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Essay / Politics and critical thinking in the poetry of Wh Auden
Poetry does not belong to the sphere of polemic and ideology, it rather stimulates the intangible. Inherently subversive, poetry is an artistic abstraction so versatile in its nature and paradoxical in its language that it invites individuals to independently derive meaning from the poem and, more broadly, from the world around them. In this way, poetry gives rise to critical thinking and its ability to alchemize delights individuals in beauty. Auden emphasized that poetry should not be political and that alternatively “poetry makes nothing happen”; he emphasized this not as a criticism, but to defend himself against the ideological pressures of the 1930s. This ambiguous ideology emanates from political orthodoxies (capitalist and communist) who command that poetry remains subject to politics by supporting their assertion of 'a utilitarian moral right. Auden recognized the hermetic uselessness of poetry revealed by its lack of specificity in form and language regarding the contextual framework of his times. Ultimately, in Auden's poems "In Memory of Yeats" and "Shield of Achilles", Auden emphasizes the vitality of critical thinking and the alluring beauty that poetry creates by doing nothing tangible. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay The versatile and versatile nature of poetry calls on individuals to find meaning and purpose for themselves, promoting critical thinking and encouraging political discovery rather than political dogma. Auden's assertion was a vital rebuke to the ideologically mandated culture that was strangling society. Auden pushes individuals to think critically, independent of political dogmas and oppression, including Marxism, cultural hegemony and totalitarianism that ravaged society in the 1930s. Auden deplored the way language was bastardized and abused by political hegemonies and, therefore, the lack of specificity of Auden's language offered no political commentary prompting individuals to discern their own ideals. Auden's poem "Achilles Shield" highlights the vitality of critical thinking revealed through paradoxical and equivocal language. When Auden speaks of humanity as an "unintelligible multitude", he suggests that humanity's uniformity and lack of individualism are attributed to its inability to think critically in opposition to ethereal, oppressive voices " without a face. This is heightened when Auden writes that "the unintelligible multitude endure this belief" due to a lack of "discussion" and "applause", revealing that humanity does not question or celebrate oppressive beliefs imposed on them, which leads them to patient suffering as a result. . The lack of critical thinking is further emphasized as the root cause of discourse and suffering in the world when Auden writes "they were dead as men before their bodies died", illustrating that their lack of thought sentenced to death before dying. Similarly, Auden reflects his plea for critical thinking in his poem “In Memory of Yeats” when he writes “Ireland has yet its madness and its climate.” This highlights the inability of political poetry to make a difference, just as Auden illustrates Yeats's political poetry as achieving nothing. Ultimately, Auden's use of ambiguous language explores the importance of critical thinking within his contextual framework while opposing the proliferation of political manifestos. The freedom and elegance of poetry acts as a personal turnaround, functioning as a.