The More Loving One by W.

H Auden
Good Night everyone, I am Priskila Dewi Awan Suledatu from class 2021 C English Department. I
will explain the poem that I have analyzed, which is “The More Loving One” by W. H. Auden.
Looking up at the stars, I know quite well (A) — 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 = Pentameter Trochaic
That, for all they care, I can go to hell, (A) — 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 = Pentameter Trochaic
But on earth indifference is the least (B) — 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 = Tetrameter Iambic
We have to dread from man or beast. (B) — 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 = Tetrameter Iambic

How should we like it were stars to burn (C) — 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 = Tetrameter Trochaic + 1

With a passion for us we could not return? (C) — 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 = Tetrameter Trochaic + 1
If equal affection cannot be, (D) — 0 1 0 1 0 1 = Trimeter Iambic
Let the more loving one be me. (D) — 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 = Tetrameter Iambic

Admirer as I think I am (E) — 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 = Trimeter Iambic + 0

Of stars that do not give a damn, (E) — 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 = Tetrameter Iambic
I cannot, now I see them, say (F) — 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 = Trimeter Iambic + 0
I missed one terribly all day. (F) — 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 = Trimeter Iambic + 0

Were all stars to disappear or die, (F) — 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 = Tetrameter Iambic

I should learn to look at an empty sky (F) — 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 = Tetrameter Iambic + 0
And feel its total dark sublime, (E) — 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 = Tetrameter Iambic
Though this might take me a little time. (E) — 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 = Tetrameter Iambic

The poem “The More Loving One” consists of 4 stanzas.

Each stanza has 4 lines and the total is 16 lines.

Rhyme of this poem is ABCDEF rima pada puisi ini adalah ABCDEF
Rima pada baris pertama dan kedua adalah A yang dimana akhiran bunyinya sama yaitu Well
dan hell
Lalu rima pada baris ketiga dan keempat adalah B yang dimana akhiran bunyinya sama yaitu
least and beast
Rima pada baris kelima dan keenam adalah C yang dimana akhiran bunyinya sama yaitu burn
and return
Rima pada baris ketujuh dan kedelapan adalah D yang dimana akhiran bunyinya sama yaitu be
and me
Rima pada baris kesembilan dan kesepuluh adalah E yg dkmana akhiran bunyinya sama yaitu
am dan damn
Rima pada baris kesebelas dan keduabelas adalah F yg dimana akhiran bunyinha sama yaitu say
dan day
Rima pada baris ketigabelas dan ke14 sama juga seperti baris 11 dan 12 yg akhirannya sama
yaitu die and sky
Rima pada baris k15 dan 16 sama seperti baris 9 dan 10 yaitu E yg dimana bunyinya akhirannya
sama yaitu sublime dan time
The poem "The More Loving One" consists of 4 stanzas.
Each stanza has 4 lines and the total is 16 lines.

THEME
The theme in the poem The More Loving One is The Pain and Beauty of Unrequited Love
The speaker of Auden’s “The More Loving One” reflects that while love is often disappointing,
it’s still worthwhile. Personifying the stars as distant, indifferent beloveds, the speaker decides
that, even if the stars don’t “give a damn” about the speaker, the speaker will go on loving the
stars (for a while, at least). Unrequited, imperfect, temporary, or painful love, this poem
suggests, is better than no love at all.
"Looking up at the stars," the speaker is certain they're not looking back—an image that hints at
the pain of unrequited love. To this poem’s speaker, though, the stars seem totally indifferent:
“for all they care,” the speaker says, “I can go to hell." If these stars represent a beloved, then it's
a beloved who doesn't care a bit about the speaker, and the speaker is under no illusions about
that.
However, the speaker reflects, this isn’t the worst possible state of affairs: it’s better to love
something that doesn’t love you back than to be the object of a “passion” that you can’t return.
“If equal affection cannot be”—that is, if the speaker and beloved can’t feel the same way about
each other—it’s much better to be the “more loving one” than the indifferent party.
This declaration suggests that experiencing love, even unrequited love, is a good thing in itself.
Being loved by someone whom you can’t love back, the speaker observes, is merely
uncomfortable. Loving someone who can’t love you, on the other hand, can be just as
rewarding as it is painful. Those stars might be indifferent, but they’re still beautiful!
The speaker further suggests that unrequited love might also be worth enduring because, no
matter what the stories say, love doesn’t last forever. Even the most fervent “admirer” of the
stars could learn to embrace the “total dark” if all of the stars were to “disappear or die.” In
other words, the speaker knows that their unrequited love isn’t permanent or overpowering,
and that they can get over it (though, as they understatedly note, “this might take me a little
time”). The idea that love fades might feel a little deflating; equally, it might feel comforting.
Love, in this speaker's vision, isn't all it’s cracked up to be. It's often marred by "[un]equal
affection," and it's nowhere near as constant as the stars: disappointed lovers get over their
heartbreak, slowly but surely. All this imperfection, however, doesn't mean it's not worth taking
on the burden of loving.

MEANING
Stanza 1
In the first stanza, the poet begins with the indifference of the stars: when she looks at them,
he knows they don’t care about what happens to him. In this poem, the poet compares the
stars to his lover or loved one. he writes, “Looking at the stars, I know quite well for all they
care, I can go to hell” The poet tells his readers that right from the start he knows, just by
looking at his lover that the emotions he feels for him are unrequited. To him, the speaker’s
feelings have no value, but to the speaker his llover is very important. In fact, he doesn’t care if
his love is unrequited and still admires his starlet even though his beloved is so indifferent that
she doesn’t care about the speaker’s fate. And that does not stop him from still admiring and
loving his lover. The poet finishes the stanza in lines three and four: “But on earth indifference
is the least / We have to dread from man or beast.” Here, too, the poet alludes that he would
rather his beloved feel indifferent towards him than the other way around, which could be
either hatred or unrequited love by her.

Stanza 2
In the second stanza, it begins with a question to the reader. He wrote, “How should we like it
were stars to burn / With a passion for us we could not return?” The poet seems to be asking
his readers which is better: To be loved and not loved in return, or to be the one on the other
end, who doesn’t love a suitor in return? The speaker answers a question for his readers in lines
seven and eight: “If equal affection cannot be, Let the more loving one be me.” The poet
chooses to be “the more loving one” because it is a less painful choice, or because he cannot
bear the people he loves suffer as much as he does. To the speaker, he or she enjoys being “the
more loving one” and it is better to be the one who loves than the one who doesn’t.

Stanza 3
In the third stanza, the speaker realizes that love is fleeting and impermanent. The speaker also
admitted that what he feels right now for his lover is not something that will always be there.
He didn’t feel so strong that he wouldn’t be able to live without them, and he even admitted
that when he saw them, he didn’t feel as though he had missed them while they were gone. He
tells us that, although he likes to think of himself as an ‘admirer’. The speaker cannot pass the
day without missing his ‘star’ or his lover throughout the day.

Stanza 4
In the fourth or final stanza, this stanza contemplates where all the stars disappear or die. The
speaker acknowledged that if his lover, again represented as a star, left or died, he would “learn
to look at an empty sky/ And feel its total dark sublime”. However, it “Though this might take
me a little time.” The poet doesn’t seem sure if he can learn to appreciate life without the
person he loves so much, yet doesn’t love him back. This will take time, and a lot of effort. The
speaker will realize that someday his feelings will slowly change with time. Thus, he would
accept the bleak situation and conditions, but it would take time that he could not predict. The
same is true for a world without God.

Overall Meaning
This poem explores the speaker's thoughts on failed and unrequited love that does not achieve
the expected goal. It begins as he compares his beloved to a star and explains how he is the
least concerned about his infinite love. The speaker's feelings have no value, but to him, she
seems so important that even his rejection cannot stop him from loving her. Despite knowing
he will never get the same affection, he loves her unconditionally. She doesn't care if the
person he loves doesn't love him back. He would rather be the one who "The more loving one"
than be loved. Because he knows that unrequited love is very painful and he doesn't want his
loved one to suffer and feel what the speaker feels. He knows that his love will not bring any
change on the other side, yet he always misses his beloved who in the poem is represented as
the "star" of his day. However, the speaker realizes that his feelings will change as time goes by.
Thus, he accepts the gloomy situation, but this gloomy situation he feels may take a long time.

Figurative Language
1. Metaphor
Metaphor is a common poetic device where an object in, or the subject of, a poem is
described as being the same as another otherwise unrelated object. In this poem, poet
used “star” as the metaphor for described or represented as the speaker’s lover.
2. Simile
Simile is used in the literature to present a comparison by including the word ‘as’, ‘like’.
Example : How should we like it were stars to burn (Line 5) and Admirer as I think I am
(in line 9)
3. Personification
Personafication is the attribution of human characteristics to non-living objects. Using
personification affects the way readers imagine things, and it sparks an interest in the
subject.
Example : Of stars that do not give a damn, (in line 10)
4. Hyperbole
Hyperbole is an exaggeration that is created to emphasize a point or bring out a sense of
humor. It is often used in everyday conversations without the speaker noticing it. The
exaggeration is so outrageous that no one would believe that it is true. It is used to add
depth and color to a statement.
Example : That, for all they care, I can go to hell (in line 2) , I missed one terribly all day.
(in line 12), And feel its total dark sublime (15)
5. Synecdoche
A figure of speech in which a part of something stands for the whole.
Example : If equal affection cannot be, Let the more loving one be me (in line 7)
6. Idiom
This language technique uses a phrase with a universally understood meaning that’s
different from the literal usage. Idioms can be unique to a particular culture and
confusing for non-native speakers since it deviates drastically from the literal
translation. Usually, the phrase would appear nonsensical without this context and
understanding.
Example : That, for all they care, I can go to hell (in line 2)
7. Oxymoron
 An oxymoron associates two seemingly self-contradicting terms to illustrate a point or
reveal a paradox.
Example : I cannot, now I see them, say (in line 11)
8. Euphemism
A euphemism is when a polite or mild word or expression is used in place of something
more unpleasant, distributing, or taboo.
Example : But on earth indifference is the least, We have to dread from man or beast.
(in line 3 and 4)

I think this poem based on true story maybe? I don’t know because Historical Significance

Auden write other poems with motifs of unrequited love and is The More
Loving One. Many critics believe Auden knew unrequited love all too well. The
poet married briefly while still in Europe. His wife, Erika Mann, the daughter of
the German writer Thomas Mann, married Auden in order to flee Nazi
Germany. Once she was safely in England, the couple divorced. After moving
to the United States, Auden met and fell in love with the love of his life, fellow
poet, Chester Kallman. Even though homosexual relationships were quite
taboo at the time, the couple lived rather openly, and upon his death, Auden
bequeathed his entire estate to Kallman.