T.S. Eliot a guide for the perplexed

180 Pages·2009·0.64 MB·English

by  Ellis, Steve

T. S. ELIOT: A GUIDE
FOR THE PERPLEXED
THE GUIDES FOR THE PERPLEXED SERIES
Continuum’s Guides for the Perplexed are clear, concise and accessible introductions
to thinkers, writers and subjects that students and readers can find especially challeng-
ing. Concentrating specifically on what it is that makes the subject difficult to grasp,
these books explain and explore key themes and ideas, guiding the reader towards a
thorough understanding of demanding material.
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Deleuze: A Guide for the Perplexed Claire Colebrook
Derrida: A Guide for the Perplexed Julian Wolfreys
Existentialism: A Guide for the Perplexed Steven Earnshaw
Literary Theory: A Guide for the Perplexed Mary Klages
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T. S. ELIOT: A GUIDE
FOR THE PERPLEXED
STEVE ELLIS
Continuum International Publishing Group
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© Steve Ellis 2009
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or
transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or any information storage or retrieval
system, without prior permission in writing from the publishers.
Steve Ellis has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents
Act, 1988, to be identified as Author of this work.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN: 978-1-8470-6016-7 (hardback)
978-1-8470-6017-4 (paperback)
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Ellis, Steve, 1952-
T. S. Eliot: a guide for the perplexed / Steve Ellis.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-84706-016-7
ISBN 978-1-84706-017-4
1. Eliot, T. S. (Thomas Stearns), 1888-1965–Criticism and interpretation.
2. American poetry–20th century–History and criticism. I. Title.
PS3509.L43Z67178 2009
821'.912–dc22
2009012171
Typeset by Newgen Imaging Systems Pvt Ltd, Chennai, India
Printed and bound in Great Britain by MPG Books Ltd,
Bodmin, Cornwall
To my Eliot students, past, present and future
I am not sure . . . that we can judge and enjoy a man’s
poetry while leaving wholly out of account all of
the things for which he cared deeply, and on behalf of
which he turned his poetry to account.
—T. S. Eliot, The Use of Poetry and the
Use of Criticism, p. 87
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CONTENTS
Acknowledgements viii
Abbreviations and Editions of Eliot’s Works Used in the Text ix
Introduction: Eliot’s Poetry and the Use of Eliot’s Criticism 1
1. The Early Poetry and Prose 8
2. From The Waste Land to ‘The Hollow Men’ 42
3. ‘Ash-Wednesday’ and the Writing of the 1930s 71
4. Four Quartets 100
Conclusion: New Eliots for Old? 129
Notes 138
Further Reading 150
Bibliography 158
Index 165
vii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Excerpts from ‘Journey of the Magi’, ‘A Song for Simeon’, ‘Animula’,
‘Marina’, ‘Sweeney Agonistes’ and Choruses from The Rock in
Collected Poems 1909–1962 by T. S. Eliot, copyright 1936 by
Harcourt, Inc.. and renewed in 1964 by T. S. Eliot, reprinted by
permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
Excerpt from The Family Reunion, copyright 1939 by T. S. Eliot
and renewed 1967 by Esme Valerie Eliot, reprinted by permission of
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
Excerpt from The Cocktail Party, copyright 1950 by T. S. Eliot
and renewed 1978 by Esme Valerie Eliot, reprinted by permission of
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
The author would like to thank Faber and Faber Ltd for permis-
sion to reprint excerpts from ‘Rhapsody on a Windy Night’, ‘Geron-
tion’ and ‘Ash-Wednesday’ in Collected Poems 1909–1962 by T. S.
Eliot.
viii
ABBREVIATIONS AND EDITIONS OF ELIOT’S
WORKS USED IN THE TEXT
ASG After Strange Gods: A Primer of Modern Heresy. The
Page-Barbour Lectures at the University of Virginia
1933 (London: Faber, 1934)
CP The Complete Poems and Plays (London: Faber, 1969)
FLA For Lancelot Andrewes: Essays on Style and Order
(1928), new ed. (London: Faber, 1970)
ICS The Idea of a Christian Society (London: Faber, 1939)
NDC Notes Towards the Definition of Culture (1948), new ed.
(London: Faber: 1962)
OP On Poetry and Poets (London: Faber, 1957)
SW T he Sacred Wood: Essays on Poetry and Criticism (1920),
7th ed. (London: Methuen, 1950)
SE Selected Essays, 3rd ed. (London: Faber, 1951)
SP Selected Prose, ed. Frank Kermode (London: Faber,
1975)
TC To Criticize the Critic and Other Writings (1965), new
ed. (London: Faber, 1978)
UP The Use of Poetry and the Use of Criticism: Studies in
the Relation of Criticism to Poetry in England (1933),
new ed. (London: Faber, 1964)
VMP The Varieties of Metaphysical Poetry . . ., ed. Ronald
Schuchard (London: Faber, 1993)
WLF The Waste Land: A Facsimile and Transcript of the Orig-
inal Drafts Including the Annotations of Ezra Pound, ed.
Valerie Eliot (London: Faber, 1971)
ix