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Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone,
Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone,
Sile .........
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W.H. Auden
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| Comments about this poem (Funeral Blues by W.H. Auden) |
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Click here to write your comments about this poem (Funeral Blues by W.H. Auden)
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Marc Baumback (7/20/2008 5:45:00 AM)
Cynthia -
You are wrong. The poem, whilst absolutely haunting and powerful (I have used it myself at a Eulogy) , is a satirical piece of work by Auden about the death of a politician.
Auden was a homosexual, hence the use of this poem and all of its four stanzas in the film 'Four Weddings and a Funeral' by the gay characters. He was/is an icon for not only those that love his work, as I do, but for the gay community as a brilliant example of someone that followed his beliefs (pro - Nazi, too) .
Notwithstanding - its great that we all love it. TRy reading about Auden and learn more. |
Cynthia Callahan (6/9/2008 6:27:00 PM)
This poem is about that period of time following the death of a loved one...the time when your world has collapsed and you realize that nothing will ever be the same, again. This person who was the center of your world is just gone and it feels wrong that the world around you goes on like nothing has happened. In time, you learn to manage your grief and find joy in your memories...but for that time...that awful time...all goodness is gone and all you feel is that loss.
It is not, however, atheistic. Nor is it saying that love ends with death. The capitalized 'He' is only to emphasize his importance or-even more simply-denotes the beginning of the quote (what is to be written on the sky) . |
Gina Shimmy (5/7/2008 9:18:00 PM)
Sooo beatiful! I loved it... |
Gerome Ferreira (12/12/2007 4:09:00 PM)
In this poem I don't feel sad but happy for because it show a great deal of emotions. to have loved someone with that passion is nothing but beautiful.... |
Charles Wiles (12/2/2007 7:04:00 AM)
John Hannah's reading of 'Funeral Blues' was so moving and immediately made this one of my favourite poems. But please don't read this at my funeral (which hopefully is still quite a long way off) , I would prefer someone to read my own poem 'Live Well And Long' :) |
Rebecca Hillary (10/10/2007 6:02:00 PM)
This poem, in my opinion, is the most succinct description of any person's feeling after death. I have lost many friends, despite my short life, and yet this poem seems to sum up the way I have felt after their deaths. I, in all honesty, believed at the time I first heard the poem, that it may have been an Atheistic monologue (the Message 'He is dead' - possibly referring to God as 'He') , yet having since seen the emotion that John Hannah put into his recital in Four Weddings and A Funeral (myself being a John Hannah fan, and that being the only reason I watched the film...) , I have come to accept that while it can be interpreted at atheistic, it is first and foremost the single most beautiful poem in reference to personal loss that has ever been written, and for this W.H. Auden is to be commended. |
Claire Carthy (8/19/2007 9:19:00 PM)
Wonderfully emotional poem...one of my favorites, spoken beautifully in four weddings and a funeral.. |
Corinna Hornsby-walsh (7/15/2007 2:46:00 PM)
I love this poem; it made me cry the first time I read it and has done many other times. Recently, my great uncle died and I considered copying the poem out for his wife, but decided against it: ' I thought that love would last forever. I was wrong'. I know what Auden meant by this - the happy love he shared with his partner snatched away, but I wonder if he ever reread the poem, once time had had the chance to inch by, and realised that love - real love - will always last forever; be it a sad or happy kind of love - facts like whether someone is there in body or not cannot efface something so strong. |
Adrian Currier (5/6/2007 1:36:00 AM)
how sad... |
Kate Rochat (3/13/2007 6:37:00 PM)
as mentioned before this poem was included in the movie four weddings and a funeral. i personally am not a very big fan of the movie (though i am a very large fan of john hannah) but the funeral scene when the character matthew reads this poem makes the movie worth seeing. it is a beautiful scene and rendition of this great work of art |
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