Refugee Blues

W.H. Auden

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Refugee Blues

Le réfugié, 1939 by Felix Nussbaum

3 Vocabulary

7 discussion

6 Analysis

1 Painting

4 poem

5 Youtube

2 W.H. Auden

Index

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Le réfugié

The painting depicts* the refugees' suffering. Look at the painting carefully. How does it connect with the idea and status of refugees?

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Le réfugié, 1939 by Felix Nussbaum

W.H. Auden - Facts

W.H. Auden, 1956

Auden served in the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939).

Auden's two grandfathers were Anglican ministers.

W.H. Auden was born in England in 1907 and died in Austria in 1973. His name was Wystan Hugh Auden.

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W.H Auden wrote poems about many different subjects: politics, morals, love and religion.

Refugee Blues - Facts

*run away

W.H. Auden, 1939

The Blues is a slow, sad song.

The poem is about Jewish refugees who tried to flee* Nazi Germany.

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W.H Auden wrote the poem Refugee Blues in April, 1939. Just before the beginning of the war.

plain

to and fro

quay

harbor

fastened

public

committee

consul

blossom

yew

fair

mansion

refugee

Vocabulary

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Thought I heard the thunder rumbling in the sky; It was Hitler over Europe, saying, "They must die": We were in his mind, my dear, We were in his mind. Saw a poodle in a jacket fastened with a pin, Saw a door opened and a cat let in: But they weren't German Jews, my dear, but they weren't German Jews. Went down the harbour and stood upon the quay, Saw the fish swimming as if they were free: Only ten feet away, my dear, only ten feet away. Walked through a wood, saw the birds in the trees; They had no politicians and sang at their ease: They weren't the human race, my dear, they weren't the human race. Dreamed I saw a building with a thousand floors, A thousand windows and a thousand doors: Not one of them was ours, my dear, not one of them was ours. Stood on a great plain in the falling snow; Ten thousand soldiers marched to and fro: Looking for you and me, my dear, looking for you and me.

Say this city has ten million souls, Some are living in mansions, some are living in holes: Yet there's no place for us, my dear, yet there's no place for us. Once we had a country and we thought it fair, Look in the atlas and you'll find it there: We cannot go there now, my dear, we cannot go there now. In the village churchyard there grows an old yew, Every spring it blossoms anew: Old passports can't do that, my dear, old passports can't do that. The consul banged the table and said, "If you've got no passport you're officially dead": But we are still alive, my dear, but we are still alive. Went to a committee; they offered me a chair; Asked me politely to return next year: But where shall we go to-day, my dear, but where shall we go to-day? Came to a public meeting; the speaker got up and said; "If we let them in, they will steal our daily bread": He was talking of you and me, my dear, he was talking of you and me.

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Refugee Blues - Sheila Hancock

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General message: refugees need to be protected and respected.

There are plenty of allusions to Germany without actually saying the name.

The repitition has a different impact each time but the general effect is that it echoes the hopelessness of the speaker.

Each stanza has 3 lines. Two reflect a situation while the third 'breaks the news' to the speaker's 'dear'.

The poem is full of contradictions.

Analysis - General

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Once we had a country and we thought it fair,Look in the atlas and you'll find it there: We cannot go there now, my dear, we cannot go there now.

Say this city has ten million souls, Some are living in mansions, some are living in holes: Yet there's no place for us, my dear, yet there's no place for us.

Analysis - stanzas 1-2

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The consul banged the table and said,"If you've got no passport you're officially dead": But we are still alive, my dear, but we are still alive.

In the village churchyard there grows an old yew, Every spring it blossoms anew: Old passports can't do that, my dear, old passports can't do that.

Analysis - stanzas 3-4

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Came to a public meeting; the speaker got up and said;"If we let them in, they will steal our daily bread": He was talking of you and me, my dear, he was talking of you and me.

Went to a committee; they offered me a chair; Asked me politely to return next year: But where shall we go to-day, my dear, but where shall we go to-day?

Analysis - stanzas 5-6

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Saw a poodle in a jacket fastened with a pin,Saw a door opened and a cat let in: But they weren't German Jews, my dear, but they weren't German Jews.

Thought I heard the thunder rumbling in the sky; It was Hitler over Europe, saying, "They must die": We were in his mind, my dear, We were in his mind.

Analysis - stanzas 7-8

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Walked through a wood, saw the birds in the trees;They had no politicians and sang at their ease: They weren't the human race, my dear, they weren't the human race.

Went down the harbour and stood upon the quay, Saw the fish swimming as if they were free: Only ten feet away, my dear, only ten feet away.

Analysis - stanzas 9-10

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Stood on a great plain in the falling snow;Ten thousand soldiers marched to and fro: Looking for you and me, my dear, looking for you and me.

Dreamed I saw a building with a thousand floors, A thousand windows and a thousand doors: Not one of them was ours, my dear, not one of them was ours.

Analysis - stanzas 11-12

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Click to seethe painting.

How is the mood reflected in the poem?

Look at the painting again. Do you feel differently about it?

W.H. Audenwas not Jewish. Why do you think he wrote the poem?

Why do you thinkthe speaker uses 'we' and 'us' instead of 'I'?

Hoverwith the mouse over the question marks to reveal a question.

How are animalsdifferent from people in the poem?

Discussion

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Le réfugié

Having read the poem, look at the painting, again. Do you see anything differently? How does it connect to the poem?

Le réfugié, 1939 by Felix Nussbaum