Poem anaylsis - Funeral Blues, W H Auden

Background

Came from a collection known as Twelve songs.1939-1947 – including the songs ‘O Tell me the truth about love, Under an abject willow, Song, At last the secret is out. Johnny

The collection features poems regarding Audens’ personal relationships, in their successes and failures. IV, VI, VIII, X

This poem is more popular and famous that the others because of its use in four weddings.

Whole Poem

Theme:
The overall theme of the poem is the end of a relationship. To signify this relationship has ended Auden has used imagery to reflect grieving and diction to indicate a death – i.e.: the title – of “Funeral” Blues and “Mourners”
“Blues” we think has been used as singing the Blues was something done when something awful had happened

We discussed whether his partner had actually died. And that it could in fact be a real funeral, but we decided that the death was of the relationship rather that a physical being – and the funeral was ju...