Analysis Of Musee Des Beaux Arts

Modern Life
"Musee des Beaux Arts" is a poem written by W.H. Auden in December of 1938, while he was staying in Brussels Belgium. The poem ‘Musee des Beaux Arts’ means ‘Museum of Fine Arts’ in French, he composed this after he visited the museum in Paris. This poem may be hard to understand when you first read it, and has the feel of being much older than 77 years of age. Although, this poem is very complex it is still relative and can be applied to our current modern day life. Many issues and problems the world had 80 years ago still exist today, and they will continue to exist for another 80 years after us.
After reading "Musee des Beaux Arts" you may find the symbolism of this poem to be obvious; or you may have to take a minute to think
This is something common to modern day life and is far back as the beginning of mankind. Let’s look at a recent example of this in modern day life: In the news there was a video of a woman being raped on the beach during spring break. While this young lady was being raped and taken advantage of others were parting, videoing, and having a good time. In this situation something horrible was obviously happening to this young lady, but regardless the good times kept happening all around her. Some of the bystanders may be oblivious to what is happening, while others may see it and not care. While this may seem irrelevant after the fact, it’s a flaw in humanity that he noticed in 1938 when he wrote this poem. This flaw still exists today, I bet if he was in a crowded shopping mall today fell to the floor and clinched his chest, there would be some people that did not help. Some would be scared, others simply would not be paying attention, some will only care about themselves and not even give a second thought about it, and there will be someone that helps. While he is suffering across town there will be a party happening and no one will know about it. That was relevant then, and still is to this day. W.H. Auden knew this and summarizes it in just a few words in lines 13-14 he states; In Breughel’s Icarus, for instance: How everything turns away Quite
H. Auden’s "Musee des Beaux Arts" he states; How, when the aged are reverntly, passionately waiting For the miraculous birth, there always must be children who do not specially want it to happen, skating on a pond at the edge of the wood. Those lines are very well thought out and apply to everyone in this modern day world. This is something he may have experienced as a child or as an adult himself. He may have been waiting impatiently for the birth of a child, while his other children were going along with their daily activities. He also could have been that child not wanting the birth of his sibling to happen. The elder have a different excitement about life and a new birth versus a child. Again, this is something that happens on a daily basis in modern day