A State of Grace: Community, Self-Consciousness, and Faith in W.H. Auden's "The Age of Anxiety".

Abstract

In this essay, the author examines a highly influential poem, The Age of Anxiety by W.H. Auden, for its engagement with anxiety and religious faith in the modern world. Published in 1947, the book-length poem reveals Auden's deep understanding of western psychology, Judaism, and Christianity. The author argues for the relevance of The Age of Anxiety in this modern moment, but demonstrates that this relevance does not derive from any direct diagnostic or therapeutic implications of the poem. Rather, Auden's work provides readers with an image of a state of grace in the middle of an age of anxiety.