About suffering they were never wrong, the Old Masters
E519992
"About suffering they were never wrong, the Old Masters" is the famous opening line of W. H. Auden’s poem "Musée des Beaux Arts," which reflects on human indifference to others’ pain through the lens of classical art.
Observed surface forms (1)
| Surface form | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| "About suffering they were never wrong, the Old Masters" | 0 |
Statements (26)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
opening line
ⓘ
poetic line ⓘ |
| associatedWith | modernist poetry ⓘ |
| author | W. H. Auden NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| culturalSignificance |
frequently cited in discussions of art and empathy
ⓘ
often used as an example of ekphrastic poetry opening ⓘ |
| describes |
human indifference to others’ pain
ⓘ
human suffering ⓘ |
| firstPublishedIn | "Musée des Beaux Arts" (as part of the poem) NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| interpretedAs | statement about wisdom of classical artists regarding human pain ⓘ |
| isPartOf | "Musée des Beaux Arts" NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| language | English ⓘ |
| literaryForm | poetry ⓘ |
| meter | loosely iambic ⓘ |
| period | 20th-century poetry ⓘ |
| quotedAs | famous first line of "Musée des Beaux Arts" ⓘ |
| references |
Old Masters
ⓘ
classical European painters ⓘ |
| reflects |
Auden’s interest in visual art
ⓘ
Auden’s moral and philosophical concerns ⓘ |
| rhetoricalFunction | thesis statement for the poem ⓘ |
| setsToneFor | "Musée des Beaux Arts" NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| theme |
everyday life continuing amid tragedy
ⓘ
indifference ⓘ suffering ⓘ |
| workMentionedIn | English literature anthologies ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.
subject surface form:
Musée des Beaux Arts