Farewell to Yeats

I was glad we took the time to discuss W. H. Auden's poem, In Memory of W. B. Yeats, in class. During my initial reading, I did not realize the severity to which Auden was defying the typical eulogy--by elaborating upon the faults of Yeats. I wonder how the public reacted to this poem, if the general consensus was in agreement with Auden, that Yeats was not as "wonderful" as Yeats thought himself to be, or if the public felt Auden was discrediting Yeats more than he deserved. Undoubtedly, Auden had some concerns with Yeats poetry, and I wonder if these issues will arise again when we investigate Auden's poetry later in the semester. Even though Auden brings Yeats down to a more humane level, "You were silly like us. . . ", "physical decay. . .". which seems a little inappropriate for the eulogy, he does not dismiss Yeats entirely. Although it is clear Auden had some disagreements with Yeats, his conclusion seems to be that Yeats still contributed great poetry. It will be interesting to investigate Auden's poetry, and to perhaps identify the ways Yeats influenced him.