Topic: The reflection of the Modern Age in The Waste
Land.
Name: Baraiya Sonal Rameshbhai
Class: M.A. Sem-3
Paper
No.: 9- The
Modern Literature
Submitted
to: Smt.
S.B.Gardi, Mkbu,
Department of English
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Introduction:
‘‘The Waste
Land’’ written by T.S. Eliot. Eliot is very well-known writer. For the Waste Land he got award. Sometimes
his poem the waste land put into the category of Modern Epic Poem. It is
divided into five parts.
The literary features of the age:
1. The breaking down of established values:
The Modern
Age is extremely different from all the ages. One of the reasons is that this
age is breaking down of established values. It is not followed the values which
were created. Established values like spiritual, religion and social. Not only
these but modern literature are not followed the rules which were given
before. Instead of that they tried to breaking down old values and create
something new.
For example
- ''The Waste land'', in which T.S.Eliot breaking the rules of poetry. There
rarely find out figure of speech. People were not interested in the religion
and social rules and regulations. That's the reason of spiritual degradation,
sexual perversion, and fragmented relationships in human beings.
2. Variety of technical experiment:
This age
produced revolutionary developments. All the writers do experiment with the
form. They don't like to follow the tradition. They are always in the search of
new values and for a new vital tradition was the desire for new forms and
methods of presentation.
T.S.Eliot
one of that. He also experiment with the form of poetry. And put new form of
poetry in front of readers. He tried to collect everything and organized in one
composed. So, it's just like fragmented poem. One of the reasons was that
modern people were interested in ''NEW'' things. That's why their writers lead
towards such things.
3. The impact of the two world wars:
The impact
of the world wars had a devastating influence on the mind of the people. They
were very disturbed externally and internally also. People were come into
''depression''. They mentally and physically tired. Due to world wars their
relationship also breaking down. They loss their faith in human beings.
In ''The
Waste land'' - the second part ''A Game of Chess'' also find out the impact of
wars.
For example-
Now Albert's coming back, make yourself a
bit smart.
He'll want to know what you done with that
money ha gave you
To get yourself some teeth. H did, i was
there.
You have them all out, Lil, and get a nice
set,
He said, I swear, I can't bear to look at
you.
And no more can't I, I said, and think of
poor Albert,
He's been in the army four years, he wants a
good time,
And if you don't give it him, there's others
will, i said.
The
discussion between two women. And the
discussion about Lil's husband who is ''coming back'' from the war. The most
important is their discussion which is highly suggested the impact of war on
the mind of the people. In their discussion we should find out various things
like broken relationships, unfaithful and sexual tribulations. They try to cheat
each other. They constantly in depression. Both are mentally disturbed. They
are having multiple tensions in their life.
4. Anxiety and interrogation:
It is
called the age of anxiety and interrogation. Industrial revolution happened at
that time. New inventions came into the life of modern people which was turn
people into machine. They were not considered as a ''human being'' rather as a
''human engine''.
''The Chair she sat in, like a burnished
throne,
The glitter of her jewels rose to meet it,
From satin cases poured in rich profusion.
In vials of ivory and colored glass
unstopped,
lurked her strange synthetic perfumes,
unguent,
powdered, or liquid--troubled, confused
and
The sound of horns and motors, which shall
bring
Sweeney to Mrs. Poter in the spring.
They wash their feet in soda water
and
At the violet hour, when the eyes and back
turn upward
from the desk, when the human engine waits
Like a taxi throbbing waiting,
and
The time is
now propitious, as he guesses,
The meal is ended, she is bored and
tired,
These lines
suggested the mechanical and artificial life of modern people. And these two
things lead human being into anxiety, frustration and depression. People loss
their faith. People have doubt on each other. In between the interrogation take
place.
For example -
''Speak to
me. Why do you never speak. Speak.
What are
you thinking of? What thinking? What?
I never
know what you are thinking. Think.''
and
''Do you
know nothing? Do you see nothing? Do you remember nothing?''
Through
these lines we came to know the broken relationship. Relationships just like
broken words. People were not interested in each other. Even they don't like to
speak with each other. They remain busy in their individual life. They haven't
time to spend with each other. They have doubt but don't try to remove the gap.
5. Psychology and Literature:
The modern literature highly influence by new psychological researches.
Freud put great emphasis on the power of the unconscious to affect conduct.
Intellectual convictions appeared to be rationalizations of emotional needs.
The modern age may be rational view of sex rational view of sex rationalization
in sexual behavior. All modern people were mentally disturbed. Their problem
can be solved only through psychological researches. And one reason of that was
sexual perversion. This new theory of psychology and sex gave us the ‘‘stream
of consciousness’’.
In ‘‘The Waste Land’’, we all are in the mind of Tiresias. Tiresias
having both experiences of man and woman. So, Tiresias explains the psychology
and sex of the modern people through various mythical examples such as:
Tristan and Isolde, myth of
Philomela, myth of Fisher king, etc.
All are the examples of sexual degradation and spiritual draught. Each
characters should read in psychological way. They are alive or not is question.
‘‘Are you alive, or not? Is there nothing in your head?’’
At this mental level they reach that one cannot guess even that they are
alive or not.
6. International character of literature:
In the Victorian era things were surrounded only with England. Later on
in the twentieth century literature has variety of subjects, international
characters.
For example -
Waste Land covered with variety of subjects and international characters.
It is not merely christian poem instead of that it is spiritual poem. Because
it is covered with variety of spiritual aspects. For example – Spiritual
aspects of India.
The instruction for salvation of
Prajapati, give alms, be compassionate, be controlled, and ends three times
repeating the Hindu word ‘‘Shantih’’, which Eliot states in his notes signifies
‘‘the pease which passeth understanding’’.
International characters in ‘‘the waste land’’ are:
1. The Cumaean Sibyl –
Roman
2. Roman Soldiers
3. Ezra Pound –
American poet
4. Cleopatra – Egyptian
Queen
5. Prajapati – Indian
God
6. The prince of
Aquitaine is a character in a poem by Gerard de Nerval, an early nineteenth
century French poet, etc.
7. Impact of
socio-economic conditions on literature:
The
literature of the twentieth century has been greatly influenced by economic and
social changes. Marxism was the most powerful influence on literature. Various
manifestations of socialism came into existence and influenced the authors.
In
‘‘The Waste Land’’ the second part – ‘A Game of Chess’ and third part – ‘The
Fire Sermon’ highly talked about socio-economic conditions. Second part open on
a scene of frustrated sensuality inside a luxurious but claustrophobic salon.
She is economically and socially well but mentally very depressed. So,
‘‘What is the usage of that
wealth if it’s not gave the mental relief?’’
‘‘Stay
with me.
Speak
to me. Why do you never speak. Speak.
What
are you thinking of? What thinking? What?
I
never know what you are thinking. Think.’’
‘‘Do
you know nothing? Do you see nothing? Do you remember nothing?’’
‘‘The
sound of horns and motors,
At
the violet hour, when the eyes and back
Turn
upward from the dark, when the human engine waits
Like
a taxi throbbing waiting.’’
These
all are the examples of social decay. It’s represents the mechanical life of
human being as a human engine. These all things leads towards eroticism of the
person. Social decay also find out in the life of Clerk and typist. Like the
machines they have become, their intercourse is mechanical. The life of Clerk
and Typist, was the life of people of England.
The
broken or half broken communication represent their broken relationship. Their
artificial look and behavior. All the matters leads towards deep frustration
and depression. They are mentally ill. That’s why we find out the decay in their
life. Particular goes with general. So, the decay we find out individually to generally.
8. Fragmented and non-linear:
Is
it true that because of the people land became fragmented?
Or
Is
it true that because of the land people became like that?
At
the beginning of the poem question is asked that
1. ‘‘What
are the roots that clutch, what branches grow out of this stony rubbish?’’
This
is the central question of the Waste Land. The roots and branches connected
with land. And land symbolically used as a stony rubbish. Whereas branches and
roots used as a people’s lives and tradition/culture.
Branches
and roots are connected with land. But land itself is stony rubbish. So, How
can ‘‘branches grows’’ if ‘‘roots’’ cannot ‘‘clutch’’ because the soil is
‘‘stony rubbish’’? How can people live well if culture is broken, barsh, and
cannot support them? Or, just as troubling, what sort of ‘‘branches’’ can
‘‘grow’’ in a barren culture? How can there be a civilization worthy of mankind
and how can mankind itself be whole, wholesome, and create a worthy culture, if
the environment in which it grows undermines life rather than nurtures it? The
branches that do grow, what sort of branches can they be? The lives that are
lived, what kind of lives can they be?
So,
all the questions leads towards one thing is that the land itself became barren
or fragmented that’s why the life of people are in fragmentation.
But
the thing is that ‘‘How can rootlessness or unrootedness be repaired?’’ Eliot
gave the answer of this question that if people wants to remove this
fragmentation, darkness and decay, they must have Son of Man.
2. How
far people are responsible for Waste Land?
The
land is cursed because people killed Son of Man and hanged him. So, it’s cursed
on the land. People are not happy. Darkness, decay, fragmentation and death are
because of that cursed.
‘‘A
rat crept softly through the vegetation
Dragging
its slimy belly on the bank
While
I was fishing in the dull canal
On a winter evening round behind the gas house
Musing
upon the king my brother’s wreck
And
on the king my father’s death before him.’’
Second
thing is about Fisher king. Fisher king was responsible for the barrenness of
the land.
In
short we cannot say that definitely that whether people are or land itself is
responsible for wasteland. Because both are interwoven. Both are responsible
for each other.
Some other
examples of fragmentation and non-linear also find out in the poem. The waste
land itself, a fragment open to interpretation. The waste land seems to lack
coherence because of its fragmentation. All the images are broken, not well
organized that’s why it’s look like fragmented images/poem.
‘‘Goodnight
Bill. Goodnight Lou. Goodnight May. Goodnight.
Ta
ta Goodnight. Goodnight.
Goodnight,
Ladies, good night, sweet ladies, good night, good night.’’
‘‘Speak
to me. Why do you never speak. Speak.
What
are you thinking of? What thinking? What?
I
never know what you are thinking. Think.’’
These
lines not goes into linear way rather these are remain uncompleted, abstract or
in fragment way. These lines indicates the life of modern people. They think in
a fragment way. They speak in a fragment way. They lived life in a fragment
way. This is the reason of fragmentation of culture which is leads towards
despair, nothingness, and hopelessness.
Conclusion:
In
short the waste land at every angle reflected as a modern poem. Poem is feather
on the hat of modern literature and also of modern people. But the poem has its
own pros and cons. Pros in the sense it is gave the direction to the people. And cons in the sense that poem first announced as a depersonalizing of the poet but later on the secret was revealed that poem is
totally depends on poet’s own experiences. Poet and his personal life fully
reflected in the poem. Though it’s not the life of only T.S.Eliot instead of
that it is reflected all the life of modern people.
work cited:
Bloom, Harold.
"Bloom's Literary Criticism." Bioom's guide T. S. Eliot's The
Waste Land. Ed. Harlod Bloom. New York, 2007. 26.
Nayar, Pramod K. "A
Short History of English Literature." 2009. 314.
