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5 cards from this section. Quick, good the night before a test.
When was "The Unknown Citizen" written, and where and when was it first published?
Think of the year Auden crossed the Atlantic.
Which memorial does the title of the poem echo, and why?
Recall the monuments built after the First World War.
In which year did Auden move to the United States and write "The Unknown Citizen"?
It was the year the Second World War began.
Which memorial does the poem's title parody?
Think of a grave for someone whose name is not known.
Imagine the State's report on a citizen of today. List five kinds of data it would contain, and for each explain what it would fail to show, linking your answer to Auden's poem.
Use the poem's own categories (work, goods, health, opinions, family) as a guide.
Compare the Unknown Soldier and Auden's Unknown Citizen. In what sense is each "unknown", and what does each monument honour?
Ask why each man is nameless, and whether the namelessness is mourned or celebrated.
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