After continued research into The Waste Land I realized that our class isn't alone--many people don't completely get what Eliot was going for either. With our discussion over this poem we have pointed out more than once the recurrence of images of lovers that can't be with each other. For example, one of the essays I had to read from the back of the book on page 51, "That Shakespearean Rag." In this reading it came on the page as a song with music. I was curious of the reasoning of our book having a song it in to help the reader understand the poem by T.S. Eliot. Then I remember a few things from the poem itself; it had parts of different songs from the times within itself. So this could reflect the rhyme of different parts of it or maybe the jingle that he was going for, I don't know. Examples of this was London bridge is falling down, falling down.
Also in class we pointed out the way religion, and sex carry an important role in the way we understand the poem. These I believe are the keys to understanding it completely I just haven't reached that position quite yet. I do see however images laced with references toward Christ. Especially at the end of the first section with the line "The Hanged Man. Fear death by water." I mentioned in class how I thought it was a way for some villages near the ocean to place hung men to scare away pirates or people in the community that was looked down on. But either way I see it could be a sign of God or a sign of townsmen placing fear in the hearts of criminals.
I believe the footnotes are extensions from the poem that are necessity for the reader to understand and maybe see what he was trying to show. But what we have to realize is that Ezra Pound, and T.S. Eliot both reflected their style within the poem, and they both cut a lot of the poem out that maybe could have helped the understand of it a little more. You have to understand though that both of those famous poets mainly imaged based, so why wouldn't they cut all the narrative style pieces from it. In class some people believed that parts of the poem could be looked upon with queer criticism and to show that he had gay intentions. Personality I get sick and tired of people jumping to those conclusions. I think that the voices of the poem changing to much for anyone to know exactly who is saying what. Also this brings up the point that The Waste Land wasn't the original title it was said that T.S.Eliot picked another title first and then changed his mind. The first title was said to have been "He do the Police in Different Voices" but later changed it.
I am still searching for more on The Shakespearian Rag and will post more about it soon.
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Another stellar post this time I liked the whole bit on how Eliot's poetry is more imagery based, and so narrative isn't the most imporatnt thing to focus on. This was something that I, personally, had a lot of issues coming to grips with, but once I did I think that it helped me enjoy his work a lot more. Being able to focus at the pictures that he is painting with his imagination brush was pretty sweet once I got passed to almost debilitating confusion the poem initially caused.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what you said about the voices as well, the stuff is always changing and I think that the ambiguity lends itself well to the style. But that ambiguity doesn't mean that their are gay intentions, I'm sure if you look at anything you could find something gay about it, like any sport... ever. Instead of looking at Eliot as a potential closet homosexual we should look at how he uses the constant shifting voices to great effect.