T.S. Eliot
"Genuine poetry can communicate before it is understood"
(qtd. in "T.S. Eliot-quotes" )
T.S. Eliot, born Thomas Stearns Eliot, is considered one of the most "innovative" ("T.S.") twentieth century writers and popular modernists. His works include massive amounts of allusions to other literary works, languages, etc. and contain commentary on society during the early 1900s.
Early Life
Eliot was born on September 26, 1888 in St. Louis, Missouri. He grew up in St. Louis until he went away to college. He attended Harvard and completed his graduate courses at Harvard, and Merton College for a degree in philosophy. After living in Paris and the U.S. for a couple years, Eliot moved to England, where he, in 1915, met and married Vivienne Haigh-Wood. He would remain in England for the rest of his life. During this time, he held a variety of jobs including schoolmaster and editor for Faber & Faber, a literary publishing company. T.S. Eliot was later promoted to director. He created and edited the Criterion, a literary journal. In 1927, Eliot found religion and joined the Anglican church at the same time that he officially became a British citizen. Oddly enough however, both American and British literature claim Eliot. During his career as a writer, beginning in 1915 with the publication of his first work, Eliot published over 30 works in a variety of styles. He died on January 4, 1965 in London, England.
Influential People
The following year, he married Vivienne Haigh-Wood and began working
in London, first as a teacher, and later for Lloyd's Bank.
It was in London that Eliot came under the influence of his contemporary Ezra Pound, who recognized his poetic genius at once, and assisted in the publication of his work in a number of magazines, most notably "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" in Poetry in 1915. His first book of poems, Prufrock and Other Observations, was published in 1917, and immediately established him as a leading poet of the avant-garde. With the publication of The Waste Land in 1922, now considered by many to be the single most influential poetic work of the twentieth century, Eliot's reputation began to grow to nearly mythic proportions; by 1930, and for the next thirty years, he was the most dominant figure in poetry and literary criticism in the English-speaking world.
- See more at: http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/18#sthash.erkUTDHt.dpuf
It was in London that Eliot came under the influence of his contemporary Ezra Pound, who recognized his poetic genius at once, and assisted in the publication of his work in a number of magazines, most notably "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" in Poetry in 1915. His first book of poems, Prufrock and Other Observations, was published in 1917, and immediately established him as a leading poet of the avant-garde. With the publication of The Waste Land in 1922, now considered by many to be the single most influential poetic work of the twentieth century, Eliot's reputation began to grow to nearly mythic proportions; by 1930, and for the next thirty years, he was the most dominant figure in poetry and literary criticism in the English-speaking world.
- See more at: http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/18#sthash.erkUTDHt.dpuf
The following year, he married Vivienne Haigh-Wood and began working
in London, first as a teacher, and later for Lloyd's Bank.
It was in London that Eliot came under the influence of his contemporary Ezra Pound, who recognized his poetic genius at once, and assisted in the publication of his work in a number of magazines, most notably "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" in Poetry in 1915. His first book of poems, Prufrock and Other Observations, was published in 1917, and immediately established him as a leading poet of the avant-garde. With the publication of The Waste Land in 1922, now considered by many to be the single most influential poetic work of the twentieth century, Eliot's reputation began to grow to nearly mythic proportions; by 1930, and for the next thirty years, he was the most dominant figure in poetry and literary criticism in the English-speaking world.
- See more at: http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/18#sthash.erkUTDHt.dpuf
The biggest influence on T.S. Eliot's career was another modernist poet by the name of Ezra Pound. Pound was famous for discovering and aiding the "upcoming" poets during the early twentieth century. The release of Eliot's first piece, and one of his more famous, "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" was mainly due to Pound's influence and connections. It was in London that Eliot came under the influence of his contemporary Ezra Pound, who recognized his poetic genius at once, and assisted in the publication of his work in a number of magazines, most notably "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" in Poetry in 1915. His first book of poems, Prufrock and Other Observations, was published in 1917, and immediately established him as a leading poet of the avant-garde. With the publication of The Waste Land in 1922, now considered by many to be the single most influential poetic work of the twentieth century, Eliot's reputation began to grow to nearly mythic proportions; by 1930, and for the next thirty years, he was the most dominant figure in poetry and literary criticism in the English-speaking world.
- See more at: http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/18#sthash.erkUTDHt.dpuf
Pound translated literature from various langauges including: Italian, Greek, and Chinese. He "referred to [them] in his other writing[s]" (Regnery). This is another aspect of Pound's writing that is of great importance when studying T.S. Eliot. Eliot's works contain a significant amount of allusions to a variety of languages and works, past and present. This was something both him and Pound shared.
Eliot, Pound, and another popular writer at the time, Wyndham Lewis, impacted the writings of the other men. These three friends were in frequent correspondence and edited each others works. Therefore, the effect can be seen within the pieces of each other. Eliot's poems and prose contain the influence of both of these men. They collaborated on works such as, "The Waste Land" by Eliot (Regnery). A discovery of the novel The Symbolist Movement in Literature, which is said to have inspired his later poetry, led Eliot to write on themes of "ironic elegance and psychological nuance" (Bush) found in this book.
Reception of Work
The height of T.S. Eliot's career also brought on the peak of his positive reception. According to Ronald Bush, T.S. Eliot has been said to have written pieces that were "too academic". His excessive allusions to various languages, pop culture, and classical literature were too subtle for the average reader to detect. This did not make his works too appealing to everyone. Poets such as William Carlos Williams criticized him highly because of this. It is also said that he was "deadening neoclassicism" (Bush). While Eliot has received some negative criticism, the reception of his work has also been quite positive. He is credited with being one of the most influential twentieth century writers. He is said to have been "A master of poetic syntax, a poet who shuddered to repeat himself, a dramatist of the terrors of the inner life" (Bush).
"The Waste Land"
T.S. Eliot was considered the epitome of the Modernist movement, and "The Waste Land" was his defining work. The manner in which this piece uses allusions to a variety of media and past literature is a quite telling characteristic. Also, his use of fragmentation and analysis of the human condition and psyche is another key Modernist quality. He shows a complete lack of hope and faith in society, which is a common theme.His use of social commentary led one critic to write, "[Eliot] convey[s] a dread of the historical present,as it fails to sustain past grandeur but as it tiresomely reenacts past enormity" (DeCoste).All of these factors coupled with the eloquent writing style made "The Waste Land" his most well-known and highest praised piece.Works Cited
O'Brien, Geoffrey G.. "T.S. Eliot- Poets.org - Poetry, Poems, Bios & More." Poets.org - Poetry, Poems, Bios & More. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Mar. 2013.
Regnery, Henry. "Eliot, Pound, and Lewis: A Creative Friendship | The American Conservative." The American Conservative. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Mar. 2013.
"T.S. Eliot - Biography." Nobelprize.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Mar. 2013.
"T. S. Eliot Quotes- BrainyQuote." Famous Quotes at BrainyQuote. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Mar. 2013.
