Night Mail
By WH Auden
This is the night mail crossing the Border,
Bringing the cheque and the postal order,Letters for the rich, letters for the poor,
The shop at the corner, the girl next door.Pulling up Beattock, a steady climb:
The gradient’s against her, but she’s on time.Past cotton-grass and moorland boulder
Shovelling white steam over her shoulder,Snorting noisily as she passes
Silent miles of wind-bent grasses.Birds turn their heads as she approaches,
Stare from bushes at her blank-faced coaches.Sheep-dogs cannot turn her course;
They slumber on with paws across.In the farm she passes no one wakes,
But a jug in a bedroom gently shakes.Dawn freshens, Her climb is done.
Down towards Glasgow she descends,
Towards the steam tugs yelping down a glade of cranes
Towards the fields of apparatus, the furnaces
Set on the dark plain like gigantic chessmen.
All Scotland waits for her:
In dark glens, beside pale-green lochs
Men long for news.Letters of thanks, letters from banks,
Letters of joy from girl and boy,
Receipted bills and invitations
To inspect new stock or to visit relations,
And applications for situations,
And timid lovers’ declarations,
And gossip, gossip from all the nations,
News circumstantial, news financial,
Letters with holiday snaps to enlarge in,
Letters with faces scrawled on the margin,
Letters from uncles, cousins, and aunts,
Letters to Scotland from the South of France,
Letters of condolence to Highlands and Lowlands
Written on paper of every hue,
The pink, the violet, the white and the blue,
The chatty, the catty, the boring, the adoring,
The cold and official and the heart’s outpouring,
Clever, stupid, short and long,
The typed and the printed and the spelt all wrong.Thousands are still asleep,
Dreaming of terrifying monsters
Or of friendly tea beside the band in Cranston’s or Crawford’s:Asleep in working Glasgow, asleep in well-set Edinburgh,
Asleep in granite Aberdeen,
They continue their dreams,
But shall wake soon and hope for letters,
And none will hear the postman’s knock
Without a quickening of the heart,
For who can bear to feel himself forgotten?
Summary of Night Mail
- Popularity of “Night Mail”: The poem ‘Night Mail’ was written by Wystan Hugh Auden, a renowned Anglo-American poet. It first appeared in 1991 in his collection, Night Mail: Selected Poems. The poem presents the melodious ride of the night coach that crosses the England border to deliver many letters, cheques, and postcards. Additionally, it brings attention to the emotions experienced by the individuals connected to the anticipated correspondence. The joyous journey of the night mail, its fundamental purpose, and dutiful approach make this poem an excellent poetic piece.
- “Night Mail” As a Representative of Joy: The poem unfolds the journey of night mail that brings various posts for people in Scotland. It begins when the poet introduces his readers to this special coach, explaining its significant purpose. Before it reaches its final destination, the path takes it through the enchanting countryside, treacherous steep slopes, and rugged rocky lands, eventually blending harmoniously into the natural landscape. Since it’s the coach’s daily route, therefore the sheep goats, and the birds seem familiar with its presence. From the countryside, it reaches the industrial area of Glasgow, carrying posts for people belonging to different age groups. It reaches its destination on time to deliver various colorful letters to the people who are still enjoying their sleep. Regardless of whether the sleeping Glasgow is experiencing momentous dreams or horrid nightmares, the residents of this city will awaken with a sense of joyful anticipation, eagerly awaiting the arrival of their letters.
- Major Themes in “Night Mail”: Beautiful journey of the night mail, its dutifulness, and charm of the letters are the major themes of the poem. The speaker in the poem describes a night coach that travels far to deliver letters and news to people living across the border.. This poem seems a tribute to the postal department for the unmatchable services they render to the people. People belonging to different age groups go to bed anticipating they are going to wake up with the great news of the arrival of their posts or mail.
Analysis of Literary Devices Used in Night Mail
literary devices are used to add fundamental and significant ideas in simple compositions. W. H. Auden, too, used some literary devices in this poem whose analysis is as follows.
- Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /e/ and /oo/ in “For who can bear to feel himself forgotten” and the sound of /ai/ in “Silent miles of wind-bent grasses”.
- Alliteration: Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /k/ in “Cranston’s or Crawford’s” and the sound of /g/ in “gossip, gossip”.
- Anaphora: It refers to the repetition of a word or expression in the first part of some verses. Auden has repeated the word “letters” in the latter part of the poem to emphasize the point, such as,
Letters with holiday snaps to enlarge in,
Letters with faces scrawled on the margin,
Letters from uncles, cousins, and aunts,
Letters to Scotland from the South of France.
- Consonance: Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line such as the sound of /r/ in “Letters with faces scrawled on the margin” and the sound of /t/ in “To inspect new stock or to visit relations”.
- 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,
“Snorting noisily as she passes
Silent miles of wind-bent grasses.”
- Imagery: Imagery is used to make readers perceive things involving their five senses. For example, “This is the night mail crossing the Border”, “Birds turn their heads as she approaches” and “Snorting noisily as she passes”.
- Personification: Personification is to give human qualities to inanimate objects. The poet personified night mail in the poem such as “Snorting noisily as she passes”, and “In the farm she passes no one wakes.”
- Rhetorical Question: Rhetorical question is a question that is not asked in order to receive an answer; it is just posed to make the point clear. Auden has posed rhetorical questions at the end of the poem to emphasize his point such as “For who can bear to feel himself forgotten?”
- Symbolism: Symbolism is using symbols to signify ideas and qualities, giving them symbolic meanings that are different from literal meanings. “Night mail” symbolizes duty and hope.
Analysis of Poetic Devices Used in Night Mail
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.
- Couplet: There are two constructive lines of verse in a couplet, usually in the same meter and joined by rhyme. The opening of the poem follows eight couplets.
- End Rhyme: End rhyme is used to make the stanza melodious. W. H. Auden used end rhyme in this poem such as “border/order”, “passes/grasses” and “wakes/shakes.”
- Rhyme Scheme: The poem follows an ABAB rhyme scheme and this pattern continues until the end of the poem, leaving some stanzas.
- Stanza: A stanza is a poetic form of some lines. There are thirteen stanzas in this poem with each comprising a different number of lines.
Quotes to be Used
These lines are useful to use while talking about the bliss of the countryside. These lines shed light on how the passing train brings delight to the people present on the farms.
“Pulling up Beattock, a steady climb:
The gradient’s against her, but she’s on time.
Past cotton-grass and moorland boulder
Shovelling white steam over her shoulder.”
