Changes of Heart

Changes of Heart: A Study of the Poetry of W. H. Auden delves into the significant evolution in Auden's poetic voice and persona, particularly during and after the turbulent 1940s. This period saw Auden facing criticism from contemporaries like Randall Jarrell and Joseph Warren Beach, who accused him of betraying his liberal commitments and losing coherence in his poetic craft. As Auden transitioned to a more introspective, Christian-inspired worldview, his poetry reflected this shift through complex long poems that seemed, at first glance, diffuse and uncertain. This study challenges earlier dismissive critiques by exploring the deeper trajectory of Auden’s poetic development and his search for a new persona—a "mask" that could humanize and convey his evolving metaphysical and moral perspectives.

The book examines Auden's persona as the pivotal element bridging poet and reader, offering insight into his thematic and stylistic transformation. By analyzing both his dramatic and nondramatic works, it highlights how Auden redefined his poetic voice to align with his maturing beliefs, culminating in later masterpieces such as The Shield of Achilles. This dual exploration not only tracks the emergence of Auden’s refined poetic identity in the 1950s but also investigates how this new "mask" shaped his poetry's impact and reception, underscoring a deliberate and significant evolution rather than the perceived decline posited by earlier critics.

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1969.