Here is my response to "How has your study of Eliot’s poetry altered and expanded your understanding of man' ontological search for meaning? In your response, make detailed reference to THREE of the prescribed poems." There is no conclusion. Thanks:
T.S. Eliot, a seminal figure of modernism, intricately explores the disintegration of societal and individual coherence in the face of modern complexities. Consequently, he invites readers to further question the psychological condition. Eliot grapples with these concerns in his The Hollow Men (1925), Preludes (1917). However, in the The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock (1915) Eliot makes an attempt to transcend the limitation of his circumstance. As a classicist Eliot's deep love for tradition and literature enables his readers to appreciate his highly experimental form which facilitates his readers search for meaning beyond the limitations of his immediate context.
Eliot’s Preludes effectively examines the mere physical presence of the prototypical modern man by imposing the physical dilapidation and debris of the urban landscape of the modern world upon him, thereby contrasting the unchangeable nature of time and the personas sense of alienation. In the turmoil of World War 1 nihilism, Eliot’s circular narrative subverts traditional romantic sentiments which results in a cynical view of the modern world. Amidst the fragmented external world, “grimy scraps, withered leaves, newspapers from broken lots” forms a succession of derelict images. The image of a loose newspaper laments the loss of cultural value as the modern man fails to reconcile the loss of life and existence. This degradation and loss is metonymically applied to the physical presence of the soul. Eliot conveys a sense of rootlessness in “One thinks of all the hands” which craftily dehumanises people into mere limbs. Amid “a thousand furnished rooms” the personas have no identity and are spiritually alienated, fragmented as he is ‘stretched tight across the skies”. The personas internal angst is a direct reflection of the fragmented, external landscape. Resultantly, Eliot’s modernist sentiment is deeply critical of the shortcomings of humanity. The juxtaposition of “worlds revolving” and “gathering fuel” contrasts a topic of fundamental importance with mundanity. The immense potential of the world has been reduced to an ever present cycle of futility. The inner tenderness revealed in “the notion of some infinitely gentle” is suppressed by the dark and hostile landscape. The modern man is helpless, vulnerable to the alienation of modernity.
Prufrock’s deeply modernist depiction of the modern society reflects a deeper spiritual degradation, plagued by existential doubt which exhibits the personas inability to gain an identity. Eliot’s questioning of progressive ideals is deeply influenced by the pre-World War I progressivism, which underpins his exploration of “the frustration and impotence of the modern individual” (McCoy, Harlan). Eliot’s internal rhyme within ‘half-deserted streets/ the muttering retreats” develops an accumulation of waste through a stream of consciousness, effectively conveying the personas thoughts and feelings. Eliot implies that the urban landscape is full of unwanted objects, and is tarnished and decaying. Amidst the deteriorating landscape he declares, “I am no prophet - and here’s no great matter”, making religious allusion to John the Baptist which is then self-deprecated. The persona has already been marked by the “eternal footman”, and though he remains alive, he is spiritually dead and decayed. However, in spite of the effects of the modern world, the persona is not limited by an external struggle but his own paranoia. This is evident in the hesitance found in the repetition of the rhetorical question in “how then should I presume?”. Eliot’s use of elegiac metaphor in “we have lingered in the chambers of the sea” which is undercut by the “human voices”, illustrates a profound inability to maintain an identity due to the grim realities of his existence. Thus, Eliot’s suite is that of a profound ontological journey which highlights the damaging effect of modern life upon the psyche.
The allegorical anchoring of the human soul in The Hollow Men illuminates a spiritual emptiness which coalesces into sentiments of mortality and helplessness. Eliot’s dramatic monologue is constituted by frequent paradox, indicative of the false sense of closure offered by the first world war and deeply reflective of a desire for spiritual fulfilment. Effectively in limbo, the anaphoric antithesis in ‘shape without form, shade without colour’ enforces a sense of immobility in the ‘hollow men’. Eliot reinforces the threat of hell and mortality which heighten the personas need for spiritual validity. Further, intertextual allusion in ‘eyes I dare not meet’ extends the metaphor of emptiness through the text marking a separation from religion which results in the growing existential thought of “death’s dream kingdom”. The ever looming threat of mortality illustrates the disillusionment of modern life. Eliot’s intertextuality parallels the personas desire for fulfilment with existential agony. Moreover, as the persona grapples with the modern man's failure to appreciate the benefit of a spiritual reality in Eliot’s ironic benediction of ‘this is the way the world ends”. He insightfully characterises a definite sense of loss leaving the reader with a spiritual uncertainty. Therefore, Eliot provokes a deeply spiritual response to the threat of mortality in the modern era.
T.S. Eliot, a seminal figure of modernism, intricately explores the disintegration of societal and individual coherence in the face of modern complexities. Consequently, he invites readers to further question the psychological condition. Eliot grapples with these concerns in his The Hollow Men (1925), Preludes (1917). However, in the The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock (1915) Eliot makes an attempt to transcend the limitation of his circumstance. As a classicist Eliot's deep love for tradition and literature enables his readers to appreciate his highly experimental form which facilitates his readers search for meaning beyond the limitations of his immediate context.
Eliot’s Preludes effectively examines the mere physical presence of the prototypical modern man by imposing the physical dilapidation and debris of the urban landscape of the modern world upon him, thereby contrasting the unchangeable nature of time and the personas sense of alienation. In the turmoil of World War 1 nihilism, Eliot’s circular narrative subverts traditional romantic sentiments which results in a cynical view of the modern world. Amidst the fragmented external world, “grimy scraps, withered leaves, newspapers from broken lots” forms a succession of derelict images. The image of a loose newspaper laments the loss of cultural value as the modern man fails to reconcile the loss of life and existence. This degradation and loss is metonymically applied to the physical presence of the soul. Eliot conveys a sense of rootlessness in “One thinks of all the hands” which craftily dehumanises people into mere limbs. Amid “a thousand furnished rooms” the personas have no identity and are spiritually alienated, fragmented as he is ‘stretched tight across the skies”. The personas internal angst is a direct reflection of the fragmented, external landscape. Resultantly, Eliot’s modernist sentiment is deeply critical of the shortcomings of humanity. The juxtaposition of “worlds revolving” and “gathering fuel” contrasts a topic of fundamental importance with mundanity. The immense potential of the world has been reduced to an ever present cycle of futility. The inner tenderness revealed in “the notion of some infinitely gentle” is suppressed by the dark and hostile landscape. The modern man is helpless, vulnerable to the alienation of modernity.
Prufrock’s deeply modernist depiction of the modern society reflects a deeper spiritual degradation, plagued by existential doubt which exhibits the personas inability to gain an identity. Eliot’s questioning of progressive ideals is deeply influenced by the pre-World War I progressivism, which underpins his exploration of “the frustration and impotence of the modern individual” (McCoy, Harlan). Eliot’s internal rhyme within ‘half-deserted streets/ the muttering retreats” develops an accumulation of waste through a stream of consciousness, effectively conveying the personas thoughts and feelings. Eliot implies that the urban landscape is full of unwanted objects, and is tarnished and decaying. Amidst the deteriorating landscape he declares, “I am no prophet - and here’s no great matter”, making religious allusion to John the Baptist which is then self-deprecated. The persona has already been marked by the “eternal footman”, and though he remains alive, he is spiritually dead and decayed. However, in spite of the effects of the modern world, the persona is not limited by an external struggle but his own paranoia. This is evident in the hesitance found in the repetition of the rhetorical question in “how then should I presume?”. Eliot’s use of elegiac metaphor in “we have lingered in the chambers of the sea” which is undercut by the “human voices”, illustrates a profound inability to maintain an identity due to the grim realities of his existence. Thus, Eliot’s suite is that of a profound ontological journey which highlights the damaging effect of modern life upon the psyche.
The allegorical anchoring of the human soul in The Hollow Men illuminates a spiritual emptiness which coalesces into sentiments of mortality and helplessness. Eliot’s dramatic monologue is constituted by frequent paradox, indicative of the false sense of closure offered by the first world war and deeply reflective of a desire for spiritual fulfilment. Effectively in limbo, the anaphoric antithesis in ‘shape without form, shade without colour’ enforces a sense of immobility in the ‘hollow men’. Eliot reinforces the threat of hell and mortality which heighten the personas need for spiritual validity. Further, intertextual allusion in ‘eyes I dare not meet’ extends the metaphor of emptiness through the text marking a separation from religion which results in the growing existential thought of “death’s dream kingdom”. The ever looming threat of mortality illustrates the disillusionment of modern life. Eliot’s intertextuality parallels the personas desire for fulfilment with existential agony. Moreover, as the persona grapples with the modern man's failure to appreciate the benefit of a spiritual reality in Eliot’s ironic benediction of ‘this is the way the world ends”. He insightfully characterises a definite sense of loss leaving the reader with a spiritual uncertainty. Therefore, Eliot provokes a deeply spiritual response to the threat of mortality in the modern era.
