The Unknown Man

of the civilization that we have forged over the ages. While peering into our collective past, the greatest of struggles we have ever faced was our pension for peering into great unknown and being afraid of what lies within. Refusing to look further into

abyss of the unknown is a lot scarier than the light of the known. The majority of the population, or the average man, prefers to be coddled with the known and safety rather than to journey into uncertainty. In all modern day civilization, or contemporary societies, this claim is important and must be applied to all citizens. H.L. Mencken wrote “the average man does not want to be free. He simply wants to be safe.” This quote is very relatable in all contemporary societies, the average man in these societies

Werner 05 March 2012 The Unknown Citizen By W. H. Auden Several conflicts are dramatized in The Unknown Citizen, the most prominent being: conformity of the middle class, government manipulation, and the loss of individualism to the standards of an average citizen. The speaker of this poem is non-traditional as the poem is, in fact, an inscription on a “marble monument erected by the State.” The inscription is dedicated to a “JS/07 M 378”—presumably, “The Unknown Citizen,” although this term

Fear of the unknown is a powerful and primitive human emotion that can be debilitating. Nonetheless, the ability to overcome fear of an uncertain future is challenging. However, once an individual prevails in the face of fear; prosperity, peace, and happiness reigns. Marc Antonio Cruz captured the courage and fortitude of a blind individual in the photograph from Habitar La Oscuridad. The monochromatic photograph highlights the uncertainty surrounding the visually impaired individual. Walking down

“The Unknown Citizen”      “The Unknown Citizen” by W.H. Auden, is a commentary on government and the materialism of modern man. The poem is written in the form of an obituary inscribed on a monument built by the government in commemoration of an average, upstanding, and decent community member. Throughout the passage, the speaker lists facts about the citizen’s life which he believes prove that the deceased was a valuable person. In actuality these facts represent nothing more than the socially

It is both an unarguable and undesirable fact that we live in a society completely remote from our fellow man. There is no longer a sense of community between friends and neighbors — no brotherhood in the presence of coworkers in the commercial workplace. Even the higher, spiritual presence that had once bound together all things in worship and praise has faltered in the face of this profound apathy. It is not that mankind has lost its ability to communicate — modern technology provides us with the

hall, feeling her heart beat out of control. She was petrified, afraid of the unknown, afraid of what was happening in her very bedroom. Authors use this and many other techniques in literature meant to invoke fear. One is through alteration, or change. Transformation plays a key role in stories meant to scare us through transforming something we know and love into something to be feared, surprising us, and fear of the unknown. One way authors plant fear in your brain is by transforming something we

In the three literary works that were chosen, “The Known Citizen” by W. H. Auden, “A & P” by John Updike, and “Antigone” by Sophocles has a theme that is known to be conformity and rebellious. The poem “The Unknown Citizen” is mainly about the unknown man who is a conformist because he listens to all the rules that are made for the society. On the other hand, the short story “A & P” has a conformist character who enforces the rules for the supermarket and a rebellious character who goes against the

“The Unknown Citizen,” a poem written by W.H. Auden, alludes to a time of great change in American history, where the poem is meant to mock the government’s viewpoint of the perfect role model for an unrealistic, impractical citizen. The author, W.H. Auden, writes and intends for the historical context of his poem to be in the late 1930’s, when America was going through the Great Depression. Citizens were losing a sense of nationalism for America and had begun to negatively view the government. During

I believe that Jane does have a defense, I would state that it would be self defense. I state that because since Jane was attack by an unknown man and she was trying everything she could to try to get away from him. When she was able to get away from the man she was able to reach a house where she thought she was able to get help and have a safe place to be until law enforcement showed up. I understand that the homeowner did not want her to come inside but I do not believe the homeowner knew the