Aubade

Aubade

by Philip Larkin

I work all day, and get half-drunk at night.
Waking at four to soundless dark, I stare.
In time the curtain-edges will grow light.
Till then I see what’s really always there:
Unresting death, a whole day nearer now,
Making all thought impossible but how
And where and when I shall myself die.
Arid interrogation: yet the dread
Of dying, and being dead,
Flashes afresh to hold and horrify.

The mind blanks at the glare. Not in remorse
—The good not done, the love not given, time
Torn off unused—nor wretchedly because
An only life can take so long to climb
Clear of its wrong beginnings, and may never;
But at the total emptiness for ever,
The sure extinction that we travel to
And shall be lost in always. Not to be here,
Not to be anywhere,
And soon; nothing more terrible, nothing more true.

This is a special way of being afraid
No trick dispels. Religion used to try,
That vast moth-eaten musical brocade
Created to pretend we never die,
And specious stuff that says No rational being
Can fear a thing it will not feel, not seeing
That this is what we fear—no sight, no sound,
No touch or taste or smell, nothing to think with,
Nothing to love or link with,
The anaesthetic from which none come round.
And so it stays just on the edge of vision,
A small unfocused blur, a standing chill
That slows each impulse down to indecision.
Most things may never happen: this one will,
And realisation of it rages out
In furnace-fear when we are caught without
People or drink. Courage is no good:
It means not scaring others. Being brave
Lets no one off the grave.
Death is no different whined at than withstood.

Slowly light strengthens, and the room takes shape.
It stands plain as a wardrobe, what we know,
Have always known, know that we can’t escape,
Yet can’t accept. One side will have to go.
Meanwhile telephones crouch, getting ready to ring
In locked-up offices, and all the uncaring
Intricate rented world begins to rouse.
The sky is white as clay, with no sun.
Work has to be done.
Postmen like doctors go from house to house.

Summary of Aubade

  • Popularity of “Aubade”: Philip Larkin, one of the greatest English poets, wrote Aubade. It is a wonderful poem about the inescapability of death. It was published in 1977 in the Times Literary Supplement. The poem speaks about the speaker’s fear of death. It also illustrates how the thought of his own death steals the joy of his life. Its popularity, however, lies in that it deals with the phenomenon of life and death and the person who pictures his own death.
  • “Aubade” As a Representative of Death: This poem is an expression of sorrow. The poem begins when the poet wakes up at dawn in the soundless dark. He feels gripped with the horror of his own death, which is coming closer with every passing day. Though he does not have any idea about the time and place of his death, his mind is occupied with this terrific thought. The grip of death is so firm that it makes his mind go blank, not because it stops him from thinking about his loss and gain but because it promises the sure extinction. Moreover, this grave danger makes him dismiss religious beliefs, too.
    According to him, the religious belief that death transports our souls to a better place does not comfort or offer strength to him. Death puts a permanent end to all our sensory experiences, companionship, and human solidarity. He adds that most of the time the inevitable death lingers upon the edge of our visions and stays in the corner of our mind. Being brave in the face of death, we can console others but fail to satisfy ourselves. After discussing the horrors of death, the speaker, once again, gets back to his normal routine, where a busy routine is waiting for him.
  • Major Themes in “Aubade”: Life and death, and religion are the major themes in this poem. Throughout the poem, the speaker talks about his fear of death. However, his emotional predicament is not the product of the threats of war, disease, or any social mishap. The fear is nourished by the unprecedented situation of existence. Although modern technology has evolved the very existence of the world, yet this materialistic advancement has dragged humanity into the realm of isolation, where everyone is mentally and physically weak, alone, and tempted. Unfortunately, the horrors of loneliness make our senses go numb. It also makes us stand at a place, where we start to question our own religious beliefs.

Analysis of Literary Devices Used in “Aubade”

literary devices are tools that the writers use to convey their emotions, feelings, and ideas to the readers. They can also make the poems lifelike and connects the readers with the real message of the text. Philip Larkin has also used some literary devices in this poem. The analysis of some of the literary devices used in this poem is given below.

  1. Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the same line. For example, the sound of /i/ in “No trick dispels. Religion used to try,” and the sound of /a/ in “Death is no different whined at than withstood”.
  2. Consonance: Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line. For example, the sound of /l/ in “Slowly light strengthens, and the room takes shape” and the sound of /t/ in “Created to pretend we never die.”
  3. Alliteration: Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line in quick succession. For example, the sound of /b/ in “It means not scaring others. Being brave” and the sound of /w/ in “It stands plain as a wardrobe, what we know”.
  4. Enjambment: It is defined as a thought in verse that does not come to an end at a line break; rather, it rolls over to the next line. For example,

“And realisation of it rages out
In furnace-fear when we are caught without
People or drink. Courage is no good.”

  1. Imagery: Imagery is used to make readers perceive things involving their five senses. For example, “The sky is white as clay, with no sun”, “That vast moth-eaten musical brocade” and “Meanwhile telephones crouch, getting ready to ring.”
  2. Personification: Personification is to give human qualities to non-human things. For example, “The mind blanks at the glare. Not in remorse” mind in is personified.
  3. Simile: It is a figure of speech used to compare something with something else to make the meanings clear to the readers. Philip has used this device in the last stanza of the poem where it is stated as; “The sky is white as clay, with no sun.”
  4. Symbolism: Symbolism is using symbols to signify ideas and qualities, giving them symbolic meanings different from literal meanings. Death symbolizes end and extinction.

Analysis of Poetic Devices Used in “Aubade”

Poetic and literary devices are the same, but a few are used only in poetry. Here is the analysis of some of the poetic devices used in this poem.

  1. End Rhyme: End rhyme is used to make the stanza melodious. The poet has used the end rhyme in this poem. For example, “night/right”, now/how”, “stare/dare” and “being/seeing.”
  2. Iambic Pentameter: It is a type of meter, having five iambs per line. The poem follows iambic pentameter such as; I work all day, and get half-drunk at Night.”
  3. Rhyme Scheme: The poem follows the ABABCCDEED rhyme scheme and this pattern runs throughout the poem.
  4. Stanza: A stanza is a poetic form of some lines. There are five stanzas in this poem with each having different numbers of verses.

Quotes to be Used

The lines stated below are useful for a speech delivered on the topic of death and fear.

“Unresting death, a whole day nearer now,
Making all thought impossible but how
And where and when I shall myself die.”