The "Unknown Citizen" is a poem by W.H. Auden that tells the story of a man who is honored by the state for being a model citizen, but whose life is largely unknown to the people around him. The poem is written in the form of a eulogy, and the speaker is a government official who is recounting the man's life and achievements.
The man in the poem is described as "an obedient husband," "a good father," and someone who "paid his taxes," all of which are seen as important qualities in a good citizen. However, despite his apparent model behavior, the speaker admits that they do not really know much about the man's personal life or thoughts. The man is referred to as "the unknown citizen," suggesting that he was a conformist who lived a very private and unremarkable life.
One of the most striking aspects of the poem is the way in which the speaker uses statistics and bureaucratic language to describe the man's life. The speaker lists off various numbers and statistics, such as the man's age, salary, and number of children, as if they are the only important aspects of his life. This emphasis on statistics and bureaucracy reflects the way in which the government views its citizens as nothing more than numbers and statistics, rather than as complex and nuanced individuals.
Despite the speaker's attempts to paint the man as a model citizen, the poem ultimately reveals that the government's idea of a good citizen is someone who is obedient and conformist, rather than someone who is truly virtuous or admirable. The man in the poem is celebrated for his conformity and obedience, rather than for any personal qualities or achievements.
Overall, the "Unknown Citizen" is a thought-provoking poem that raises questions about the role of the state in defining what it means to be a good citizen. It suggests that the government's focus on statistics and bureaucracy can obscure the true nature of a person's life and character, and that the idea of a good citizen may be more about obedience and conformity than about truly admirable qualities.
The Unknown Citizen by W H Auden
And our teachers report that he never interfered with their education. They were social and completely normal. The Press are convinced that he bought a paper every day, In the second set of lines, the report continues. Auden Poem Analysis: The Unknown Citizen Essay those who actually never do anything. Who is the speaker in the poem? 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. As citizens, we know the obligations of our citizenship, however it often times is the officials we tend to elect that forget their obligations to us. There, the youth learn society's expectations for their behavior.
The Unknown Citizen
What is Auden's attitude toward the speaker in the poem? Auden's attempt to show how the average person is pressed into conformism by all social forces, made to ignore that within modern society there are often deep conflicts between these social forces. 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. Through several readings of the poem, many would not even consider the Unknown Citizen as a poem, but rather, a letter of recommendation or a speech for a political election. Auden The Unknown Citizen Analysis The Unknown Citizen, written by W. The Unknown Citizen sketches in, with the lightest of ironies, some details of the average man. Auden during 1940, is a poem where the speaker, a representative of the state or government, directs a speech to the audience about a monument being erected for a citizen.
"The Unknown Citizen"
He was well-liked by his friends, social enough to be normal, and dedicated to his work. The subtle irony which Auden employs here is that it is such obligations that give the modern man existence a definition and shape. The question is absurd: Had anything been wrong, we should certainly have heard. He was guided by the trend of thought set by the newspapers and other media of propaganda. At first glance, this poem seems like the well-deserved tribute to a man who lived the perfect life, but after a more detailed analysis, the speaker reveals his attitude towards his subject. Does that really matter in the end? Therefore, these two questions are highly ironic and sum up what has been said before. It provides for the legal, unlicensed citation or incorporation of copyrighted material in another author's work under a four-factor balancing test.
W. H. Auden: Poems “The Unknown Citizen” Summary and Analysis
He led the kind of family life led by millions on others. Why does Auden capitalize so many words and phrases that normally would not be captialized like Greater Community , Installment Plan, Modern Man, and Public Opinion? 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. First off, in Citizen, it tells of a normal man, a man that does not do anything special and is the perfect role model for what an average citizen should be like. This can be seen in the 2000 Presidential Race. A person who has become a cog in the machine of society newspapers, unions, insurance people, etc. This gives you a clue about the tone of the poem. .
