Death is the sound of distant thunder at a picnic.
W. H. AudenRead
Beauty, midnight, vision dies: Let the winds of dawn that blow Softly round your dreaming head Such a day of welcome show Eye and knocking heart may bless, Find our mortal world enough; Noons of dryness find you fed By the involuntary powers, Nights of insult let you pass Watched by every human love.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote reflects on the fleeting nature of beauty and vision, urging appreciation for life's transient moments.
W. H. Auden's quote speaks to the impermanence of beauty, suggesting that while visions and moments may fade like the night turning to dawn, we should hope for days filled with warmth and kindness. The imagery of the winds of dawn symbolizes new beginnings and the blessings of love, encouraging us to find value in our existence despite life's inherent challenges and the passage of time.
Themes
BeautyLifeLoveTransienceAppreciation
In practice
Example use cases
In a graduation speech, one might remind students to value the beautiful moments of life despite its challenges.
More from W. H. Auden
All quotes →That the speech of self-disclosure should be translatable seems to me very odd, but I am convinced that it is. The conclusion that I draw is that the only quality which all human being without exception possess is uniqueness: any characteristic, on the other hand, which one individual can be recognized as having in common with another, like red hair or the English language, implies the existence of other individual qualities which this classification excludes.
W. H. AudenRead
Nobody knows what the cause is, though some pretend they do; it like some hidden assassin waiting to strike at you. Childless women get it, and men when they retire; it as if there had to be some outlet for their foiled creative fire.
W. H. AudenRead
History is, strictly speaking, the study of questions; the study of answers belongs to anthropology and sociology.
W. H. AudenRead
Music is the best means we have of digesting time.
W. H. AudenRead
'Healing,' Papa would tell me, 'is not a science, but the intuitive art of wooing nature.'
W. H. AudenRead
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