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W. H. Auden on Poetry

1907–1973 England

← All quotes by W. H. Auden

5 quotes

Of the many definitions of poetry, the simplest is still the best: 'memorable speech'.

introduction to The Poet's Tongue (1935)

"The unacknowledged legislators of the world" describes the secret police, not the poets.

The Dyer's Hand, and Other Essays (1962)

Earth, receive an honoured guest;
William Yeats is laid to rest.
Let the Irish vessel lie
Emptied of its poetry.

Another Time (1940)

A verbal art like poetry is reflective; it stops to think. Music is immediate, it goes on to become.

The Dyer's Hand, and Other Essays (1962)

Proper names are poetry in the raw. Like all poetry they are untranslatable.

A Certain World: A Commonplace Book (1970)

Attribution

Quotes and notes from Wikiquote: W. H. Auden (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0.