"The Unknown Citizen" by W.H.Auden

Starting with the title one gets the feeling of anonymity; that is he was just one in many. It is a play on "The unknown soldier". It is obvious that this is in fact a report and the dedication "To JS/07/M/378" further proves the idea of no individuality. W.H. Auden had become the unofficial poet laurite of his time, and although the poet laurite is known for being the voice of establishment I feel that he was the exact opposite; the voice of antiestablishment. Wilfred Owen was a major influence on Auden and it is fair to say that Auden was an indirect continuation of the world war poets. This poem was written in the early to mid 30s around the time of Hitler's rise. Therefore one is impelled to feel that W.H. Auden agreed with D.H. Lawrence's "illusion of liberty". …