I feel as if I've read this before--or maybe it was an earlier excerpt. Auden is my beloved poet for all time. And here's one of favorite quotes from the Dyer's Hand that I use in my course online here: "[. . .] What kind of guy inhabits this poem?" and he asks himself this question as well: : "Here is a verbal contraption. How does it work?” That’s the first question Auden asked himself when he read a poem. And it’s a good one. I own the full collection and the biography. More on Auden always welcome., Jeffrey.
Thank you, Mary. I remember your love of Auden's work. When I interviewed Richard Walker about his memoir and reviewed the book, I mentioned the line about Auden in hos slippers and Lear, so maybe you remember it from there. I think Richard captures the melancholic fascination of the scene very well.
Auden. Such a treat. I'm wondering about 'the wedding cake left out in the rain' and wondering if it was the basis for that line in the song 'MacArthur Park'...too tenuous perhaps..
Hi Jeffrey, it’s been a minute, as we say, since I’ve read your Letters. This passage was so involving, the movements and the starkness, but Walker’s sense of admiration was also evident on the page for Auden, who I know nothing about. I, too, am approaching that age, and knowing this makes me feel more connected and makes me think—what am I offering for the greater good? I’m blessed knowing this: I am loved now that I'm on the back nine, as my golf friends and I like to say. Hello!
It's a well done moment of memoir and the undercurrent of pathos is sad. The loss of dignity in the process of aging can make someone a target for ridicule, but Walker manages to portray him honestly but still show respect.
Thank you, Leslie. I agree with all your comments. What struck me also is that I'm approaching the age that Auden was in this scene. Which adds to the pathos for me.
It’s always melancholically interesting to read about Auden back at Oxford. There must have been something distinctive about how slowly he turned his head: John Carey (then a young don) remembers thinking he moved it as carefully as if it were made of glass.
Very moving to see the poet and his lines through all these layers— yours (Jeffrey), Richard’s as student, Auden’s peers, and his own aging as time passing. So many poignant details from different points of view. Thank you both.
wow, I loved reading this and loved the view on Auden who I don't know much about. "One fixed point in the chaos of his personal life is an obsession with punctuality. As if clock-watching were an anchor in the stormy sea of his turbulent emotions." I always think this of people who are really good at being on time.
Thank you, Deirdre. I think it's a great line from Richard. Until I read this, I thought that chaos was the only organising principle of Auden's life. But a chaotic life ruled by punctuality is more interesting to contemplate!
Thanks for sharing this excerpt. Loved it. I have a friend who was on a Commonwealth scholarship at Christ Church then and knew Auden. I must ask him more about that.
Thank you for your appreciative comment Maureen.
I feel as if I've read this before--or maybe it was an earlier excerpt. Auden is my beloved poet for all time. And here's one of favorite quotes from the Dyer's Hand that I use in my course online here: "[. . .] What kind of guy inhabits this poem?" and he asks himself this question as well: : "Here is a verbal contraption. How does it work?” That’s the first question Auden asked himself when he read a poem. And it’s a good one. I own the full collection and the biography. More on Auden always welcome., Jeffrey.
Thank you, Mary. I remember your love of Auden's work. When I interviewed Richard Walker about his memoir and reviewed the book, I mentioned the line about Auden in hos slippers and Lear, so maybe you remember it from there. I think Richard captures the melancholic fascination of the scene very well.
Indeed -- Well-done.
Auden. Such a treat. I'm wondering about 'the wedding cake left out in the rain' and wondering if it was the basis for that line in the song 'MacArthur Park'...too tenuous perhaps..
Not at all. In an earlier draft that connection was included in my text. I cut it to keep the focus on Auden.
I like Richard's writing style. It's simple and refined at the same time.
Thank you Gianni. Richard
What a striking take -- the ending so poignant, and this vision:
"Conversing with Auden is like having a conversation with a human-sized lizard turning its head slowly round to meet your gaze."
I'm glad you enjoyed this, Jay. So did I!
Hi Jeffrey, it’s been a minute, as we say, since I’ve read your Letters. This passage was so involving, the movements and the starkness, but Walker’s sense of admiration was also evident on the page for Auden, who I know nothing about. I, too, am approaching that age, and knowing this makes me feel more connected and makes me think—what am I offering for the greater good? I’m blessed knowing this: I am loved now that I'm on the back nine, as my golf friends and I like to say. Hello!
Thank you, Maureen. It's great to hear from you. And I agree with what you say about Richard's writing.
Morning!
What an enchanting excerpt! I'm fascinated by writers and their strange, often polarising personalities. This is one for the TBR.
It's a well done moment of memoir and the undercurrent of pathos is sad. The loss of dignity in the process of aging can make someone a target for ridicule, but Walker manages to portray him honestly but still show respect.
Thank you, Leslie. I agree with all your comments. What struck me also is that I'm approaching the age that Auden was in this scene. Which adds to the pathos for me.
I am well past, perhaps why those themes stood out to me!
How wonderful, Jeffrey. Auden in his slippers reciting Edward Lear, and then the shadow of that other Lear. Thank you !
Yes, I think Richard captures the scene very well, Rona!
And as I get older, the two Lears loom ever larger, I find.
It’s always melancholically interesting to read about Auden back at Oxford. There must have been something distinctive about how slowly he turned his head: John Carey (then a young don) remembers thinking he moved it as carefully as if it were made of glass.
It seems there was a fascination with how he moved. Thank you for adding Carey's comment, which is typically pithy.
Very moving to see the poet and his lines through all these layers— yours (Jeffrey), Richard’s as student, Auden’s peers, and his own aging as time passing. So many poignant details from different points of view. Thank you both.
What a fascinating excerpt. Thank you both for sharing. :)
Thank you, Michael!
Beautifully told, love the imagery, especially Auden lighting a cigarette and setting the stage for his one man performance. Bravo!
Yes, the first time I read Richard's description of the scene, I was immediately impressed too!
wow, I loved reading this and loved the view on Auden who I don't know much about. "One fixed point in the chaos of his personal life is an obsession with punctuality. As if clock-watching were an anchor in the stormy sea of his turbulent emotions." I always think this of people who are really good at being on time.
Thank you, Deirdre. I think it's a great line from Richard. Until I read this, I thought that chaos was the only organising principle of Auden's life. But a chaotic life ruled by punctuality is more interesting to contemplate!
Thanks for sharing this excerpt. Loved it. I have a friend who was on a Commonwealth scholarship at Christ Church then and knew Auden. I must ask him more about that.