The Waste Land

This blog is a response to a task assigned by Dilip Barad sir, Department of English (MKBU). This blog is about a poem 'The Waste Land' written by T.S.Eliot. Click here for more details.

The Waste Land is a twentieth century poem, written by Thomas Stearns Eliot. It is one of the notable poems of modernist literature. The poem was published in 1922, it is in 433 lines. The poem breaks down into five parts. In the initial section, "The Burial of the Dead," various themes of disillusionment and despair emerge. Following this, "A Game of Chess" unfolds with alternating narrations, showcasing different characters whose lives seem fundamentally empty. "The Fire Sermon" delves into philosophical musings on self-denial and sexual dissatisfaction. Then comes "Death by Water," a short depiction of a drowned merchant. Finally, "What the Thunder Said" ties everything together, delving into the poem's earlier themes through a desert journey.

The central theme of the poem is Death in life/living death. In the epigraph we find that the refrence of death comes. In the poem Eliot also talks about the spritial degradation and sexual perversion, throughout the poem there are various scenes related to these two major aspects of the poem.

1.) What are your views on the following image after reading 'The Waste Land'? Do you think that Eliot is regressive as compared to Nietzsche's views? or Has Eliot achieved universality of thought by recalling the mytho-historical answer to contemporary malaise?

Answer:

In the poem The Waste Land Eliot showed tge image of the modern society, contemporary society where Eliot has lived. He found so many immoral things in his contemporary as well as ancient society. In The Waste Land he tried to describe it with various examples from literary works, myths and stories. He also looks for the solution in the Indian myth related with Prajapati and his disciples. In the last part of the poem there are three ‘Da’s through which he shows the solution that is to give, to control one's own self and compassion. He looks for the solution in the past, where he himself says that in the poem that there was also the same immorality and perversion. So at that time people can't change themselves into good human beings with this solution now it is even more difficult. 

In contrast Nietzsche gave a new idea of “Übermensch”(overman). He also gave the idea that “God is dead” means the moral system related to God no longer exists. He said that now the new world requires a moral code which is not related to any idea of fear. It is self morality, people can be taught what is right and wrong and then they can decide by themselves what is right and wrong.

When we compare both the ideas Nietzsche’s seems more modernist than Eliot's. Nietzsche shows the path which is ahead, now people are mature they do not require any fear of god to act in certain way, in that very idea there is hypocrisy, if one does something because someone is watching but if there is no one to watch then what would be the behaviour of the person. Instead Nietzsche says that person should have his/her own morality, which is based on love and compassion. One is not doing anything wrong because his conscience says that something is wrong. In my opinion that is the right way to lead the world.

2) Prior to the speech, Gustaf Hellström of the Swedish Academy made these remarks: (read in the blog)

What are your views regarding these comments? Is it true that giving free vent to the repressed 'primitive instinct' leads us to a happy and satisfied life? Or do you agree with Eliot's view that 'salvation of man lies in the preservation of the cultural tradition'?

Answer:

I agree with the Freud's view because it is natural instincts which we have from thousands of years or perhaps more, now repressing that instincts will lead to abother psychological problem. When we talk about the traditions one can ask questions like: Who have made that traditions? Why that are still there in the society? Had someone done any research on that? How can they lead to salvation? and what is salvation? Has anyone seen any salvation? Now believing some traditional ideas blindly and saying there might be truth in that that is not a right of living in my opinion. Instead when we observe those instints, do reasearch and give some conclusion and try to observe that in our self too that and checking it is true or not that is the right thing to do.

3) Write about allusions to Indian thoughts in 'The Waste Land'. (Where, How and Why are the Indian thoughts referred?)

Answer:

There are several allusions to Indian thoughts in ‘The Waste Land’ that mostly occur in the fifth part ‘What the thunder says’ this sentence is taken from Upanishad – Prajapati spoke in thunder akashwani – to devotees are pointed out the way of salvation. Eliot shows the way of spiritual re-birth on the basis of wisdom of India. In these lines there are several refrence to India:

“Ganga was sunken, and the limp leaves

Waited for rain, while the black clouds

Gathered far distant, over Himavant.

The jungle crouched, humped in silence. 

Then spoke the thunder”

Ganga the holy river, Himavat which is referred to Himalaya mountains. First DA means ‘Datta’ means ‘a giver’ it is direct refrence to the myth of Prajapati. Second DA means ‘Dayadhvam’ means conpassion. Third DA ‘Damyata’ means self control. “Shantih shantih shantih”

the last line of the poem is referred to Brihadaranyaka Upanishad. 

4) Is it possible to read 'The Waste Land' as a Pandemic Poem?

Yes, It is possible to read 'The Waste Land' as a Pandemic Poem. The poem has the aspects of illness and flu but critics perhaps haven't tried to read the poem in that manner. There are many references as such. In her the book ‘Viral Modernism’ Elizabeth Outka tried to read the poem in that manner.

“April is the cruellest month, breeding

Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing

Memory and desire, stirring

Dull roots with spring rain.

Winter kept us warm, covering

Earth in forgetful snow, feeding

A little life with dried tubers.”

In the opening lines of the poem there is a perspective of the dead corpse who are buried in the ground. And it is a cry of them about illness and suffering of that time so in very first line we can find the reference of the pandemic.

“Burning, burning, burning, burning 

O Lord Thou pluckest me out

O Lord Thou pluckest

burning”

In the above lines we find the suffering that the human body feels in the illness. We all have experienced this feeling while we had a fever, the burning in the body. In this lines Eliot also tries to convey that suffering through these lines 

“A woman drew her long black hair out tight

And fiddled whisper music on those strings

And bats with baby faces in the violet light            Whistled, and beat their wings

And crawled head downward down a blackened wall

And upside down in air were towers

Tolling reminiscent bells, that kept the hours

And voices singing out of empty cisterns and exhausted wells.”

We find there are hallucinations in the poet's mind. We also experience the same feeling while we are ill. And there are the tolling bells which only sound when someone is dead, so there are so many deaths due to the pandemic so there is a tolling bell.

“If there were water we should stop and drink

Amongst the rock one cannot stop or think

Sweat is dry and feet are in the sand

If there were only water amongst the rock

Dead mountain mouth of carious teeth that cannot spit”

In these lines there we find the poet talking about the desert of spiritual death but there is also the reference to illness. While we are ill we continually struggle for water, there is thirst which can not be fulfilled.

There are also references to wind and water in the poem, which is related to the pandemic. As we have already experienced in the Covid pandemic that virus spreads through the wind and breathing, so wind is responsible for spread of the pandemic. And through water too the virus can be spread so these symbols also can be read in this way.

Words: 1411

Images: 3