“Richard Cory” and “The Unknown Citizen” are both shockingly accurate examples on how appearances are deceiving and can simply be a mirage, hiding the true person underneath. Robinson’s poem focuses on a man who is envied for being a “perfect person”, but who still commits suicide, a sign of his unhappiness, while Auden’s poem focuses upon a model citizen who is just another cog in the machine and ends up dead despite (or maybe because) never being outstanding in any way. The importance of appearance is challenged by characterization, point of view, and an ironic ending.

In both poems, the characterization of Cory’s and the citizen’s appearance and daily life contrast sharply with the true feelings, or lack thereof, of the characters. The narrator in “Richard Cory” prattles on and on about how and kingly and put together Cory looks, “he was a gentleman from sole to crown, clean favored and imperially slim…And admirably schooled in every grace,” while the narrator in “The Unknown Citizen” is presented as an average, model citizen, “One against whom there was no official complaint…he was a saint…paid his dues…he held proper opinions for that time of the year…right number for the parent of this generation,” yet the characters never state anything about how the characters feel. The focus is on the illusion- that life is great and dandy-and the true emotions of the characters are unknown, just like “who” exactly the people were. The narrator’s know nothing about the characters besides from outside, impersonal observations and records, which leave many gaps in the knowledge of the narrators. The appearance to the narrators of Cory and the citizen is more interesting and more important than the actual person.

The point of view in both poems also challenges the importance of appearance. The perspective in “Richard Cory” is from a person on the “pavement” and who envies Cory, “To make us wish we in his place. So on we worked… and went without the meat, and cursed the bread,” while in “The Unknown Citizen” the point of view is from a bureaucrat of sorts, “He was found by the Bureau of statistics to be… our Social Psychology… our teachers… Had anything been wrong, we would have certainly have heard.” The perspective of the characters alters the view of their appearance. Cory is elevated while the citizen is spoken about in cold, hard facts, which for both of them, boosts their appearance. They seem perfect due to the point of view- no trouble or problems-, and since the narrators do not know the characters, they neglect how Cory and the citizen actually feel, focusing on appearance and how everything seems to be.

Both of these poems end with an ironic twist that completely defies the characters seemingly perfect seemingly perfect appearance, shattering it. In “Richard Cory,” it ends with Cory committing suicide, “ And Richard Cory,one calm summer night, Went home and put a bullet through his head,” while in “The Unknown Citizen,” the narrator calls into question the citizen’s happiness and contentedness,” Was he free? Was he happy? The question is absurd: Had anything been wrong, we would have certainly have heard,” in a satiric fashion. Despite them both seeming to have everything a person could want- good looks, money, normalcy- ,they both are implied greatly unhappy and empty by the endings. Cory, who has status, money, and the admiration of many, kills himself because he is unfulfilled and lonely. The citizen , who was perfect in every way a citizen should be and had every contraption a man should have, lacked individuality and happiness, which is noted by an indifferent worker as a scoffing-and-scalding satirically rhetorical question. The endings betray that despite the seeming “perfection” of each man, they are both empty and discontented.

Though the poems are different in some ways, they share many key points. “Richard Cory” is from the point of view of a less privileged person, whereas “The Unknown Citizen” is from the point of view of a bureaucrat, but both poems show how appearance can hide the terrible truth. Robinson’s poem focuses on the sheer greatness of a man who has it all, but in the end, he still lacks happiness, which is invisible to everyone else due to his “greatness.” Auden’s poem dwells upon a model citizen, one who lacks fulfilment and a sense of self. “Richard Cory” is blunt and direct with its message and ending, while “The Unknown Citizen” is satiric and almost mocking with its delivery. Although neither poem state the characters true feelings, they are presented with subtle clues and implications, for both poems make their point by emphasizing how great the character’s lives seemed, but which was only a cleverly placed mirage. For this reason, despite their differences, both “Richard Cory” and “The Unknown Citizen” challenge how important looks and appearance are.