The Waste Land (Identities and Issues in Literature)
At a glance:
- Author: T. S. Eliot
- First Published: 1922
- Genres: Poetry, Narrative poetry, Symbolist literature
- Subjects: Mythology or myths, Twentieth century, Alienation, Death or dying, Folklore, Rites or ceremonies, Knights or knighthood, Tarot
The Work
The Waste Land, T. S. Eliot’s masterpiece, is a long, complex poem about the psychological and cultural crisis that came with the loss of moral and cultural identity after World War I. When it was first published, the poem was considered radically experimental. Eliot dispenses with traditional verse forms and instead juxtaposes sordid images of popular culture with erudite allusions to classical and ancient literature and myths. The title is indicative of Eliot’s attitude toward his contemporary society, as he uses the idea of a dry and sterile wasteland as...
[The entire page is 687 words long]
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