Symons, Julian (1912–1994)

A Reflection On Auden [Signed Broadside, Poem Of The Month Club, Literary Memorial]

First one thousand copies were signed by the poet. Signed Broadside. A living reflection, not a memorial - Signed when Auden was still alive.

A signed literary broadside by Julian Symons reflecting on W. H. Auden, written shortly before Auden’s death and issued as part of the Poem of the Month Club series. The poem meditates on influence, inheritance, and poetic lineage rather than mourning, giving the piece a restrained and intimate tone.

Offered here with its original accompanying Poem of the Month Club flyer, photographic insert, and a biographical essay on Auden by Roy Fuller, creating a small but complete contemporary Auden-Symons archive.

Physical description: Single-sheet broadside printed on cream-colored watermarked handmade paper, measuring approximately eleven by fifteen inches, signed in pencil by Julian Symons at lower right, accompanied by original publisher flyer with black-and-white photograph of W. H. Auden and Julian Symons, and a five-page biographical essay on Auden by Roy Fuller, loose as issued. London, Poem of the Month Club, printed by John Roberts Press, 1973.

Condition: Broadside clean and well preserved, with very minor bumping along the top edge, paper fresh and evenly toned, printing crisp and fully legible, signature clear and unfaded, accompanying flyer and essay clean with light handling only, overall strong visual retention, signed issue as issued.

The poem operates less as tribute than as intellectual reckoning, engaging Auden as a shaping presence rather than a subject of praise. Symons’ tone is reflective, controlled, and skeptical, characteristic of his late poetic voice, and the piece gains added resonance from being written before Auden’s death, resisting the conventions of posthumous homage. The accompanying Roy Fuller essay situates Auden within a living literary network rather than as a monumental figure, reinforcing the club’s emphasis on poetry as an ongoing conversation.

Contextual or Historical significance
The Poem of the Month Club, active from 1970 to 1977, played a distinctive role in late twentieth-century British literary culture by circulating unpublished poems directly to subscribers, emphasizing authorial presence through hand-signed issues. This piece captures a moment of overlap between two major British literary figures, Auden near the end of his life and Symons reflecting on poetic inheritance from within the same living tradition. No film adaptation is associated with this work.

Subjects: W. H. Auden, Julian Symons, British Poetry, Literary Reflection, Authorial Influence, Poem of the Month Club, Signed Broadsides, Poetry, Literary Broadside, Modern British Literature

Item #19031

Price: $125.00