Funeral Blues

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Funeral Blues is a poem written in 1936 by W. H. Auden.

Funeral Blues is a simple poem about death, isolation (loneliness), emptiness and longing. The death of a lover may or may not be a literal event (actually happened). The poem is also about the end of a romantic relationship with somebody other than the person's spouse/partner. In four stanzas it moves from the time before the funeral (Stop all the clocks, Silence the pianos...), during the funeral itself (Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come...), after the funeral (He was my North, my South...), and the loneliness and grief that comes with it. Due to references made in this particular poem, rumors have been speculated that W.H. Auden was a homosexual. He speeks of a male, implying that he had a secret male lover. Regardless of his sexual orientation, the poem has won numerous awards, including the 1937 pulitzer prize(in literary works). This poem has been recited in numerous funerals, most famous for being in the Kennedy's.

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