W.H. Auden life + Key historical events

By Bnaps

  • Birth

    Born in York, United Kingdom
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    WWI

    World War I heavily influenced the topics of W.H. Auden's works.

  • Attends Oxford College

    Auden went to college at Christ Church, Oxford. When he arrived, he had a scholarship in biology, but while attending there he turned his attention to poetry.
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    The Great Depression

    The Great Depression was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States.
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    Rise of Nazism

  • "O what is that sound"

    Ballad written in October 1932 and published in 1934

  • Marriage

    W.H. Auden married Erika Mann, the daughter of German novelist Thomas Mann. Auden was homosexual so the intention of this marriage was purely to provide Erika with a British passport.
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    Spanish civil war

    Revolutionary aftermath of World War I. W.H. Auden's visits to the Spanish civil war were the inspiration for "Spain", a 1937 poem.

  • "Spain"

    Written and published in 1937 after Auden's visit to the Spanish civil war

  • "Musee des Beaux Arts"

    Written December 1938 and published spring 1939

  • Move to America

    Born and raised in England, he spent some of his most productive years in America, after he moved there in 1939, becoming a U.S. citizen in 1946.

  • "In memory of W.B. Yeats"

    Published on the 8th of March 1939. A modernist elegy about the death of William Butler Yeats on 28th January 1939.

  • German Invasion of Poland

    The event listed in the title of W.H. Auden's poem, "September 1, 1939"
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    WWII

    Another global conflict which can be pointed to as inspiration for a lot of W.H. Auden's poems.

  • "September 1, 1939"

    Published 18th October 1939. The title refers to the beginning of the German invasion of Poland and is a political response to Hitler's expansion.

  • Cold War start

    The Cold War was a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc.

  • "The shield of Achilles"

    An ekphrastic poem, first published in 1952. The poem is written long after World War II and yet explores the relationship between warfare and modern society.

  • Death

    Passed away in Vienna, Austria