Comments on: W.H. (Whatta Hunk) Auden. Sigh…

By: ART

ART — Thu, 29 Mar 2007 15:36:56 +0000

No, you weren’t wrong, NEG. Different styles sometimes clash, but this does seem like a place to talk. I want(ed) to hear more from you about Auden’s aphorisms, which I am not familiar, and I’m pretty sure Patricia Smith would say the same. I don’t know either of you, but am guessing the “loosen up” was not meant to deflate. Anyhow, care to talk a little more about them? I will track them down, at any rate. Thanks for the tip.
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By: NEG

NEG — Wed, 28 Mar 2007 22:23:12 +0000

“Loosen up” Hmmm… I’ll have to look that one up.
Sorry, I thought this was a blog where folks talked about poetry. Guess, I was wrong.
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By: patricia

patricia — Wed, 28 Mar 2007 19:06:23 +0000

I’ll admit…I had to look up “aphorism.”
Also, pervasive sardonic angst is a bit of an aphrodisiac for some of us. Loosen up.
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By: patricia

patricia — Wed, 28 Mar 2007 18:52:06 +0000

WH Auden (sigh) Collected Poems, edited by Edward Mendelson, Vintage International, 1991.
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By: Kwame

Kwame — Wed, 28 Mar 2007 17:44:14 +0000

Hmmm. Wet blanket. Now I understand the metaphor. (smile)
One love, KD
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By: NEG

NEG — Wed, 28 Mar 2007 16:55:22 +0000

Though there’s a sort of pervasive sardonic angst, his work still feels as though it inflates such a state with an authoritative flourish that is, to this reader, uninteresting. So I don’t really care for (most) of his poems, but his book of aphorisms (The Prolific and the Devourer) is amazing! It’s (the aphorism) a much better place for these sorts of tones.
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By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 28 Mar 2007 06:39:32 +0000

Patricia, would you mind posting the full title and publishing house of the W.H. Auden Collected if it’s not a painfully obvious title? I’ve been wanting to read his essay collection THE DYER’S HAND too.
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