For The Time Being
By W. H. Auden
Well, so that is that. Now we must dismantle the tree,
Putting the decorations back into their cardboard boxes,
Some have broken, and carrying them up to the attic.
The holly and the mistletoe must be taken down and burned,
And the children have gone to school. There are enough leftovers
to keep warm for the rest of the week, not that we have much appetite
after having drunk so much, staying up so late, and attempting, quite unsuccessfully,
to love all of our relatives and, in general, to overestimate our powers.
Once again, as in previous years, we have seen the Vision and failed
to do more than entertain it as an agreeable possibility.
Once again we have sent Him away, begging to remain His disobedient servant,
the promising child who cannot keep His word for long.
The Christmas Feast is already a fading memory,
and the mind begins to be vaguely aware of an unpleasant whiff of apprehension
at the thought of Lent and Good Friday, which cannot now be very far off.
But for the time being, here we all are, back in the moderate Aristotelian city
of darning and the Eight-Fifteen, where Euclid’s geometry
and Newton’s mechanics would account for our experience,
and the kitchen table, after the holiday, has been cleaned and arranged.
The streets are much narrower than we remembered; we had forgotten
that the office was as depressing as this. To those who have seen
the Child, however dimly, however incredulously, the Time Being is, in a sense, the most trying time of all.
For the innocent children who whispered so excitedly outside the locked door where they knew the presents to be,
they grew up when it opened. Now, recalling that moment,
we can repress the joy, but the guilt remains conscious;
remembering the stable where for once in our lives
everything became a You and nothing was an It.
And craving the sensation but ignoring the cause,
we look round for something, no matter what, to inhibit
our self‑reflection, and the obvious thing for that purpose
would be some great suffering. So, once we have met the Son,
we are tempted ever after to pray to the Father; “Lead us into temptation and evil for our sake.”
They will come, all right, don’t worry, probably in a form
that we do not expect, and certainly with a force
more dreadful than we can imagine. In the meantime
there are bills to be paid, machines to keep in repair,
irregular verbs to learn, the Time Being to redeem
from insignificance. The happy morning is over,
the night of agony still to come; the time is noon:
when the Spirit must practice his scales of rejoicing
without even a hostile audience, and the Soul endures
a silence that is neither for nor against her faith,
that God’s Will will be done, that, in spite of her prayers,
God will cheat no one, not even the world of its triumph.
Welcome, everyone, to a fascinating journey into one of W. H. Auden’s most thought-provoking poems, “For The Time Being.” This poem invites us to reflect on a feeling many of us know well: the quiet aftermath of a grand celebration. Auden, a master of language and insight, guides us through the complex emotions that arise when the extraordinary fades back into the ordinary. Let us explore the profound wisdom embedded in this remarkable work.
For The Time Being Summary
W. H. Auden’s “For The Time Being” is a powerful and reflective poem, often read as a standalone piece, that captures the universal experience of post-holiday deflation and the intricate nature of human faith. It opens with the mundane tasks of dismantling Christmas decorations and tidying up after the festivities, immediately establishing a contrast between the sacred joy of the holiday and the inevitable return to everyday life. The speaker reflects on how easily spiritual experiences can fade, acknowledging humanity’s tendency to “send Him away” even after glimpsing the divine. The poem explores the tension between a longing for spiritual fulfillment and the gravitational pull of worldly routines.
The present moment, which Auden calls “the Time Being,” is portrayed as a particularly challenging period for those who have felt a connection to the divine. We often crave the sensation of spiritual connection but struggle to address its deeper causes or integrate it into our daily lives. Auden suggests a human inclination to seek suffering as a means of avoiding honest self-reflection. The poem concludes with a complex, almost paradoxical, acceptance of divine will, implying that even amidst hardship, there is purpose, and that ultimate truth will prevail.
Central Idea and Noteworthy Knowledge
The central idea of “For The Time Being” revolves around the profound challenge of sustaining spiritual awareness and faith in the face of mundane reality. It explores the human tendency to experience moments of profound insight or joy, only to let them recede as daily life resumes. The poem questions how we live in the “Time Being,” the ordinary present, after glimpsing something extraordinary or divine.
A noteworthy aspect of this poem is its origin. While often presented as a standalone poem, it is actually a section from Auden’s much larger Christmas oratorio, also titled “For The Time Being,” published in 1944. This context highlights Auden’s deep engagement with Christian theology and his exploration of how spiritual truths intersect with human experience and history. The poem’s rich allusions and philosophical depth make it a significant work for understanding Auden’s mature thought on faith, doubt, and the human condition.
Major Themes
- Faith and Doubt: The poem deeply wrestles with the difficulties of maintaining spiritual conviction amidst the distractions and disappointments of everyday existence. It explores the human struggle to live up to spiritual ideals.
- The Transient Nature of Joy and Revelation: Auden highlights how quickly moments of profound happiness or spiritual insight can fade, leaving behind a sense of loss or longing. The poem questions our ability to hold onto these experiences.
- The Human Condition and Its Flaws: This work offers a candid look at human nature, acknowledging our capacity for both noble aspirations and frustrating shortcomings, our constant search for meaning, and our tendency to avoid difficult truths.
- The Mundane versus The Divine: A core tension in the poem is the contrast between the sacred, extraordinary moments of spiritual connection and the ordinary, often uninspiring demands of daily life. It examines the challenge of integrating the divine into the profane.
- The Redemption of the Present Moment: Despite the struggles, the poem ultimately calls for an active engagement with and a redemption of the “Time Being,” suggesting that meaning can be found even in the ordinary.
In-Depth Analysis
The Demise of Festivity and the Return to Routine
The poem immediately immerses us in the aftermath of celebration, beginning in medias res, which means “in the middle of things.” Notice how Auden opens with a sense of finality and resignation:
Well, so that is that. Now we must dismantle the tree,
Putting the decorations back into their cardboard boxes,
Some have broken, and carrying them up to the attic.
This abrupt shift from joyous celebration to the practical, almost melancholic task of putting things away establishes a central tension. The “broken” decorations symbolize the fragility of joy and the inevitable wear and tear of life. The mundane acts of clearing away the “holly and the mistletoe” and the children returning to school underscore the swift return to ordinary life, contrasting sharply with the extraordinary, perhaps even magical, experience of the holiday. The speaker’s reflection on the post-feast malaise is strikingly honest:
There are enough leftovers
to keep warm for the rest of the week, not that we have much appetite
after having drunk so much, staying up so late, and attempting, quite unsuccessfully,
to love all of our relatives and, in general, to overestimate our powers.
This passage reveals a very human exhaustion and the often-unrealistic expectations we place upon ourselves during festive times, highlighting our collective human failings.
The Fading Vision and the Disobedient Heart
Auden then introduces the profound idea of a “fading Vision,” representing humanity’s struggle to maintain spiritual commitment. Observe these poignant lines:
Once again, as in previous years, we have seen the Vision and failed
to do more than entertain it as an agreeable possibility.
Once again we have sent Him away, begging to remain His disobedient servant,
the promising child who cannot keep His word for long.
Here, the “Vision” refers to a spiritual revelation, perhaps the Christmas story itself, which is acknowledged but not fully embraced or lived out. Humanity is portrayed as a “disobedient servant” or a “promising child” who, despite good intentions, struggles with consistency and commitment. The “Christmas Feast is already a fading memory,” and a sense of “apprehension” begins to creep in with the thought of future spiritual demands like “Lent and Good Friday.” This illustrates the human tendency to let profound experiences become mere memories, rather than transformative forces in our lives.
The “Time Being” and the Aristotelian City
The concept of “the Time Being” is central to the poem’s meaning, representing the ordinary, present moment. Auden vividly contrasts the spiritual realm with the rational, everyday world:
But for the time being, here we all are, back in the moderate Aristotelian city
of darning and the Eight-Fifteen, where Euclid’s geometry
and Newton’s mechanics would account for our experience,
and the kitchen table, after the holiday, has been cleaned and arranged.
The “Aristotelian city” serves as a powerful metaphor for a world governed by logic, reason, and predictable routines. It is a place where “Euclid’s geometry and Newton’s mechanics” can explain everything, offering comfort in its order but also feeling limiting. The return to this world is marked by a sense of disillusionment:
The streets are much narrower than we remembered; we had forgotten
that the office was as depressing as this.
For those who have experienced a spiritual awakening, even “dimly” or “incredulously,” this return to the mundane is particularly challenging:
To those who have seen
the Child, however dimly, however incredulously, the Time Being is, in a sense, the most trying time of all.
The poem suggests that once one has glimpsed something beyond the ordinary, the ordinary itself can become a source of profound difficulty.
The Weight of Recollection and the Craving for Sensation
Auden delves into the psychological impact of spiritual experience and its aftermath. He speaks of the loss of innocence and the lingering guilt:
For the innocent children who whispered so excitedly outside the locked door where they knew the presents to be,
they grew up when it opened. Now, recalling that moment,
we can repress the joy, but the guilt remains conscious;
remembering the stable where for once in our lives
everything became a You and nothing was an It.
The moment of opening the door to presents marks a loss of childhood innocence, replaced by a more complex adult awareness. The profound spiritual experience is described as a moment when “everything became a You and nothing was an It,” signifying a shift from detached observation to intimate, personal connection with the divine. This deeply affecting experience carries a sense of responsibility, and the “guilt remains conscious” when we fail to live up to it. Auden then explores a paradoxical human tendency:
And craving the sensation but ignoring the cause,
we look round for something, no matter what, to inhibit
our self‑reflection, and the obvious thing for that purpose
would be some great suffering.
This suggests that rather than confronting our spiritual shortcomings, we might unconsciously seek out suffering as a distraction, a way to avoid the difficult work of self-examination.
Redeeming the Time Being and Accepting Divine Will
The poem moves towards a complex understanding of faith and suffering. The speaker notes a strange temptation after encountering the divine:
So, once we have met the Son,
we are tempted ever after to pray to the Father; “Lead us into temptation and evil for our sake.”
This ironic prayer highlights a human desire for dramatic experience, even suffering, perhaps as a way to feel closer to the divine or to avoid the quiet, difficult work of daily faith. Auden acknowledges the inevitability of hardship:
They will come, all right, don’t worry, probably in a form
that we do not expect, and certainly with a force
more dreadful than we can imagine.
Yet, the poem calls for an active engagement with the present, to “redeem” it from insignificance:
In the meantime
there are bills to be paid, machines to keep in repair,
irregular verbs to learn, the Time Being to redeem
from insignificance.
This powerful message suggests that spiritual life is not just about grand visions, but about finding meaning and purpose in the ordinary tasks of life. The poem concludes with a profound acceptance of divine will, even if it means enduring hardship and allowing the secular world its triumphs:
The happy morning is over,
the night of agony still to come; the time is noon:
when the Spirit must practice his scales of rejoicing
without even a hostile audience, and the Soul endures
a silence that is neither for nor against her faith,
that God’s Will will be done, that, in spite of her prayers,
God will cheat no one, not even the world of its triumph.
This ending speaks to a mature faith that finds strength in quiet endurance and trust, even when the spiritual journey feels solitary and the world seems to operate independently of our prayers.
Literary and Poetic Devices in For The Time Being
Auden masterfully employs a range of literary and poetic devices to convey the poem’s complex themes and emotional depth. Understanding these tools helps us appreciate the poem’s artistry and message.
- Allusion: Auden enriches the poem’s intellectual and spiritual layers through allusions to classical thinkers and religious concepts. For example, the “moderate Aristotelian city,” “Euclid’s geometry,” and “Newton’s mechanics” allude to figures representing reason and scientific order, contrasting with the spiritual realm. References to “Lent and Good Friday,” “the Son,” and “the Father” ground the poem in Christian theology.
- Imagery: The poem is rich in vivid sensory imagery that creates a tangible experience for the reader. We can almost see the “dismantle[d] the tree,” the “cardboard boxes,” the “holly and the mistletoe,” and the “narrower streets.” These images help to ground the abstract spiritual reflections in concrete, relatable experiences.
- Metaphor: Auden uses metaphors to draw insightful comparisons. The “Aristotelian city” is a powerful metaphor for the rational, predictable, and often limiting material world. The phrase “everything became a You and nothing was an It” metaphorically describes a moment of profound, intimate spiritual connection, transforming an object of observation into a personal relationship. Humanity itself is metaphorically described as “the promising child who cannot keep His word for long.”
- Enjambment: The use of enjambment, where lines run on to the next without punctuation, creates a flowing, conversational rhythm that mimics natural thought and speech. For instance, consider:
Some have broken, and carrying them up to the attic.
The holly and the mistletoe must be taken down and burned,This technique draws the reader forward, emphasizing the continuous nature of the actions and ideas.
- Irony: The poem contains subtle yet powerful ironies. The prayer, “Lead us into temptation and evil for our sake,” is deeply ironic, as it asks for what one would typically avoid, suggesting a human tendency to seek dramatic experience over quiet faith. The idea of craving suffering to “inhibit our self‑reflection” is another example of this complex irony.
- Free Verse: Auden employs a free verse form, meaning the poem does not adhere to a strict rhyme scheme or meter. This allows for a natural, reflective, and conversational tone, making the poem feel like an intimate meditation rather than a rigid formal composition.
- Juxtaposition/Contrast: A central device throughout the poem is the stark contrast between opposing ideas. We see the juxtaposition of sacred joy and mundane tasks, spiritual vision and worldly disappointment, the extraordinary “You” and the ordinary “It,” and the fleeting “happy morning” against the coming “night of agony.” This contrast highlights the poem’s central themes of faith and the human condition.
- Symbolism: Many elements in the poem carry symbolic weight. The Christmas tree and its decorations symbolize fleeting joy and spiritual celebration. The “Child” and the “stable” symbolize the divine presence and the moment of spiritual revelation. The “Aristotelian city” symbolizes the realm of human reason and order.
“For The Time Being” stands as a profound exploration of human spirituality, doubt, and the challenge of living meaningfully in the everyday. Auden’s masterful use of literary and poetic devices allows him to craft a work that is not only intellectually stimulating but also deeply resonant with our own experiences. This poem encourages us to reflect on how we navigate the space between our highest aspirations and the persistent realities of our lives, urging us to find purpose and redemption in every moment, even “for the time being.”