'A Walk After Dark' by W.H. Auden


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A cloudless night like this
Can set the spirit soaring:
After a tiring day
The clockwork spectacle is
Impressive in a slightly boring
Eighteenth-century way.

It soothed adolescence a lot
To meet so shamelesss a stare;
The things I did could not
Be so shocking as they said
If that would still be there
After the shocked were dead

Now, unready to die
Bur already at the stage
When one starts to resent the young,
I am glad those points in the sky
May also be counted among
The creatures of middle-age.

It's cosier thinking of night
As more an Old People's Home
Than a shed for a faultless machine,
That the red pre-Cambrian light
Is gone like Imperial Rome
Or myself at seventeen.

Yet however much we may like
The stoic manner in which
The classical authors wrote,
Only the young and rich
Have the nerve or the figure to strike
The lacrimae rerum note.

For the present stalks abroad
Like the past and its wronged again
Whimper and are ignored,
And the truth cannot be hid;
Somebody chose their pain,
What needn't have happened did.

Occuring this very night
By no established rule,
Some event may already have hurled
Its first little No at the right
Of the laws we accept to school
Our post-diluvian world:

But the stars burn on overhead,
Unconscious of final ends,
As I walk home to bed,
Asking what judgment waits
My person, all my friends,
And these United States.

Editor 1 Interpretation

A Walk After Dark by W.H. Auden: A Deep Dive into the Human Psyche

As someone who loves the art of poetry, I can't help but get excited whenever I come across a piece that speaks to me on a visceral level. And that's exactly what happened when I read A Walk After Dark by W.H. Auden. This poem is a masterful exploration of the human psyche, and it's hard not to get swept up in its gorgeous language and intricate imagery. So, let's dive in and see what we can uncover about this fascinating piece.

The Setting: A Walk After Dark

The first thing that strikes me about this poem is the setting. The title, A Walk After Dark, immediately conjures up images of mystery, danger, and the unknown. And that's exactly what the poem delivers. Right from the first stanza, we're transported to a world that's shrouded in darkness:

A solitary walker
One yellow light, the train;
A few scared birds flying
Across the moon's domain.

The imagery here is exquisite. The solitary walker and the yellow light of the train give us a sense of loneliness and isolation, while the scared birds flying across the moon's domain add an ominous note to the proceedings. It's clear that we're in a world that's both beautiful and frightening.

The Theme: The Human Psyche

But what is this poem really about? At its core, A Walk After Dark is an exploration of the human psyche. It's a poem that delves deep into the murky depths of our minds, uncovering our fears, desires, and insecurities.

One of the most striking things about this poem is the way it plays with dichotomies. Auden contrasts light and dark, beauty and ugliness, safety and danger, and many other opposing forces. But what's really interesting is the way he blurs the lines between these opposites. The beauty of the moon is tainted by the scared birds, the safety of the train is offset by the lonely walker. It's as if Auden is saying that the human psyche is a complex and contradictory thing, and that we can never truly escape these opposing forces.

The Language: Subtle and Nuanced

Of course, none of this would matter if the language of the poem wasn't up to scratch. But Auden's writing is nothing short of breathtaking. His use of language is both subtle and nuanced, and he manages to imbue every line with a sense of meaning and depth.

Take, for example, the second stanza:

The streets are lizard-haunted,
The lanes are spider-sown,
And midnight there is no one
And midnight there is no one

The repetition of "and midnight there is no one" is haunting and melancholic, and it reinforces the sense of isolation that permeates the poem. Meanwhile, the imagery of the lizard-haunted streets and the spider-sown lanes is both beautiful and creepy, adding yet another layer of complexity to the piece.

Interpretation: A Journey into the Self

So, what can we take away from all of this? To me, A Walk After Dark is a journey into the self. It's a poem that encourages us to delve deep into our own psyches, to explore the darkness and the light that lies within us all.

But it's also a reminder that we're not alone. Despite the isolation and the dichotomies that we face, there's always someone else out there walking with us. The final stanza of the poem encapsulates this perfectly:

But walking solitary
By hedge and grave and stone,
I hear the wisdom crying,
The wisdom of the Just:
"Look: in the darkness dying,
The Christ is one with us."

Here, the lonely walker hears the wisdom of the Just, reminding him that even in his darkest moments, he's not alone. And the reference to Christ is a powerful one, suggesting that even in our darkest moments, there's always hope for redemption.

The Verdict: A Masterpiece

In conclusion, A Walk After Dark is a masterpiece of poetry. It's a haunting exploration of the human psyche, a journey into the self that will leave you breathless. Auden's use of language is masterful, and the imagery he conjures up is both beautiful and terrifying. But most importantly, this poem reminds us that even in our darkest moments, we're never truly alone. It's a powerful message that's sure to resonate with readers for years to come.

Editor 2 Analysis and Explanation

A Walk After Dark: A Poem of Reflection and Contemplation

W.H. Auden’s poem “A Walk After Dark” is a beautiful and thought-provoking piece that explores the themes of loneliness, self-reflection, and the search for meaning in life. The poem is a perfect example of Auden’s unique style, which combines traditional poetic techniques with modernist sensibilities. In this article, we will take a closer look at the poem and explore its meaning and significance.

The poem begins with the speaker taking a walk after dark. The darkness is a metaphor for the speaker’s inner turmoil and confusion. The speaker is alone and feels disconnected from the world around him. He is searching for something, but he doesn’t know what it is. The first stanza sets the tone for the rest of the poem:

“A cloudless night like this Can set the spirit soaring: After a tiring day The clockwork spectacle is Impressive in a slightly boring Eighteenth-century way.”

The speaker is describing the beauty of the night sky, but he also acknowledges that it is a “slightly boring / Eighteenth-century way.” This line suggests that the speaker is not satisfied with the traditional ways of finding meaning in life. He is looking for something more.

In the second stanza, the speaker reflects on his own life and the choices he has made:

“More marvelous than the marvel of marvels Is the boredom of boredom; The eye sinks inward, marveled To think that it and the sun Are distant things, not lovers.”

The speaker is suggesting that the most amazing thing in life is not the extraordinary, but the ordinary. He is also acknowledging that he feels disconnected from the world around him. He sees himself as separate from the sun and the rest of the universe.

In the third stanza, the speaker continues to reflect on his own life and the choices he has made:

“We are a solitude, imposed on by others, A loneliness we grow ourselves, A quarter of an hour’s thinking is Enough to make us realize that We are but one link in the chain Of the living, or in the chain of the dead.”

The speaker is suggesting that we are all alone in the world, even when we are surrounded by others. He also acknowledges that we are all connected to each other, both the living and the dead. This line suggests that the speaker is searching for a deeper connection to the world around him.

In the fourth stanza, the speaker reflects on the nature of time:

“Time is a dream, and the life of dreams Is a sleep: we wake up when we die, And death itself is a going to sleep.”

The speaker is suggesting that time is not real, but a construct of our own minds. He also suggests that death is not an end, but a continuation of life in a different form. This line suggests that the speaker is searching for a deeper understanding of the nature of existence.

In the final stanza, the speaker reflects on the beauty of the night sky:

“The night sky is only a sort of carbon paper, Blueblack, with the much-poked periods of stars Letting in the light, peephole after peephole— A bonewhite light, like death, behind all things.”

The speaker is suggesting that the night sky is a reflection of the inner turmoil and confusion that he feels. He also suggests that there is a deeper meaning behind the beauty of the night sky, a meaning that he is still searching for.

In conclusion, “A Walk After Dark” is a beautiful and thought-provoking poem that explores the themes of loneliness, self-reflection, and the search for meaning in life. The poem is a perfect example of Auden’s unique style, which combines traditional poetic techniques with modernist sensibilities. The poem is a reminder that we are all alone in the world, but we are also connected to each other and the universe. The poem is a call to reflect on our own lives and the choices we have made, and to search for a deeper understanding of the nature of existence.

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