Night Mail, Wystan Hugh Auden, documentary, mail train, Benjamin Britten, British countryside, Scotland, monotony, musicality, satirical mood, colorful atmosphere
Night Mail was written in 1936 by Auden. He was asked to write it for a 22-minute-long documentary also called "Night Mail," and also released in 1936 by the general post office in the UK. This documentary was created to show how the night mail worked, to illustrate what it was like to work on this train during the nights but also to celebrate this new night mail train. It got a lot of success very quickly. The poem was read during the last few minutes of the documentary. It is also important to mention that the music played while Auden's poem is read was composed by Benjamin Britten as for Underneath the Abject Willow which was also written in 1936.
[...] Then, by employing "stare," this reinforces the admiration that submerges all aspects of nature that glimpse at the train. Lastly, the connotation of "blank faced coaches" accentuates the dehumanization of the train: despite all its proximity with human behaviour, its relentlessness and predefined path inevitably renders it machinelike. This final section of the poem's first section begins by remarking that "sheepdogs cannot change her course," which may be viewed as a reminder of the notion that the arrival of mail can be interpreted as an inevitable event, that none can delay nor cease it, it's destiny. [...]
[...] Finally, in part Auden talks about the people hoping for letters as it brings them joy and happiness but they are still all fast asleep. Main Themes of the Poem The main themes of the poem are the train's long journey through the night, the regularity of its movements, the changes in rhythm between the different parts as they all describe different steps of its journey, on which we will elaborate later. The poem likewise bestows much importance to the excitement of receiving letters which means that someone has thought about you yet, on the other hand, depicts glumly how all dread that they may have been forgotten. [...]
[...] Therefore it heavily criticizes the fact that some expect to be held dear by others, when they themselves have no more concern for animals than they do for their relations. [...]
[...] The structure of this stanza is very interesting. The numerous rhymes, internal rhymes, repetitions of words at the beginning of the verse like "letters" for example which is repeated 7 times at the start of verse give it a very fast pace as we saw in the documentary. This can be interpreted as the excitement of the speaker. Conclusion The rhythm of the poem often changes as we have seen in the way it is read in the documentary. In the first stanza, the train is in movement, this is why there are 8 couplets which all rhyme with a very regular rhythm to match the sound of the train. [...]
[...] The reference to "the south of France" may hint at the notion of the train bringing ominous news of the rising hostilities in Europe as the poem was written 3 years before World War II, which adds a sad tone to the poem. Moreover, the "Highlands and Lowlands" can serve to depict the lows and highs of life, which reinforces the fact that these lists illustrate human life as a whole reinforced by the sorrow of condolences. The two following verses contribute to adding a more cheerful and colourful atmosphere with the enumeration of colours, for example. [...]
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