"In Memory of W. B. Yeats" by W.H. Auden

A reading of Auden's elegy for W.B. Yeats, who died 1939, just before WWII.

There were three more stanzas in the original verion. Auden deleted them.

Time that is intolerant
Of the brave and the innocent,
And indifferent in a week
To a beautiful physique,

Worships language and forgives
Everyone by whom it lives;
Pardons cowardice, conceit,
Lays its honours at their feet.

Time that with this strange excuse
Pardoned Kipling and his views,
And will pardon Paul Claudel,
Pardons him for writing well.

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• Auden
• Yeats
• War
• Europe
• poem
• poetry
• death
• ireland

[iturkarp]

your response made sense, though.

:)

[SpokenVerse]

Record it. I'm always willing to listen and learn.

[iturkarp]

i wish you'd put more yourself into it...you know... i can't discern feeling.

[SpokenVerse]

I try not to read with emophases or add meanings the poet didn't intend. Yeats' death was not unexpected and I'm sure you know that he had been sympathetic towards fascism, which didn't sit well with Auden. The mood is sarcastic, sardonic, resigned. Of course Auden didn't know how bad things were going to get in Europe. I can't see anything I would want to emphasise more. If you can, tell me. I'm never really satisfied with any reading, but I don't hink I could do much better.

[crazyxmarine]

my god what a genius: like the great Irish poet-god he eulogizes, Auden was also a true poet-god! Kudos for the great recording and lyrics too.

[ThunderingJove]

Good reading. However, I find it interesting you went for the edited reversion of this, not the "pardons them for writing well" verses.

[ehweven]

SpokenVerse's reading of verses are all dead on right on perfection. all of them

check it out

[chariotdrvr14]

I think your reading of Auden's work is dead on perfect.

[chariotdrvr14]

Yeats was a nationalist but I don't believe he was a fascist sympathiser. And certainly not with the anti masonic and anti secret society policies of both Germany and Italy. His close friend Ezra Pound embraced it , rather stupidly, in a romantic sense even though I don't believe Pound ever really understand politics.

[TRESBELA]

You do it well..don't listen to the others who say it otherwise but I notice you chose a few versionsof Auden's poem that include his heavy revisions. Particuary this one, in the orginal he omiited stanzas 46-57 which you don't include here. I try and seek the versions that include the originals but great nonetheless!

[brychar66]

With reference to previous comments, it seems to me that your voice and manner of reading is particularly sympathetic to Auden: he's a poet I usually find it difficult to appreciate, but hearing you read him makes me understand him better.

[iturkarp]

Auden intended sarcasm? oh. hmm. I don't know the history behind the poem or what may have motivated it, but, with specific reference to some lines...like,

"A few thousand will think of this day/ As one thinks of a day when one did something slightly unusual", there's a certain understated tenderness.

but blah. i'm no expert, and "this is no great matter".