NCERT Notes Class 11 English Woven Words Poem 9: Refugee Blues (Free PDF)

The poem Refugee Blues by W.H. Auden is the ninth poem in the Poetry section of the NCERT Class 11 English Woven Words textbook. This poem is written in the form of a blues song,  which narrates the plight of Jewish refugees fleeing during the rise of Nazi Germany. Through a conversational tone and repetitive structure, the poet highlights themes of displacement, rejection, and despair. This blog provides easy-to-understand NCERT Class 11 English notes with explanations, meanings, and analysis to help students understand the poem’s themes. You can also download the free PDF for quick revision.

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Important Word Meanings in Refugee Blues by W.H. Auden

In the poem Refugee Blues, specific words and phrases convey the refugees’ sense of alienation, loss, and desperation. Understanding these terms clarifies the poem’s tone and message.

Word / Phrase	Meaning
Ten million souls	The large population of the city emphasises its scale and indifference
Mansions	Luxurious homes, contrasting with the refugees’ lack of shelter
Holes	Squalid, cramped living conditions highlight social inequality
Atlas	A book of maps, referencing the refugees’ lost homeland
Fair	Just or good, describing the refugees’ past perception of their country
Old yew	A long-living tree, symbolising continuity and renewal
Blossoms anew	Blooms again each spring, contrasting with the refugees’ stagnant situation
Old passports	Expired or invalid documents symbolise the refugees’ loss of identity
Officially dead	Declared nonexistent by authorities due to lack of valid papers
Committee	A bureaucratic group, representing institutional indifference
Offered me a chair	A polite but empty gesture, implying no real help
Daily bread	Basic necessities like food, suggesting competition for resources
Thunder rumbling	A metaphor for the threat of war or Nazi persecution
Hitler over Europe	The Nazi regime’s dominance, spreading fear and death
Poodle in a jacket	A pampered pet, contrasting with the refugees’ rejection
Quay	A platform by the water, where the refugees observe the freedom they cannot have
Fish swimming	Creatures moving freely, unlike the restricted refugees
At their ease	Freely and comfortably, highlighting the birds’ freedom from human politics
A thousand floors	An exaggeratedly large building, symbolising unattainable opportunities
Happiness	A metaphorical destination of peace and safety, unreachable for the refugees
Great plain	A vast, open area, emphasising exposure and vulnerability
Ten thousand soldiers	A large military force, symbolising the threat of persecution

Line-by-Line Explanation of NCERT English Woven Words Poem 9: Refugee Blues

Here is the line-by-line analysis of each stanza of the poem Refugee Blues.

Lines 1–3:
Say this city has ten million souls, 

Some are living in mansions, some are living in holes: 

Yet there’s no place for us, my dear, yet there’s no place for us.

The speaker addresses their partner, describing a city with a vast population, where wealth (mansions) and poverty (holes) coexist. Despite this, the refugees find no place to belong, emphasising their exclusion and despair.

Lines 4–6:
Once we had a country and we thought it fair, 

Look in the atlas and you’ll find it there: 

We cannot go there now, my dear, we cannot go there now.

The speaker recalls their homeland, once considered just, still marked on maps but inaccessible due to persecution, highlighting their displacement and loss of home.

Lines 7–9:
In the village churchyard there grows an old yew,

Every spring it blossoms anew: 

Old passports can’t do that, my dear, old passports can’t do that.

A yew tree in a churchyard renews itself each spring, symbolising continuity. In contrast, the refugees’ expired passports, symbolising their lost identity, cannot be renewed, underscoring their statelessness.

Lines 10–12:
The consul banged the table and said: 

‘If you’ve got no passport you’re officially dead’; 

But we are still alive, my dear, but we are still alive.

A consul declares the refugees “officially dead” without valid passports, denying their legal existence. The speaker insists they are still alive, highlighting the cruelty of bureaucratic rejection.

Lines 13–15:
Went to a committee; they offered me a chair; 

Asked me politely to return next year; 

But where shall we go today, my dear, but where shall we go today?

A committee offers a polite but unhelpful gesture, delaying aid. The speaker questions where they can go now, emphasising the urgency of their homelessness.

Lines 16–18:
Came to a public meeting; the speaker got up and said: 

‘If we let them in, they will steal our daily bread’; 

He was talking of you and me, my dear, he was talking of you and me.

At a public meeting, a speaker warns that refugees will take resources, directly targeting the speaker and their partner, revealing societal hostility and exclusion.

Lines 19–21:
Thought I heard the thunder rumbling in the sky; 

It was Hitler over Europe, saying: ‘they must die’;

We were in his mind, my dear, we were in his mind.

The speaker mistakes thunder for the threat of Hitler’s regime, which decrees the refugees’ death, emphasising the looming danger of Nazi persecution.

Lines 22–24:
Saw a poodle in a jacket fastened with a pin; 

Saw a door opened and a cat let in:

But they weren’t German Jews, my dear, but they weren’t German Jews.

The speaker observes pets receiving care and shelter, contrasting with the rejection faced by German Jewish refugees, highlighting the injustice of their exclusion.

Lines 25–27:
Went down the harbour and stood upon the quay, 

Saw the fish swimming as if they were free: 

Only ten feet away, my dear, only ten feet away.

At the harbour, the speaker sees fish swimming freely, a stark contrast to the refugees’ lack of freedom, despite being so close, underscoring their entrapment.

Lines 28–30:
Walked through a wood, saw the birds in the trees;  

They had no politicians and sang at their ease:  

They weren’t the human race, my dear, they weren’t the human race.

Birds sing freely in a wood, unburdened by human politics, unlike the refugees, who face rejection, emphasising the contrast between nature’s freedom and human oppression.

Lines 31–33:
Dreamed I saw a building with a thousand floors, 

A thousand windows and a thousand doors; 

Not one of them was ours, my dear, not one of them was ours.

The speaker dreams of a vast building with countless opportunities, none accessible to them, symbolising the refugees’ exclusion from safety and belonging.

Lines 34–36:
Went down to the station to catch the express, 

Asked for two tickets to Happiness; 

But every coach was full, my dear, every coach was full.

Seeking escape to a metaphorical “Happiness,” the refugees find no place on the train, reinforcing their inability to find peace or refuge.

Lines 37–39:
Stood on a great plain in the falling snow; 

Ten thousand soldiers marched to and fro: 

Looking for you and me, my dear, looking for you and me.

In a desolate plain, soldiers hunt the refugees in the snow, symbolising the relentless persecution they face, leaving them vulnerable and exposed.

Analysis of the NCERT English Woven Words Poem 9: Refugee Blues

The poem Refugee Blues by W.H. Auden is a poignant blues-style narrative that captures the despair and alienation of Jewish refugees fleeing Nazi persecution. Through a conversational tone, repetitive refrains, and vivid imagery, Auden portrays the refugees’ struggle for belonging, safety, and identity in a hostile world.

Theme – Displacement, Rejection, and Despair

The central theme is the plight of refugees, focusing on their displacement, rejection by society, and despair in the face of persecution. The poem highlights the dehumanising effects of statelessness, bureaucratic indifference, and societal hostility, particularly for Jewish refugees during the Nazi era.

Symbolism and Meaning

Here, we have mentioned the symbolism used in this poem, along with the meaning behind that.

• City with Ten Million Souls: It represents an indifferent society where refugees find no place despite its vastness.
• Old Passports: Symbolise the refugees’ lost identity and legal status, rendering them “officially dead.”
• Fish and Birds: Represent natural freedom, contrasting with the refugees’ entrapment by human politics.
• Happiness: A metaphorical destination of peace and safety, unattainable for the refugees.
• Soldiers: Symbolise the relentless threat of persecution, hunting the refugees.

Human Experience

The poem captures the universal experience of displacement and rejection, resonating with those facing exclusion or persecution. It reflects the human struggle for belonging, the pain of losing one’s homeland, and the despair of being denied basic rights, making it a powerful commentary on human suffering.

Tone and Mood

The tone and mood of the poem have been given as follows:

• Mournful and Despairing: The blues structure and repetitive refrains, like “my dear,” convey deep sorrow.
• Conversational: The speaker’s direct address to their partner creates intimacy amidst despair.
• Critical: The poem critiques societal and bureaucratic indifference to the refugees’ plight.
• Tense and Bleak: The mood evokes fear and hopelessness, intensified by images of soldiers and exclusion.

Also Read: NCERT Notes Class 11 English Woven Words Chapter 7: Glory at Twilight (Free PDF)

Summary of NCERT English Woven Words Poem 9: Refugee Blues

In Refugee Blues, W.H. Auden narrates the plight of Jewish refugees fleeing Nazi persecution. Set in a city of “ten million souls,” the speaker and their partner find no place to belong, despite others living in mansions or holes. They recall their lost homeland, now inaccessible, and their expired passports, which render them “officially dead” despite being alive. Bureaucratic committees offer no help, public speakers accuse them of stealing resources, and the threat of Hitler looms like thunder. The refugees observe animals, poodles, cats, fish, and birds, enjoying freedoms they lack, and dream of a building with countless doors, none open to them. Seeking “Happiness” on a metaphorical train, they find every coach full. The poem ends with soldiers hunting them on a snowy plain, emphasising their vulnerability and despair.

Poetic Devices in NCERT English Woven Words Poem 9: Refugee Blues

W.H. Auden employs several poetic devices to convey the poem’s emotional depth and rhythmic impact. Here are the poetic devices used in this poem.

Device	Example	Effect
Repetition	“my dear, my dear”	Reinforces the intimate, mournful tone, emphasising despair
Blues Structure	Three-line stanzas with a refrain	Mimics the repetitive, sorrowful rhythm of blues music
Imagery	“Stood on a great plain in the falling snow”	Creates vivid, bleak pictures of the refugees’ vulnerability
Metaphor	“Thunder rumbling in the sky / It was Hitler”	Compares Nazi persecution to a natural, ominous force
Juxtaposition	“Some are living in mansions, some are living in holes”	Contrasts wealth and poverty with the refugees’ exclusion
Symbolism	“Old passports can’t do that”	Passports symbolise lost identity, contrasting with the renewing yew tree
Irony	“But we are still alive, my dear”	Highlights the cruel contradiction of being alive but “officially dead”

Download more NCERT Solutions of Class 11 English ‘Woven Words’ here!

Poem 1: The Peacock Solution

Poem 2: Let Me Not to the Marriage of True Minds Solution

Poem 3: Coming Solution

Poem 4: Telephone Conversation Solution

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