Law like Love by W.H. Auden

There is a significant difference between the concept of law in lines 1-34 and 35-60 in “Law like Love” by W.H. Auden. At first, law is described to be something definite, and though it applies to various aspects of life, it is defined in each of those meanings. Auden begins by stating the meaning of law to different people in society. For example, in line 1, he says, “law, say the gardeners, is the sun.” This passage insinuates that the sun is the law of the gardeners. The gardeners can only have a successful harvest when the sun permits. Therefore, they must abide by the sun as their law, for they cannot be successful without it. In the second stanza, Auden continues by saying, “law is the wisdom of the old (L5).” Similarly to the way a harvest comes with the sun, wisdom comes with age. Auden continues to describe the existence of law in society in terms of the young, priesthood, and judicial trials.
Following these comparisons, Auden begins to express the true meaning of law. He says, “law is neither wrong nor right, law is only crimes punished by places and by times (L 20-22),” implying that the concept of law is determined by society. Each sector has their own idea of what law is and what they, in their life, must abide by. The turn in the poem occurs in line 29, when Auden states, “law is no more, law has gone away.” From this point, the speaker addresses the idea that law is undefinable. The specificities of law depend on the person who is following it. It is impossible to explain the law in terms of another word. For that reason, it is similar to love.
In the last stanza, Auden compares law to love. Like law, love cannot be defined. It is an inanimate part of space and time that relies on the person, or group of people, who feel it. Auden makes this comparison to love specific to he and his lover. The last line of the poem states, “like love we seldom keep.” This sets forth the idea that, just as the law is not always followed, love is not always kept the way it should be. It varies on the couple and the situation that they are in, just like societal groups and their views of law.