W.H. Auden’s September 1,1939

W. H. Audens September 1, 1939 appears at first to be a poetry preoccupied with war its title, being a significant date of the Polish-Nazi invasion in foundation War II, is a preliminary indication of a war-time theme. On the surface, the poem appears to comment on the swindling and manipulation of government leading to war and usheres Audens policy-making opinions just about WWII and his sunplowedicism of governmental authority.The ideas Auden presents of the corporal Man and the lie of Authority suggests that concerning the war, he believes that the people of the world should be more truthful to single another, and that governments are to blame for the deceptions and wars in the world. The actions of governments at the time and their use of wartime propaganda to manipulate the publics apprehension could be a mirrored image of the way Auden believes he has been made to be judged by familiarity.Richard R Bozorth claims that Audens poems had private meaningsTo read with this knowledge is to see that what is true of all writing is acutely so for lesbian and gay writers that meaning is initiated and elaborated in social settings where truth is very much a matter of what is speakable. When considering the homosexual nature of Audens social life history, a new layer can be found inwardly the poem.From the outset of the poem there is a theme of isolation the speaker sits in one of the dives/ On Fifty-Second Street, suggesting a certain seclusion and loneliness. America was an impartial country in the Second World War and is described in the poem as the neutral air, reflecting its political neutrality during the war. The lonely bar Auden resides in suggests that like the country that inhabits him, Auden feels he is too separated and alter within society, which may be due to his conflicting sexuality.The primary interpretation of Audens perception of WWII allows him to express his feelings towards the intolerance of homosexuality in society as it could b e suggested that Auden believes homosexuals are forced to be kept hidden from the public, the way the government deals with propaganda and censorship during the wartime. The use of light and dark duality throughout the poem could be a metaphor for Audens attitude towards homosexuality and how it is kept in the dark of society.The waves of yellow bile and fear/ Circulate over the bright/ And darkened lands of the earth could refer to both the spreading of the war, cause anger and fear to civilians, and the anger felt by people who are unaccepted within society, unexpended to exist within the darkened lands, unexposed to the light of acceptance. Auden insists the lights must never go out, in which the lights could make for the acceptance and embracing of homosexuality and thus Auden proves the light that will allow him to feel accepted within the world.It appears Auden is communicating that humanity is not only condemned by war, but withal condemned by a wishing of acceptance o f one another. The conservative dark Auden refers to not only presents the darkness of government and its control, but also the darkness of those who cannot alter their opinions on those who are different. The idea that the poem is commenting on the inequality of homosexuals in society coincides with the primary interpretation of the poem because in both instances Auden is using the poem to speak out against injustices and seek truth and equality either in government or society.Audens poem is read principally as a critique on the dishonesty of government because of the outbreak of war, however, Audens personal life and the language and references within the poem give evidence to a deeper meaning. By creating a poem with twain levels of interpretation Auden is able to speak about two different subjects that he feels very strongly about both of which work together to urge for a more honest and tolerable world.