Wystan Hugh Auden

Talking to Myself

Talking to Myself - meaning Summary

Fear of Inevitable Separation

The speaker addresses a loved one about the inevitability of time and an expected breakup. He admits fear of the future and anticipates a painful separation. Yet he asks that if God commands the beloved to leave, they should ignore his desperate pleas and go immediately, for both their sakes. The poem mixes candid resignation with a brusque request to spare prolonged suffering.

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Time, we both know, will decay You, and already I’m scared of our divorce: I’ve seen some horrid ones. Remember: when Le bon Dieu says to You Leave him!, Please, please, for His sake and mine, pay no attention To my piteous Don’ts, but bugger off quickly.

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