Auden's Hunting Season was published in 1947 so cannot be replicated in total without permission because of copyright laws. But we'll work it out the best we can because you have access to the full text.
"A shot from crag to crag,
The tell-tale echoes trundle;
Some feathered he-or-she
[...]
Postpones his dying with a dish
Of several suffocated fish."
It is always difficult, if not actually impossible, to know just what was in a poet's mind when writing. However, knowing exactly what a poet "meant" is not necessarily the focus or intent of reading poetry.
Reading a poem is similar to looking at a painting. There MAY be deep meaning represented in the picture, or it may be that the painter simply wanted to put something he or she found beautiful or fascinating onto a canvass. As viewers of the painting, we make choices: We can assume that their IS a given intent or meaning, and try to discover just what it is. Or, we can accept that there likely IS a meaning, but choose not to attempt to find it. We can decide on a meaning which is right for US, although it could be far from what the painter intended, if, indeed, there was an intent of sending a message in the first place. It is also possible that we may choose simply to enjoy the elements of the work, such as color, texture, light and shade, realism or lack thereof, etc. Whichever way we choose to view the paining is the "right way".
We make the same sorts of choices when listening to a piece of music. Did Mozart "mean" something in particular when he wrote any given piano piece, or did he simply put down notes which were pleasing to his ear? Even if a composer, such as Berlioz, let's say, DID entitle one of his pieces, "Witch's Dance", are we COMPELLED to see witches in our imagination when we listen, or can we simply enjoy the melodies, rhythms, orchestration, and compositional devices and techniques?
In similar fashion, we can view "Hunting Season" in many ways, none of which is decidedly right or wrong. We may or may not understand what caused the poet to write these words. We may or may not be able to "get into the head" of the poet. We may or may not understand every reference. Possibly we will hit upon exactly what Auden thought; possibly we will only discover a question, rather than an answer; possibly we will only give it our own interpretation.
With these comments as prelude, let's look at "Hunting Season", making whatever discoveries are possible, and deriving our own opinions as to its meaning.
The title, "Hunting Season", may be thought of as being specific to a given time, or it may simply be meant to invoke the IDEA of a given time of hunting. Perhaps hunting season encompasses a specific calendar period; perhaps it is ALWAYS hunting season. It really makes no final difference.
"A shot from crag to crag,
The tell-tale echoes trundle;
A gun is shot in a valley (the crags being the mountains surrounding the valley), and the unmistakable echo resounds from place to place, over and under. It is difficult to tell exactly where a shot comes from, because of the echoes.
From this opening, we learn that a shot was definitely fired. Because the poet doesn't designate a specific place, but speaks only in general terms, we deduce that this shot is descriptive of any and all hunting shots, not a particular one at a particular time and in a particular place. It represents ALL hunting shots.
In the next two lines, again, Auden uses general, rather than specific, terms. We only know that the object killed was "feathered". It was a bird of some sort, but we don't know what kind of bird; we don't even know whether the bird was male or female. We know that the bird was actually killed, rather than missed entirely or only wounded. Again, this points to a generalized idea of hunting, rather than to a given hunt of a given prey at a given place and time. It represents ALL hunting.
When he speaks of the "proud kitchen" of the "tribe," the word "tribe" is thought of as referring to some indigenous group of people, such as Native Americans, often erroneously called "Indians". However, as Auden was an Englishman, he likely only meant to indicate "one of our group", or "one of our kind". The "tribe" could simply be human beings; it might be hunters in general. The lines only indicate that someone who is accustomed to hunting walks proudly into a kitchen..SOME kitchen..ANY kitchen...with his kill.
Then, two lovers (any two lovers; not specifically-named lovers) are in the same valley where the shots are fired. The whole of the valley is startled by the shot, as are the lovers, who have been in physical contact. Because of being startled, they pull apart from each other. Each of them has a different reaction to the shot.
He hears the roaring oven
Of a witch's heart:
These are the most difficult lines of the poem and have been interpreted in a myriad of ways. The male, hearing the shot and realizing that it most likely indicates that a hunter has taken some game, thinks about the hot oven which will roast the catch. The "witch's heart" may refer to the wildly roaring oven, which he imagines could only be caused by some magical, wicked power. Or, it is possible that he is opposed to hunting, believing it to be a wicked pursuit. In any event, his thoughts immediately go to the next event which will take place: the roasting of the fowl.
The female's thought, her "murmur," goes at once to the source of the gunshot: the marksman. At the time of the shot, her lover was obviously saying her name in the throws of passion. Her attention was immediately taken from their love-making upon hearing the shot, and her mind focused on the hunter who must have fired the gun.
We are not told whether she thinks of the hunter positively or negatively. Perhaps she thinks of him as someone providing for his family; therefore, she admires him. On the other hand, she may be against the hunting down and killing of animals, causing her to think of the hunter with disdain. We are left to our own decisions on the matter.
Postpones his dying with a dish
Of several suffocated fish."
Now we are taken to a completely different scene. Whereas the two lovers were active in their own pursuits upon hearing the shot, and had active imaginations following the kill, we now have a scene of passivity. A poet has been sitting in his chair (at a desk, we assume) for a very long time. Perhaps he, too, heard the shot, or perhaps he merely squirms in his chair, which diverts his attention from his task at hand. He notes how hard the chair is, and how long he has been sitting there. He has accomplished little, it would seem, as his verse is described as deathless and half done...he is unable to bring it to a close.
While he realizes that he is only postponing his task, the interruption (which could be hunger itself, rather than the shot mentioned before) gives him the idea that he will eat before continuing his work. He has little positive thought about his poem, in that he is setting aside his "dying", rather than his "writing". He decides to eat the fish, which have been "suffocated", likely indicating that they have been fished from the stream, but left to take their last breath in a fishing basket, or some other similar container.
Again, we are not told whether the poet approves or disapproves of killing animals. Saying that the fish were "suffocated" certainly seems negative; on the other hand, he proceeds to eat the catch-of-the-day.
All of us, in our own, particular circumstances, must answer the question innately attached to the killing and eating of animals. We are left to make up our own minds. Do we really think about where fish and meat come from as we eat, or do we simply eat? Would we say that we are opposed to killing animals and, therefore, become vegetarians? Would we kill and dress the animals ourselves in order to eat them, or do we want to eat "flesh" only when the distasteful work is done by someone else?
"Hunting Season", like so many other works of art, is intended to raise questions, more than to give answers to questions. The poet uses his skills as a wordsmith to pose the question. The reader must provide the answer.
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