Anonymity, Conformity, And Government Control In “Unknown Citizen.”
“The Unknown Citizen” by W.H. Auden is a poem that has reached most of the people and is widely known.This book is well-knowndue to thejocularityand irony when raising concernon theuninteresting and unnamedfeatures oforganizational, anti-social culture from the west.
The structure of Auden’s poem is just one of the satirical poems.The uninterestingpoem wasordinarygiving him the state honor with a rhythmical memorial in what mannerhe troublesome everyone. It bears a resemblance to “Unknown Soldier” statues erectedby nations to give respects to the territorial armywho passed on in the line of duty for their nation’s missions, and their names have been lost for the sake the future generation.
He beginshis poem with an ill-timed insinuation to the Unknown Soldier’s Tomb “To JS/07/M/378 This Marble Monument Is Erected by the State” (1-3), where he emphasized the unnamedcitizen’s identification.
“Unknown Citizen” revolves around themes like;anonymity, conformity, and government control in “Unknown Citizen. “as discussed,and illustrated as follows; Thefearlessness of anunadventurous isdemonstrated in Auden’s elegy, where he lightens ironically on theuniquenesslost by everyoneby being compliant to the régime’sunrelentingregulations and amenities that recognizeresidentsfurtheras a group instead of anindividual.
The distinct identity of the anonymous individual is being lost, resulting in his position reduction to that of descriptivedata. The mockinginsinuationgenerates a contradiction of the fearlessness of a citizen who goes as per the governing regulations: “For in everything he did he served the Greater Community. Except for the War till the day he retired” (8-9). Here he ironically means that after working for the community without necessarily providing amenities at War demonstrates that theanonymousindividualhas no purposeof serving. The unknown being,only just an indicator, mergers in the ocean of supplementaryemblematicregular Joes, and have any a critical transformation to the daily currentin humanity. Don't use plagiarised sources.Get your custom essay just from $11/page
The poem highlights prominent corporations,which enlightensvarious organizationsthat the unidentifiedindividual had to gratify in a “reputable” style such as “[he] satisfied his employers, Fudge Motors Inc.” (11), by upholding in gathering with his complements and not coming across any problems. He ridicules Ford, who formed the current assembly line, to contrast the movement of the invention to the flow of aregular person’s life.
Besidesthat, he continues torepresent the unknown individual as fruitful experimentation, “our Social Psychology workers found That he was popular with his mates and liked a drink” (15-16), he goes ahead to unfolding him as not only is heunfocused being but also reserved.Auden says that the unknown individual adores the aptitude of many.
To add on the good-looking interference to hissuperiors and friends, “[he] had everything necessary to the Modern Man, a phonograph, a radio, a car and a Frigidaire” (23-24), that could also perform the same function as interference from the element that he does not adore the independence he accepts as accurateto be involved in.
The poem enlightens on the obscurecontrol of administration and leading companies that use the enormous to subsequentadministrative methods, “Yet he wasn’t a scab or odd in his views” (12). Government rank of expertiseencouragesaggression whenperceiving of regularindividuals to promotingand agencies. Promotion corporationsattainaccomplishmentthroughalluring thedesires and needs of a lot of inhabitants, or ordinary individual, to supplement deciding on collectionpersonalities, peopleclassification through their redundantmoney-orienteddesires. Moreover, Auden proves his mannersuggestions at his inflexibledefiance to the administration’s socialist-like purposes.
He finallyexemplifiesthe unknown citizen as uninformedfor not being able to impartuncertainty to his kids: “our teachers report that he never interfered with [the children’s] education” (30). The anonymouscitizen could not clarify to his children howtoencounterallimparted to them since he, on no occasion, cultured to interrogateanything on by himself to arrange individualthoughts, which considers him animpeccablycompassionatecitizen to humanity.
As I come to my conclusion, Auden depicts the unidentified inhabitant as an untruebravepersonality that could enable him to climax the regularinhabitant’sforfeiturein identity.He suggests that there is no solitarywell-manneredindividualwho makes aheroic impression, but instead, theyleftoversof anunclearfigure in the overabundance of ruling groups, which is a composition of the wholeness of the state. He further gives a reminder to people to notice the hazardous affiliation amongst the régime and greatcompanies.
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