T. S. Eliot - Essay Example

? Introduction and Thesis ment:  T.S Eliot was not only a play and a publisher, but a witty literary criticas well. He is regarded as one of the most important poets of 20th century Thesis should include the advancement in the humanities and its effect on the world:  He was the first critic in suggesting that art must not be a product of uncontrolled emotions, but a purposeful departure of emotions. He also pioneered the idea that art must not be seen alone, but in the light of previous works of the author (Ibid p.18). . His writings had a profound impact on 20th century literary landscape (Williamson, 1998, p. 2). His literary masterpieces led to the foundation of a new school known as ‘New Criticism’ (Ibid, p.16) Events that Led to the Advancement : Eliot could be categorized as a classicist, as he emphasizes the value of upholding tradition. He believes that the true significance of tradition in the present literary work is not given its due importance. By tradition, Eliot underscored a sense of historical timelessness and a fusion of past and present that was inescapable (Cianci & Harding, 2007, p.16). Discuss the background of the time period (insert author and date): Eliot wrote the two literary pieces, at the time when World War 1 had just plagued the nation. Tradition and individual talent was written in 1921 while the wasteland was written in 1922. (Cianci & Harding, 2007, p.4). Discuss the climate of the period that led to the Advancement : Eliot’s writings reflect the physical and moral devastation and degradation of Victorian ideals in the aftermath of World War 1 that crippled the entire world from 1914-1918. Effects of Advancement:  Discuss the advancement in detail (insert author and date): Eliot’s new theory of meriting tradition not was not only followed by subsequent writers over the century, but he also diligently followed the new parameters. His essay, ‘Tradition and individual talent’, in which claimed that a poet’s work should not be a product of previous literary historiography, but a pursuit of his own interests. However, in his view, a writer does not need to strive to be different from previous literary scholarship (Cianci & Harding, 2007, p.14). In his view, a writer must never try his work to be different from that of previous writers; it should be a continuation, but such that it affects all the previous literary accomplishments (Ibid). Discuss how the advancement affected the humanities (insert author and date): Eliot’s philosophy of tradition allowed history to be perceived in a completely new lens. Previously, literary art was always critically acclaimed when it reflected the intense emotions of the writers. A poet must distance his emotions and experiences and produce literary accounts that are objective in essence (Ibid p. 15). He argues that those works could not be regarded as separate, distinct pieces, but should be seen as a continuation of his past works. Discuss how the advancement affected the world: Eliot has also produced a literary masterpiece, ‘The Wasteland’, which could be regarded as a depiction and critique of the modern world. Eliot makes use of previous historical anecdotes and literary works, as well as that of bible, and uses them to paint a new picture Evolution if the Advancement:  It could be argued that Eliot strives to develop poetry according to the rules he underlays in his essay ‘Tradition and The individual talent’. Through wasteland, Eliot depicts the world after World War 1(Eliot, 1962). The poem begins with the mention of spring, but although spring is regarded as the season that helps nourish lives, as flowers bloom and the trees are once again blessed with the utter green beauty of leaves, Eliot merits the winter (Ibid, p.1). Eliot ascribes winter as preferable as spring hints at the glory of lost past, while winter perfectly conceals and betrays it (Williamson, 1998, p.115). Discuss how the advancement has evolved: Eliot’s unique philosophy of meriting tradition led to a nuanced approach towards analysing the world. It could be argued that Eliot envisages the modern world as decaying and rotten, but one which has not come to an end yet (Ibid, p.150). It reminisces of a past and the memories are painful, as depicted by Marie’s yearnings of a playful childhood, unmarred by the political realities of her present world (Ibid, p.162). Discuss effects of advancement on later time periods: Eliot sought to capture the essence of 20th century - it’s degeneration after world war one, which also led to the crumbling of British Empire. Victorian ideals were forsaken and he saw the world as plagued after the war. Through ‘A Game of Chess’, in his poem ‘wasteland’, Eliot describes the profound changes that had taken place in human communication, which was a result of degenerating human traditions and beliefs in general. In his poem, ‘wasteland’, Eliot excessively made use of historical contexts and previous examples (Eliot, 1962). However, he did not let those historical anecdotes mask or overtake the current political and social conditions, which he sought to delineate. The sound of modern life could be seen as reverberating through the historical anecdotes underlined by him. Through the rape of ‘Philomel’(Ibid, p.4) , he delineates the scene extracted from Ovid’s ‘Metamorphoses’(Ibid, p.13), which also portrayed the rampant rape and prostitution prevalent in the society (Ibid, p.3). His conception of modern world as a wasteland is hinted through the use of ‘Fisher King’ (Ibid, p.14) and other examples of characters that were dealing with sexual frustrations. According to Eliot, the war not only ruined the land, but by taking away the lives of uncountable men, it left the society stigmatized with infertility. The birth of ‘New Criticism’ led to the close reading of the texts for the first time (Cianci & Harding, 2007, p.18). Due to Eliot’s emphasis of art to be seen as a distinct, individual object, advocates of ‘New Criticism’ regarded literary work as an independent object, and sought to rid it from possible author’s intentions, the historical context and the biases that lined the work (Ibid, p.20). They tried to understand the writing in its unique essence, not in the historical context as it was previously done. However, the correlation and coherence within the literary work was to be scrutinized and upheld. Conclusion  Recap thesis statement Through an intense scrutiny of Eliot’s work, it could be argued that although Eliot championed the practice of separating art from a writer’s own emotions, however his works could be seen to be marred with his own interpretations (Eliot, 1995, p.68). Although he sought to delineate historical references in order to depict the modern conditions, however his account of modern conditions could not be regarded as objective. It was his subjective disposition to believe the modern world to be decaying and dotted with deranging traditions. His use of intense emotions depicting the helplessness of Fisher King (Eliot, 1962, p.12), the use of water to depict the hollowness that marred the modern world, and use of spring as a bad omen and the game of chess depicting degenerating human communications, underlines his view of the current world. Thus, the pessimism that dots Eliot’s works could be regarded as a product of his own emotions. Close with general statements of how the advancement affected the humanities and the world in general  Hence, it could be concluded that Eliot follows the rules of art he underscored in his essay, ‘Tradition and Individual Talent’, as he portrays a conscious depiction of modern world. However, as any piece of literary work, his work cannot be regarded as completely objective and devoid of emotional streak, as the picture of modern world painted by him could be categorized as a reflection of his emotions and beliefs. However, it impacted the literary history significantly, and gave birth to a new school ‘New Criticism’, which not only affected subsequent literature, but rendered Eliot as one of the greatest writers of 20th century. References Top of Form Eliot, T. S. (January 01, 1995). Tradition and the Individual Talent. New Studies in Aesthetics, 26, 61-72. Bottom of Form Eliot, T. S. (1962). The waste land. Library of Congress. Top of Form Cianci, G., & Harding, J. (2007). T. S. Eliot and the Concept of Tradition. Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press. Top of Form Williamson, G. (1953). A Reader's guide to T. S. Eliot, a poem-by-poem analysis, by George Williamson. New York, United States: the Noonday press. Read More