions

• 1. Who is the speaker in this poem?
• 2. Can you identify one personality trait or
  physical feature of the Unknown Citizen?
• 3. How does this poem make you feel after you
  read it?

19
Answers

• 1.The Government
• 2.No, they speak of him as a number. Based only
  on the fact that he acts just like the masses and
  not an individual.
• 3. Personal Interpretation

20
Techniques

• Theme
• satire
• Form- Free Verse
• Definition verse with no metrical pattern
• Uses rhyming lines
• ABAB pattern for lines 1-5
• Then has glitches in the pattern throughout the
  rest of the poem
• Lines 8 and 13 rhyme instead of 8 and 9

21
Conclusion

• Think about the following
• -What would _______ say about you if you
  suddenly died?
• Family/Friends?
• School?
• Government?

22
Works Cited

• "Auden, W. H. (1907-1973)." EXPLORING Poetry.
  Online ed. Detroit Gale, 2003.Student Resource
  Center - Bronze. Gale. North Allegheny Senior
  High School. 13 May. 2009 lthttp//find.galegroup.
  com/srcx/infomark.do?contentSetGSRC typeretrie
  vetabIDT001prodIdSRC3docIdEJ2114100171s our
  cegalesrcprodSRCSuserGroupNamepl2552version
  1.0gt.
• "Explanation The Unknown Citizen." EXPLORING
  Poetry. Online ed. Detroit Gale, 2003. Student
  Resource Center - Bronze. Gale. North Allegheny
  Senior High School. 13 May. 2009
• lthttp//find.galegroup.com/srcx/infomark.do?con
  tentSetGSRCtyp eretrievetabIDT008prodIdSRC3
  docIdEJ2114732485sourc egalesrcprodSRCSuser
  GroupNamepl2552version1.0gt.
• W. H. Auden. "The Unknown Citizen." (2002).
  MagillOnLiterature Plus. EBSCO. North Allegheny
  School District, Pittsburgh, Pa. 13 May 2009
  lthttp//search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?directtr
  uedbmjhAN03 51000258siteehost-livegt.