If I Could Tell You is a poem written by W.H. Auden in 1939, at the beginning of World War II. The poem is a contemplation on the passage of time and the futile nature of trying to communicate and understand one another.
The poem begins with the speaker expressing their desire to tell the listener something, but acknowledging that it is impossible to fully convey their thoughts and feelings. The speaker then reflects on how time passes and how everything eventually changes and fades away. They say that "The wave must soon exhaust itself" and "The wind will have its day." This reflects the fleeting nature of life and the inevitability of death.
The speaker then shifts to the idea of communication, saying that "Words strain, Crack and sometimes break, under the burden, Under the tension, slip, slide, perish, Decay with imprecision, will not stay in place, Will not stay still." This suggests that language is inadequate at capturing the true essence of things and that it is prone to misunderstanding and distortion.
Despite this, the speaker still holds out hope for connection and understanding, saying "I want, I want to tell the secret to the world, to say: 'This is it! This is the message!' But the message is in the moment, the message is in the now, and it cannot be communicated through words. It can only be experienced in the present.
In the final stanza, the speaker concludes that it is ultimately futile to try and communicate and understand one another, and that we must accept this fact and find solace in the beauty and mystery of the world. They say "For the message is the medium, is the medium. And it is only in the world of the present that we can find any meaning."
Overall, If I Could Tell You is a poignant and thought-provoking poem that explores the limitations of language and the human desire for connection and understanding. It encourages us to appreciate the present moment and find beauty in the mysteries of the world, rather than trying to impose our own interpretations and meaning onto it.
If I Could Tell You: Themes, Poem & Meaning
Meanings of Stanza —2 If we should weep when clowns put on their show, If we should stumble when musicians play, Time will say nothing but I told you so. There are no fortunes to be told, although, Because I love you more than I can say, If I could tell you I would let you know. The winds must come from somewhere when they blow, There must be reasons why the leaves decay; Time will say nothing but I told you so. However, we need a lot of time to understand the phenomenon of life. If we should weep when clowns put on their show, If we should stumble when musicians play, Time will say nothing but I told you so. He states that roses really want to grow, but they do so when the time comes for them to decay or die away. Similarly, human vision does not stay the same despite its intention to be so.
If I Could Tell You (poem)
Wystan Hugh Auden was born in York, England, in 1907, he moved to Birmingham with his family during his childhood and was later educated at Christ Church, Oxford. Perhaps the roses really want to grow, The vision seriously intends to stay; If I could tell you I would let you know. . The winds must come from somewhere when they blow, There must be reasons why the leaves decay; Time will say nothing but I told you so. Time will say nothing but I told you so, Time only knows the price we have to pay; If I could tell you I would let you know.
If I Could Tell You Poem by W. H. Auden
The winds must come from somewhere when they blow, There must be reasons why the leaves decay; Time will say nothing but I told you so. If we should weep when clowns put on their show, If we should stumble when musicians play, Time will say nothing but I told you so. Suppose all the lions get up and go, And all the brooks and soldiers run away; Will Time say nothing but I told you so? Perhaps the roses really want to grow, The vision seriously intends to stay; If I could tell you I would let you know. Suppose all the lions get up and go, And all the brooks and soldiers run away; Will Time say nothing but I told you so? Auden Time will say nothing but I told you so, Time only knows the price we have to pay; If I could tell you I would let you know. If I Could Tell You - WH Auden Time will say nothing but I told you so, Time only knows the price we have to pay; If I could tell you I would let you know.
If I Could Tell You
Perhaps the roses really want to grow, The If I could tell you I would let you know. If I could tell you I would let you know. As a young man he was influenced by the poetry of Thomas Hardy and Robert Frost, as well as William Blake, Emily Dickinson, Gerard Manley Hopkins, and Old English verse. Meanings of If I Could Tell You Time will say nothing but I told you so, Time only knows the price we have to pay; If I could tell you I would let you know. One is the reason, and the other is the vision. This type of poem is called a villanelle, a form that consists of 19 lines of 5 tercets followed by a quatrain, and two repeating rhymes—strictly the first and third line of the third stanza.
A Poem A Day:: If I Could Tell You
If we should weep when clowns put on their show, If we should stumble when musicians Time will say nothing but I told you so. This Meanings of Stanza -5 Perhaps the roses really want to grow, The vision seriously intends to stay; If I could tell you I would let you know. If I Could Tell You W. At Oxford his precocity as a poet was immediately apparent, and he formed lifelong friendships with two fellow writers, Stephen Spender and Christopher Isherwood. Suppose all the lions get up and go, And all the brooks and soldiers run away; Will Time say nothing but I told you so? Perhaps the roses really want to grow, The vision seriously intends to stay; If I could tell you I would let you know. Time will say nothing but I told you so, Time only knows the price we have to pay; If I could tell you I would let you know. If I could tell you what you mean to me, together again, would we now be? There are no fortunes to be told, although, Because I love you more than I can say, If I could tell you I would let you know.
If I Could Tell You…(1)
He also adds that if he comes to know this thing or has some knowledge of it, he would let his audiences know everything in advance. The speaker states that he does not know about treasures. If we should weep when clowns put on their show, If we should stumble when musicians Time will say nothing but I told you so. When summer time begins to run out and time as a rapidly dwindling resource, makes itself known. If I could tell you I would let you know. Meanings of Stanza -6 Suppose all the lions get up and go, And all the brooks and soldiers run away; Will Time say nothing but I told you so? This contributes to the mysterious nature of time and its knowledge, the main ideas of the poem. If we should weep when clowns put on their show, If we should stumble when musicians play, Time will say nothing but I told you so.
