- C L A S S I C I S M I N A L E X A N D E R P O P E A N D T . S . E L I O T

b y

G L O R I A H E L E N S A N F O R D

. A . T h e U n i v e r s i t y o f B r i t i s h C o l u m b i a , 1970

A T H E S I S S U B M I T T E D I N P A R T I A L F U L F I L M E N T O F

T H E R E Q U I R E M E N T S F O R T H E D E G R E E O F

M a s t e r o f A r t s

i n t h e D e p a r t m e n t

of

E n g l i s h

W e a c c e p t t h i s t h e s i s a s c o n f o r m i n g t o t h e

r e q u i r e d s t a n d a r d s

T H E U N I V E R S I T Y O F B R I T I S H C O L U M B I A

M a y , 1975

In presenting th i s thesis in pa r t i a l fu l f i lment of the requirements for

an advanced degree at the Univers i ty of B r i t i s h Columbia, I agree that

I fur ther agree that permission for extensive copying of th i s thes is

for scho lar ly purposes may be granted by the Head of my Department or

by his representat ives. It is understood that copying or pub l i ca t ion

of th is thes is for f inanc ia l gain sha l l not be allowed without my

writ ten permission.

Department of ENGLISH

The Univers i ty of B r i t i s h Columbia Vancouver 8, Canada

the L ibrary shal l make it f ree ly ava i lab le for reference and study.

i

ABSTRACT

F o l l o w i n g the c o n f u s i o n of the seventeenth c e n t u r y ,

e i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y t h i n k e r s f e l t the need f o r the s t a b i l i t y and

common sense which they found i n n e o - c l a s s i c i s m . T h e i r neo­

c l a s s i c a l l i t e r a t u r e was o r d e r e d by r u l e s of l o g i c and r e s t r a i n t .

E a r l y t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y n e o - c l a s s i c i s t s a l s o came to b e l i e v e i n

the c r i t i c a l importance of t r a d i t i o n . They shared w i t h t h e i r

e i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y p r e d e c e s s o r s a r e a c t i o n a g a i n s t the f a d d i s h ,

hazy, i r r e g u l a r , e r r a t i c , and s e n t i m e n t a l elements i n a r t and

s o c i e t y . N e o - c l a s s i c a l a r t i s d i d a c t i c and aims to reform

abuses i n t a s t e and conduct by u p h o l d i n g t r a d i t i o n a l moral and

r a t i o n a l standards. I t seeks r e s t r a i n t and p r e c i s i o n of language

e x h i b i t e d i n d i s c i p l i n e d form. N e o - c l a s s i c i s t s r e f e r r e s p e c t ­

f u l l y t o the h e r o i c and c l a s s i c a l p a s t , u s i n g the eloquence o f

p a s t h i s t o r y and l i t e r a t u r e as an a l l u s i v e m i r r o r which

heightens our p e r c e p t i o n of the p r e s e n t .

T h i s study e x p l o r e s the s i m i l a r i t i e s i n the n e o - c l a s s i c a l

p e r s p e c t i v e o f Alexander Pope and T.S. E l i o t . The primary

e f f e c t of the study i s to emphasize t h e i r s i m i l a r thematic

f o c u s , c o n c e n t r a t i n g on s t e r i l i t y i n western s o c i e t y due t o

the r e j e c t i o n of t r a d i t i o n a l v a l u e s . Through examination o f

the themes, s t r u c t u r e , and imagery of the p o e t r y , p r i m a r i l y

The Rape o f the Lock and The Waste Land, t o g e t h e r w i t h a

review of r e l e v a n t prose, the n e o - c l a s s i c i s m of Pope and E l i o t

i s p e r c e i v e d as fundamental to a proper understanding o f

t h e i r work.

E l i o t ' s n e o - c l a s s i c i s m evolved under the i n f l u e n c e of

T.E. Hulme and E z r a Pound i n the t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y , John Dryden

i n the seventeenth c e n t u r y , and Alexander Pope i n the e i g h t e e n t h

c e n t u r y . Through h i s 1927 statement t h a t he was "'Anglo-

C a t h o l i c i n r e l i g i o n . . . c l a s s i c i s t i n l i t e r a t u r e , and r o y a l i s t i n

p o l i t i c s ' " ' ' ' E l i o t e s t a b l i s h e d h i s t r a d i t i o n a l p o s i t i o n on

r e l i g i o n , l i t e r a t u r e and l i f e .

S i m i l a r i t i e s between E l i o t ' s p o e t r y and t h a t o f the

e i g h t e e n t h c e n t u r y can be t r a c e d through h i s r e s p e c t f o r the

n e o - c l a s s i c i s t s . In "What i s a C l a s s i c ? " he observed t h a t the

c l a s s i c f e a t u r e of m a t u r i t y - i n mind, manner, and language -

i s c l e a r l y e v i d e n t i n e i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y E n g l i s h l i t e r a t u r e

through the p o e t r y o f Pope. There broods i n the l i t e r a t u r e

of both E l i o t and Pope, as n e o - c l a s s i c a l a u t h o r s , a d i s c o n t e n t

which stems from t h e i r outrage a t the l o s s of t r a d i t i o n s which

has caused s o c i a l , p o l i t i c a l , r e l i g i o u s , and a r t i s t i c c o n f u s i o n .

T h i s d i s c r e p a n c y between the i d e a l and the a c t u a l i n western

c i v i l i z a t i o n prompted the ascendence of v e r s e s a t i r e . Pope

and E l i o t e n f o r c e , through r i d i c u l e , t r a d i t i o n a l standards of

thought and conduct, and e s p e c i a l l y , the need f o r r e s t r a i n t and

o r d e r . Both Pope and E l i o t extended t h e i r p o e t i c s beyond pas t

t r a d i t i o n a l forms by r e l a t i n g to the language and p o e t i c s o f

t h e i r time. Yet, E l i o t ' s p o e t i c s r e p r e s e n t a f a r more r a d i c a l

d e p a r t u r e from the p r a c t i c e of h i s time than do the p o e t i c s

T.S. E l i o t , " P r e f a c e " , For L a n c e l o t Andrewes (London: Faber and Gwyer L t d . , 1928), p . i x .

i i i

o f Pope. In t h i s r e s p e c t , i n t h e i r examination of E l i o t ' s

p o e t r y , c r i t i c s have o f t e n s t r e s s e d the importance of h i s moral

tone. However, v e r y l i t t l e comment has been made on h i s

s a t i r e , and i t i s i n the p r a c t i c e o f the s a t i r i s t ' s a r t t h a t

E l i o t and Pope seem p a r t i c u l a r l y to concur.

i v

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER PAGE

I N e o - c l a s s i c i s m 1

II N e o - c l a s s i c a l Themes i n Pope and E l i o t . . 35

I I I N e o - c l a s s i c a l Form i n Pope and E l i o t 64

BIBLIOGRAPHY 96

1

CHAPTER I

N e o - c l a s s i c i s m

By the terms of the c l a s s i c - r o m a n t i c c o n t r o v e r s y to c a l l any work of a r t ' c l a s s i c a l ' , i m p l i e s e i t h e r the h i g h e s t p r a i s e or the most contemptuous abuse, a c c o r d i n g to the p a r t y to which one belongs. I t i m p l i e s c e r t a i n p a r t i c u l a r m e r i t s o r f a u l t s : e i t h e r the p e r f e c t i o n o f form or the a b s o l u t e zero o f f r i g i d i t y . ^

The n e o - c l a s s i c a l e r a s of Alexander Pope and T.S.

E l i o t are balanced on the f u l c r u m of Romanticism. E i g h t e e n t h -

c e n t u r y Augustan l i t e r a t u r e was a r e v o l t a g a i n s t the

extravagant enthusiasm of the Renaissance; e a r l y t w e n t i e t h -

c e n t u r y n e o - c l a s s i c a l l i t e r a t u r e was a r e a c t i o n a g a i n s t

n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y romantic f e r v o u r . Twentieth-century man's

d i s g u s t a t the a l t e r i n g framework of western s o c i e t y ' s v a l u e s

i s r e f l e c t e d i n a n t i - r o m a n t i c a t t i t u d e s i n l i t e r a t u r e :

...the d e c l i n e o f r e l i g i o u s f a i t h and o f moral v a l u e s , the widespread acceptance o f the n a t u r a l ­i s t i c view of l i f e , the mechanization o f both e x t e r n a l e x i s t e n c e and of i n d i v i d u a l p e r s o n a l i t y , the d i s i n t e g r a t i n g f o r c e of an i n d u s t r i a l i z e d s o c i e t y - these are some o f the f a c t o r s which, i n the t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y , brought about a c r u c i a l break i n romantic t r a d i t i o n ^

T h i s t u r n from romanticism to n e o - c l a s s i c i s m i s r e f l e c t e d i n

T.E. Hulme's e x p l i c i t statement t h a t " a f t e r a hundred y e a r s 3

of romanticism we are i n f o r a c l a s s i c a l r e v i v a l . "

•"•T.S. E l i o t , "What i s a C l a s s i c ? " (1944), On P o e t r y and Poets (London: Faber and Faber L t d . , 1957), p.54.

2 A l f r e d Noyes, ed., E n g l i s h Romantic P o e t r y and Prose

(New York: Oxford U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1956), p.x x x i v . 3 T.E. Hulme, "Romanticism and C l a s s i c i s m " , i n Prose Keys to

Modern Poetry, ed., K a r l Shapiro (New York: Harper and Row P u b l i s h e r s , 1963), p.91.

2

T h e s e v e n t e e n t h c e n t u r y w a s o n e o f p o l i t i c a l , r e l i g i o u s ,

4

a n d a r t i s t i c u p h e a v a l , a n d f o l l o w i n g t h i s c o n f u s i o n , e i g h t e e n t h -

c e n t u r y t h i n k e r s f e l t t h e n e e d f o r s t a b i l i t y a n d c o m m o n s e n s e

a n d t h u s s o u g h t t h e c o m f o r t i n g p e r s p e c t i v e o f n e o - c l a s s i c i s m .

T h e n e o - c l a s s i c a l m o v e m e n t i n E n g l i s h l i t e r a t u r e p e a k e d d u r i n g

t h e f i r s t t w o d e c a d e s o f t h e e i g h t e e n t h c e n t u r y . N e o - c l a s s i c i s m

i n v o l v e d " a c o m p l e x i n t e r w e a v i n g o f p u r e r a t i o n a l i s m , t h e R u l e s

o f a r t d e r i v e d f r o m G r e e c e a n d R o m e , a n d v a r i o u s f o r m s o f

e m o t i o n a l r e v o l t " . ^ T h e p h i l o s o p h i c a l a n d s c i e n t i f i c i n t e r e s t s o f

H o b b e s , N e w t o n , a n d o t h e r l e a d e r s o f t h e p e r i o d w e r e b a s e d o n

c r i t i c a l a n d r a t i o n a l o b s e r v a t i o n s o f n a t u r e , m a n , a n d s o c i e t y ,

w h i c h i n t u r n w e r e r e f l e c t e d i n t h e r a t i o n a l i s m w h i c h p e r v a d e s

e a r l y e i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y l i t e r a t u r e . N e o - c l a s s i c i s m w a s e x p r e s s e d

i n s o c i e t y a n d a r t t h r o u g h i d e a l s o f l o g i c , r e s t r a i n e d e m o t i o n ,

a n d s o c i a l p r o p r i e t y , a l l o r d e r e d b y s t r i n g e n t r u l e s : " I n

p o e t r y a n d p r o s e , t h e a r t i s t s o f t h e e i g h t e e n t h c e n t u r y w e r e

t i r e d o f t h e f a n t a s t i c a l , t h e i r r e g u l a r , a n d t h e h a z y . T h e y

d e m a n d e d c o r r e c t n e s s a n d a n a d h e r e n c e t o l i t e r a r y r u l e s w h i c h g

w e r e c l e a r a n d r e a s o n a b l e . "

a ) T h e 1 6 0 5 G u y F a w k e s R e b e l l i o n ; 1 6 4 8 e x e c u t i o n o f C h a r l e s I ; C r o m w e l l ' s a s c e n s i o n t o p o w e r ; t h e o v e r t h r o w o f C r o m w e l l a n d t h e c o m i n g t o p o w e r o f C h a r l e s I I .

b ) P u r i t a n r e b e l l i o n a g a i n s t t h e l a x f o r m s o f P r o t e s t a n t i s m , a n d r e b e l l i o n a g a i n s t s t r i n g e n t C a t h o l i c i s m .

c ) T h e P u r i t a n s u p p r e s s i o n o f t h e a t r e s a n d f r i v o l o u s a r t f o r m s .

^ E m e r s o n R . M a r k s , T h e P o e t i c s o f R e a s o n ( N e w Y o r k : R a n d o m H o u s e , I n c . , 1 9 6 8 ) , p . 3 .

g J o h n B . H a l s t e d , e d . , R o m a n t i c i s m ( N e w Y o r k : W a l k e r a n d

C o m p a n y , 1 9 6 9 ) , p . 9 .

3

In the t w e n t i e t h century i t was the Imagist movement which

r e b e l l e d a g a i n s t the " f a n t a s t i c a l , the i r r e g u l a r and the hazy"

elements found p a r t i c u l a r l y i n some Romantic and V i c t o r i a n

l i t e r a t u r e . The Imagists " h u r l e d a d i r e c t c h a l l e n g e a t

exuberance, sentiment, and c l o u d i l y romantic l u s h n e s s i n 7

p o e t r y . ' " In c o n t r a s t to the Romantic elements, the Imagists

suggested as t h e i r " p r i n c i p a l o b j e c t i v e . . . a v e r s e o f hard and

dry c l a r i t y , a g o a l c h i e f l y i n s p i r e d by the example of French g

symbolism." The French i n f l u e n c e , p a r t i c u l a r l y through

B a u d e l a i r e , generated i n E l i o t and o t h e r s a r e s p e c t f o r some

as p e c t s of the n e o - c l a s s i c a l p o s i t i o n . E l i o t noted t h a t

B a u d e l a i r e "belongs t o a d e f i n i t e p l a c e i n time...and by h i s 9

nature i s the f i r s t c o u n ter-romantic i n p o e t r y . "

Dating from an e a r l i e r French l i t e r a r y t r a d i t i o n which had

c e r t a i n t h i n g s i n common w i t h the S y m b o l i s t s , E n g l i s h

n e o - c l a s s i c i s m drew " i t s name from the f a c t t h a t i t found i n

c l a s s i c a l l i t e r a t u r e and i n contemporary French n e o - c l a s s i c a l

w r i t i n g s models f o r i t s l i t e r a r y e x p r e s s i o n and a group o f

a t t i t u d e s towards l i f e and a r t . " " ^ In the e i g h t e e n t h c e n t u r y

"Pope h i m s e l f r e c o g n i z e d the vogue o f French i d e a s , but the

p o p u l a r i t y of B o i l e a u and the French c r i t i c s i n England 7 Noyes, p.xxxv.

g I b i d . , p.xxxv,

g T.S. E l i o t , " B a u d e l a i r e " (1930), S e l e c t e d Essays (Faber and

Faber L t d . , 1946), p.386. "^W.F. T h r a l l , A. Hibbard, and C H . Holman, A Handbook to

L i t e r a t u r e (New York: The Odyssey P r e s s , I960), p.310.

4

c o i n c i d e d w i t h the development of s c i e n c e and w i t h the spread of

the c u l t o f reason, common sense, and the l i g h t of n a t u r e . " " ^

To achieve a s u c c e s s f u l l i t e r a t u r e and a s i n c e r e l i t e r a r y -

judgment, E l i o t and Pope suggest an adherence to the p r i n c i p l e s

of nature and not j u s t an e x c l u s i v e adherence to the p r i n c i p l e s

of man. Pope a d v i s e s :

F i r s t f o l l o w Nature, and your judgment frame By her j u s t standard which i s s t i l l the same; Un e r r i n g NATURE, s t i l l d i v i n e l y b r i g h t , One c l e a r , unchanged, and u n i v e r s a l l i g h t , L i f e , f o r c e , and beauty, must to a l l impart, At once the source, and end, and t e s t o f A r t . ^ 2

The " e i g h t e e n t h century f e l t a deep n o s t a l g i a , not f o r the

Eden o f t h e o l o g y , but f o r the S t a t e of Nature from which man 13

had somehow depar t e d . "

E l i o t f e l t t h a t the t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y had a l s o d eparted

from a proper r e v e r e n c e f o r nature and thus he s t a t e s t h a t

"a wrong a t t i t u d e towards nature i m p l i e s , somewhere, a wrong a t t i t u d e towards God, and...the consequence i s an i n e v i t a b l e

14

doom." T h e r e f o r e the w r i t e r and the c r i t i c s h ould not r e l y

on man-made r u l e s but on those "Rules of o l d d i s c o v e r e d , not

•"""""Francis Gallaway, Reason, Rule, and R e v o l t (New York: Octagon Books Inc., 1965), p.4.

1 9 Alexander Pope, Essay on C r i t i c i s m , i n eds., E. Audra

and A. W i l l i a m s (London: Methuen and Company L t d . , 1961), l i n e s 68-73. A l l f u t u r e r e f e r e n c e s to t h i s poem are taken from t h i s e d i t i o n and w i l l be i n t e r n a l i z e d u s i n g the a b b r e v i a t i o n EC f o l l o w e d by the l i n e numbers.

1 3 B a s i l W i l l e y , The E i g h t e e n t h Century Background (1940; r p t . London: Chatto and Windus, 1961), p.101.

1 4 T . S . E l i o t , The Idea o f a C h r i s t i a n S o c i e t y (London: Faber and Faber L i m i t e d , 1942), p.61.

5

d e v i s ' d , " which are "Nature s t i l l , but Nature methodiz'd" (EC

88-89). T h i s statement "puts i n t o the n e a t e s t of n u t s h e l l s the

g i s t o f Augustan d o c t r i n e . The r u l e s , they thought, were a

f o r m u l a t i o n o f the r a t i o n a l i t y and o r d e r ' d i s c o v e r e d 1 i n 15

'nature'." Thus, alt h o u g h E l i o t and Pope are g e n e r a t i o n s a p a r t ,

they f e e l as E z r a Pound does when he says t h a t "the n a t u r a l

o b j e c t i s always the adequate symbol".''"*'

E i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y n e o - c l a s s i c a l c r i t i c s h e l d the b e l i e f

t h a t a r t should copy n a t u r e : "To l i v e i n accordance w i t h 17

nature i s the same t h i n g as to l i v e i n accordance w i t h reason."

The w r i t e r s b e l i e v e d t h a t i n t h e i r work they accomplished

p e r f e c t i o n o f nature i n a work guided by reason. The neo-

c l a s s i c i s t s embodied t h e i r r e g a r d f o r nature i n a devout

r e g a r d f o r 'the A n c i e n t s ' : "Nature i s adherence to g e n e r a l

t r u t h ; g e n e r a l t r u t h i s u n i v e r s a l l y p l e a s i n g ; the A n c i e n t s

f o l l o w e d Nature; by o b s e r v a t i o n o f the methods o f the A n c i e n t s 18

the Moderns can most r e a d i l y l e a r n how b e s t to i m i t a t e Nature".

An important f e a t u r e of n e o - c l a s s i c i s m i s the d o c t r i n e of

i m i t a t i o n , through which authors j u s t i f i e d t h e i r use and 15

C l a r e n c e C. Green, The N e o - C l a s s i c Theory of Tragedy i n England During the E i g h t e e n t h Century, (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1934), Harvard S t u d i e s i n E n g l i s h , V o l . XI, p. 16.

" ^ E z r a Pound, from "A R e t r o s p e c t " , i n K a r l S h a p i r o , ed., p.16, 17

James A.K. Thomson, The C l a s s i c a l Background of E n g l i s h L i t e r a t u r e (London: George A l l e n and Unwin L t d . , 1950), p.202.

18 F r a n c i s Gallaway, p.185.

6

i m i t a t i o n o f ' t h e A n c i e n t s ' . E l i o t , a s a p r o p o n e n t o f t w e n t i e t h

c e n t u r y n e o - c l a s s i c i s m , b e l i e v e s i n t h e s t r i n g e n t r e l a t i o n s h i p

o f t h e p a s t t o t h e p r e s e n t , a s i n d i c a t e d b y h i s s t a t e m e n t t h a t

n o " p o e t , n o a r t i s t o f a n y a r t h a s h i s c o m p l e t e m e a n i n g a l o n e .

H i s s i g n i f i c a n c e , h i s a p p r e c i a t i o n i s t h a t a p p r e c i a t i o n o f h i s

1 9

r e l a t i o n t o t h e d e a d p o e t s a n d a r t i s t s . " P o p e i s a l s o o f

t h e o p i n i o n t h a t i t i s n e c e s s a r y f o r p o e t s a n d c r i t i c s t o b e

c o n s c i o u s o f t h e g e n i u s o f p a s t p o e t s a n d c r i t i c s i f t h e y a r e

t o b e a t a l l c o m p e t e n t i n t h e i r o w n w o r k s . H e a d v i s e s p o e t s

t o l e a r n " h e n c e f r o m a n c i e n t r u l e s a j u s t e s t e e m ; / T o c o p y

n a t u r e i s t o c o p y t h e m " ( E C 1 3 9 - 1 4 0 ) . " Y o u t h e n w h o s e j u d g m e n t

t h e r i g h t c o u r s e w o u l d s t e e r , / K n o w w e l l e a c h A n c i e n t ' s p r o p e r

c h a r a c t e r " ( E C 1 1 8 - 1 1 9 ) i s P o p e ' s a d v i c e t o c r i t i c s . J o h n D r y d e n

s t a t e d t h a t a p o e t ' s e x p e r i m e n t a t i o n w i t h n e w m e t h o d s i s p e r h a p s

o f t e n a n u n c o n s c i o u s e x p l o r a t i o n o f t h e t e c h n i q u e s o f t h e

' A n c i e n t s ' . A n e x a m p l e o f t h i s e x p e r i m e n t a t i o n i s t h e e i g h t e e n t h -

c e n t u r y u s e o f h e r o i c c o u p l e t s w h i c h D r y d e n s a y s i s " n o t s o 2 0

m u c h a n e w w a y a m o n g u s , a s a n o l d w a y n e w r e v i v e d . "

T h r o u g h h i s l i t e r a r y c r i t i c i s m , E l i o t h a s j u s t i f i e d t h e

u s e o f t h e ' A n c i e n t s ' w i t h i n a n a u t h o r ' s o w n w o r k s . E l i o t ' s

v i e w o n i n c o r p o r a t i n g p a s t l i t e r a r y w o r k s b e c o m e s p a r t i c u l a r l y

c l e a r i n " T r a d i t i o n a n d t h e I n d i v i d u a l T a l e n t " . I n t h i s e s s a y

h e r e m a r k s t h a t " w e s h a l l o f t e n f i n d t h a t n o t o n l y t h e b e s t b u t

t h e m o s t i n d i v i d u a l p a r t s o f a p o e t ' s w o r k m a y b e t h o s e i n w h i c h

1 9 T . S . E l i o t , " T r a d i t i o n a n d t h e I n d i v i d u a l T a l e n t " ( 1 9 1 9 ) , S e l e c t e d E s s a y s , p . 1 5 .

2 0 J o h n D r y d e n , q u o t e d b y C l a r e n c e C . G r e e n , p . 5 2 .

the dead poets, h i s a n c e s t o r s , a s s e r t t h e i r i m m o r t a l i t y most

c r i t i c which i s important s i n c e the " h i s t o r i c a l sense compels

man to w r i t e not merely w i t h h i s own g e n e r a t i o n i n h i s bones,

but w i t h a f e e l i n g t h a t the whole o f the l i t e r a t u r e of Europe

from Homer, and w i t h i n i t the whole of the l i t e r a t u r e o f h i s

own c o u n t r y , has a simultaneous e x i s t e n c e and composes a 22

simultaneous o r d e r . "

Greek and Roman l i t e r a t u r e , p a r t i c u l a r l y V i r g i l and Homer,

was a l a r g e p a r t o f the e d u c a t i o n and the l i t e r a t u r e of the neo

c l a s s i c i s t s : "The d i r e c t i m i t a t i o n o f Greek and Roman a u t h o r s " 23

was a mark o f " r e s p e c t f o r the A n c i e n t s " . F r a n c i s Gallaway

observes t h a t a l t h o u g h " r a t i o n a l arguments were p r e s e n t e d f o r

i m i t a t i o n , i t should be e v i d e n t t h a t i m i t a t i o n c o u l d be p o p u l a r

o n l y i n a c u l t u r e which was t h o r o u g h l y attuned to the i d e a 24

of the g r e a t n e s s of the c l a s s i c s . "

"Hear how l e a r n e d Greece her u s e f u l r u l e s i n d i t e s " (EC 92)

and "Be Homer's works your study and d e l i g h t , / R e a d them by day,

and meditate by n i g h t " (EC 124-125) a d v i s e d Pope to both c r i t i c

and author. Only from the p a s t can we l e a r n " j u s t p r e c e p t s . . .

from g r e a t examples g i v e n " (EC 98). E l i o t and Pope b e l i e v e d

t h a t i n o r d e r to understand any p o e t r y i t i s necessary to

become ac q u a i n t e d w i t h a p o e t r y from a l i t e r a r y e r a o t h e r than

v i g o r o u s l y . II 21 Thus i t i s the h e r i t a g e of the author and

21 " T r a d i t i o n and the I n d i v i d u a l T a l e n t " , S e l e c t e d Essays, p I b i d . , p.48. Gallaway, p.210. I b i d . , p.210.

22 23 24

8

one's own. Because of the r o l e o f the p a s t i n shaping

c i v i l i z a t i o n - and p a r t i c u l a r l y l i t e r a t u r e - both Pope and

E l i o t have emphasized the n e c e s s i t y f o r a con s c i o u s n e s s o f

t r a d i t i o n .

For E l i o t the t r a d i t i o n s o f the p a s t have merged w i t h the

c u l t u r e s o f the t w e n t i e t h century; i n t h i s way "the h i s t o r i c a l 25

i m a g i n a t i o n makes the p a s t contemporary." Pope and E l i o t

i n c o r p o r a t e d i n t o t h e i r own poems l i n e s , images, rhythms, and

othe r k i n d s o f a l l u s i o n s borrowed from an e x t e n s i v e f i e l d o f

h i s t o r i c a l l i t e r a r y s o u r c e s . T h i s a d a p t a t i o n of o t h e r l i t e r a r y

works has enabled both Pope and E l i o t t o extend the scope of

t h e i r p o e t r y .

In h i s c e n t r a l themes, through a l l u s i o n to p a s t h i s t o r i e s

and l i t e r a t u r e s , E l i o t s t r e s s e s t h a t the p a s t i s very much a

p a r t o f the p r e s e n t . T h i s c o n s c i o u s n e s s o f the 'oneness'

of time i s emphasized when he w r i t e s i n the Four Q u a r t e t s

t h a t : Time p r e s e n t and time p a s t Are both perhaps p r e s e n t i n time f u t u r e , And time f u t u r e c o n t a i n e d i n time p a s t . I f time i s e t e r n a l l y p r e s e n t A l l time i s unredeemable. 0,

26

Thus, i n o r d e r to achieve the u n i t y o f the p a s t w i t h p r e s e n t

and f u t u r e , l i k e " V e r g i l , l i k e Janus, E l i o t looked behind and

25 F.R. L e a v i s , "The Waste Land", i n T.S. E l i o t , A C o l l e c t i o n

of C r i t i c a l E s says, ed., Hugh Kenner (Englewood C l i f f s , N.J.: P r e n t i c e - H a l l Inc., 1962), p.89.

2 6 T.S. E l i o t , Four Q u a r t e t s (London: Faber and Faber

L t d . , 1962), p.13, "Burnt Norton", l i n e s 1-5.

9

ahead i n the s h a r p e s t p o s s i b l e way".

I m i t a t i o n f o r n e o - c l a s s i c a l p r a c t i t i o n e r s meant many

t h i n g s , i n c l u d i n g t r a n s l a t i o n of the c l a s s i c s word f o r word

i n t o E n g l i s h s i d e - b y - s i d e on the page, a d a p t i n g a c l a s s i c i n t o

modern t r a n s l a t i o n u s i n g modern language and modern customs and

c h a r a c t e r s , and u s i n g an o l d theme i n a new poem. For c e r t a i n

w r i t e r s these approaches c o u l d be s i n c e r e . However, as

Gallaway has noted, authors o f

s l i g h t a b i l i t y found i n the d o c t r i n e of i m i t a t i o n a surcease from the p a i n of o r i g i n a l c o m p o s i t i o n , and they bent Horace and the o t h e r e l e g a n t Roman poets t o a l l the v a r i o u s burdens imposed by the a m e n i t i e s of s o c i a l l i f e or by the o c c a s i o n a l n e c e s s i t i e s of the Churchman or p o l i t i c i a n . ^ n

The h y p o c r i t i c a l poet i n the f o l l o w i n g passage from Pope's

E p i s t l e t o Dr. Arbuthnot s t e a l s r a t h e r than borrows, and y e t ,

even i n s t e a l i n g from h i s b e t t e r s he can c r e a t e o n l y a

mediocre poem:

The Bard whom p i l f e r e d P a s t o r a l s renown, Who t u r n s a P e r s i a n t a l e f o r h a l f a Crown, J u s t w r i t e s to make h i s barrenness appear, And s t r a i n s , from hard-bound b r a i n s , e i g h t l i n e s a year; He, who s t i l l wanting, though he l i v e s on t h e f t , S t e a l s much, spends l i t t l e , y e t has n o t h i n g l e f t ^ g

A proper use of the d o c t r i n e of i m i t a t i o n , on the o t h e r hand,

enhances the c o m p o s i t i o n of one's own works.

Harry C. Rutledge, " C l a s s i c a l L a t i n P o e t r y : An A r t o f Our Time", The E n d l e s s F o u n t a i n : Essays on C l a s s i c a l Humanism, ed., Mark Morford (Columbus: Ohio S t a t e U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1972), p.143.

2 8 Gallaway, p.212.

29 Alexander Pope, E p i s t l e t o Dr. Arbuthnot, ed., John B u t t

(London: Methuen and Co. L t d . , 1961), l i n e s 179-184. A l l f u t u r e r e f e r e n c e s to t h i s poem are from t h i s e d i t i o n and w i l l be i n t e r n a l i z e d u s i n g the a b b r e v i a t i o n EDA f o l l o w e d by the l i n e numbers.

10

In "The F u n c t i o n of C r i t i c i s m " , E l i o t has observed

t h a t the

second-rate a r t i s t , of course, cannot a f f o r d t o surrender h i m s e l f to any common a c t i o n ; f o r h i s c h i e f task i s the a s s e r t i o n of a l l the t r i f l i n g d i f f e r e n c e s which are h i s d i s t i n c t i o n : o n l y the man who has so much to g i v e t h a t he can f o r g e t h i m s e l f i n h i s work can a f f o r d to c o l l a b o r a t e , to exchange, to c o n t r i b u t e .

Pope, l i k e E l i o t , b e l i e v e d t h a t i n order to be f u l l y a p p r e c i a t e d ,

an a r t i s t - a poet - should i n c o r p o r a t e the b e s t o f the

a r t i s t s of the p a s t , as can be noted i n h i s own borrowing

from the g r e a t c l a s s i c s . "'The b e s t of the modern poets i n

a l l l a n g u a g e s 1 , wrote Garth to Pope a t the b e g i n n i n g o f the

l a t t e r ' s c a r e e r , 'are those t h a t have the n e a r e s t c o p i e d the 31

a n c i e n t s . ' " Pope f o l l o w e d t h i s a d v i c e and defended h i s use

of i m i t a t i o n i n the 1717 P r e f a c e to h i s Works when he wrote

t h a t "they who say our thoughts are not our own, because they

resemble the A n c i e n t s , may as w e l l say our f a c e s are not our 32

own, because they are l i k e our F a t h e r s " .

In a l e t t e r t o Spence, Pope wrote t h a t he began i m i t a t i n g

c l a s s i c a l a u t h o r s , "not out of v a n i t y , but h u m i l i t y : I saw

how d e f e c t i v e my own t h i n g s were; and endeavoured to mend 33

my manner by copying good s t r o k e s from o t h e r s . " Both Pope 30

T.S. E l i o t , "The F u n c t i o n of C r i t i c i s m " (1923), S e l e c t e d Essays, p.24.

31 Thomson, p.205.

32 Alexander Pope, quoted by Marks, p.102.

33 Alexander Pope i n a l e t t e r to Spence, quoted by G e o f f r e y

T i l l o t s o n i n On the Poetry of Pope (London: Oxford U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1950), p.278.

11

and E l i o t f e l t t h a t modern authors had much to l e a r n from the

c l a s s i c s and t h a t the i m i t a t i o n o f the g r e a t w r i t e r s o f

a n t i q u i t y would mean the a p p l i c a t i o n of the most e f f e c t i v e

remedies t o modern i l l s w h i l e p r o v i d i n g the modern w r i t e r

w i t h a "measure of o b j e c t i v i t y " . 3 4

Even a f t e r d e v e l o p i n g h i s own p o e t i c t h e o r i e s and

techn i q u e s , Pope d i d not stop i m i t a t i n g or borrowing. He

f u r t h e r e d h i s i m i t a t i o n o f 'Ancient' authors i n or d e r t o

achieve "the p a r t i c u l a r composite e f f e c t s he was aiming a t "

s i n c e he found t h a t h i s p o e t r y " b e n e f i t t e d from t h i s i n c r e a s e d

area of s e n s i t i v e n e s s which he was r e q u i r i n g i n the mind of 35

h i s r e a d e r . " In oth e r words, Pope used i m i t a t i o n i n h i s

s a t i r e s t o extend t h e i r comic e f f e c t . E i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y

Augustan c r i t i c i s m argued t h a t "over and above a j u s t P a i n t i n g

of Nature, a l e a r n e d Reader w i l l f i n d a new Beauty superadded

i n a happy I m i t a t i o n of some famous A n c i e n t , as i t r e v i v e s i n h i s Mind the P l e a s u r e s he took i n f i r s t r e a d i n g such an

3 6

Author." N e o - c l a s s i c a l authors and c r i t i c s b e l i e v e d t h a t

" i m p o s s i b l e i t i s , without d e s e r t i n g n ature h e r s e l f , t o

d i s s e n t from her f a i t h f u l c o p i e r s . . . [because] ... a c o n s c i o u s aim

to be d i f f e r e n t exposes a w r i t e r t o the r i s k o f a r t i s t i c , „37 barrenness."

34 Gallaway, p.211. T i l l o t s o n , p.144. I b i d . , p.144. Marks, p.109.

35 36 37

Pope's verse i s " f u l l of a l l u s i o n s to the Humanist

c l a s s i c s and his f a v o r i t e English poets, Spenser, Milton, 3 8

Dryden and the Restoration w r i t e r s " . The Rape of the Lock i s a "mosaic of quotations, parodies, and a l l u s i o n s , derived from

39 the masters of epic and narrative poetry." This borrowing,

or imitation, used i n Pope's poetry i s an example of one of

the techniques of n e o - c l a s s i c a l s a t i r e . Even the astute

twentieth-century reader enjoys the i m i t a t i o n of Horace, Chaucer,

or Milton. Imitators appealed to the pleasure which an educated reader could obtain by comparing ancient and modern manner or even, by the p u b l i c a t i o n of English and L a t i n on opposite pages, to the delighted surprise at a s k i l l f u l display of ingenuity i n the choice of p a r a l l e l s .

In The Rape of the Lock, for example, Pope combines the

s a t i r i c i m i t a t i o n of the epic poem with a l l u s i o n s to various

authors.

Pope's imitation of famous l i n e s i s exemplified i n

the following extract:

Her love i n g i l d e d Chariots, when a l i v e , And love of Ombre, af t e r death s u r v i v e . 4 1

J O E l i z a b e t h Gurr, Pope (Edinburgh: O l i v e r and Boyd, 1971), p.7.

39 George Holden, ed., The Rape of the Lock (Oxford:

Clarendon Press, 1909), p . l i v . 40

Gallaway, p.211. 41

Alexander Pope, The Rape of the Lock, ed., Geoffrey T i l l o t s e n (London: Methuen and Co. Ltd., 3rd ed., 1962), Canto I, l i n e s 55-56. A l l future references to t h i s poem are from t h i s e d i t i o n and w i l l be i n t e r n a l i z e d using the abbreviation TRL followed by the Canto and l i n e numbers.

13

l i n e s o b v i o u s l y borrowed from Dryden's Aeneid;

The l o v e of Horses which they had, a l i v e , And c are of C h a r i o t s , a f t e r Death s u r v i v e . ^

Pope appears to borrow some of M i l t o n ' s e f f e c t s i n P a r a d i s e

L o s t , p a r t i c u l a r l y i n the a n g e l i c s p i r i t s , who when p a r t s are

severed, are m i r a c u l o u s l y r e s t o r e d as " t h ' E a t h e r e a l substance 43

c l o s ' d " and they are l e f t u n i n j u r e d : F a t e urg'd the sheers, and c u t the S y l p h i n twain, (But A i r y Substance soon u n i t e s a g a i n ! •* *(TRL I I I 151-152)

44

Pope's a l l u s i o n t o the " f a t a l Engine" c l o s e l y approximates

M i l t o n ' s a l l u s i v e i r o n y and echoes V i r g i l and Dryden.

The Waste Land i s evidence o f E l i o t ' s b e l i e f i n the

uses o f the l i t e r a t u r e of the p a s t w i t h i n contemporary w r i t i n g .

Indeed, The Waste Land i s "packed w i t h l i n e s , or h i n t s of l i n e s 45

w r i t t e n by o t h e r p o e t s . " By h i n t i n g a t a wide v a r i e t y of

l i t e r a r y sources - both i n the words and the rhythm and a l s o i n

themes - E l i o t keeps both h i s own p o e t r y and the borrowed p o e t r y

a l i v e w i t h i n a t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y c o n t e x t which i t s e l f i s d e s t i n e d

to become the p a s t . 42

John Dryden, The Aeneid, ed., James K i n s l e y (Oxford: Clarendon P r e s s , 1958), Book VI, l i n e s 890-891.

43 John M i l t o n , P a r a d i s e L o s t , ed., Helen D a r b i s h i r e (Oxford:

Clarendon P r e s s , 1962), Book VI, l i n e s 330. 44

Perhaps Pope i s a l l u d i n g to the " f a t a l d a r t " i n P a r a d i s e L o s t , Book I I , l i n e 786, or " t h a t two handed engine a t the y

door" i n " L y c i d a s " , l i n e 30. 45

Ian Hamilton,"The Waste L a n d " , E l i o t i n P e r s p e c t i v e : A Symposium, ed., Graham M a r t i n (London: Macmillan and Co., 1970), p.103.

14

In the Four Q u a r t e t s E l i o t d e s c r i b e s a poet's d i f f i c u l t y

i n c r e a t i n g a poem which both r e f l e c t s t r a d i t i o n and y e t i s an

i n d i v i d u a l c r e a t i o n :

...And what t h e r e i s to conquer

By s t r e n g t h and submission, has a l r e a d y been d i s c o v e r e d Once or t w i c e , or s e v e r a l times, by men whom one cannot

hope To emulate - but t h e r e i s no c o m p e t i t i o n -There i s o n l y the f i g h t t o r e c o v e r what has been l o s t And found and l o s t a g a i n and a g a i n : and now, under

c o n d i t i o n s That seem u n p r o p i t i o u s . But perhaps n e i t h e r g a i n nor l o s s . For us, t h e r e i s o n l y the t r y i n g . The r e s t i s not our

b u s i n e s s . . , 46

Taking E l i o t ' s a d m i r a t i o n f o r and indebtedness to Dante, as

an example, he c l e a r l y does not hope to "emulate" Dante, but

r a t h e r to emphasize Dante's themes i n o r d e r to "recover what

has been l o s t " .

Echoes from The I n f e r n o are e v i d e n t i n "Death by Water".

E l i o t asks the r e a d e r to "Consider Phlebas who was once handsome 47

and t a l l as you." Phlebas, a P h o e n i c i a n s a i l o r "a f o r t n i g h t

dead" (TWL 312), i s s i m i l a r to Phlegyas, the Boatman of Styx,

i n the e i g h t h canto of The I n f e r n o . T h i s echo of Dante serve s to remind the reader of the h e l l of l i f e i n The Waste Land.

Phlegyas a l s o s e r v e s as a reminder of the punishment i n H e l l

"East Coker", Four Q u a r t e t s , l i n e s 182-189. 4 7 T . S . E l i o t , The Waste Land, i n C o l l e c t e d Poems 1909-1935

(London: Faber and Faber L t d . , 1936), l i n e 321. A l l f u t u r e r e f e r e n c e s to t h i s poem are from t h i s e d i t i o n and w i l l be i n t e r n a l i z e d u s i n g the a b b r e v i a t i o n TWL f o l l o w e d by the l i n e numbers.

15

a f t e r death, as i t was he who guided "the f l y i n g s k i f f whose

prow/Shot toward us over the p o l l u t e d channel/With a s i n g l e

steersman a t the helm who c a l l e d : / ' S o do I have you a t l a s t ,

you whelp o f H e l l ? ' " 4 8

T i r e s i a s i s another c h a r a c t e r borrowed from The

I n f e r n o :

Dante stands i n the middle of the b r i d g e over the FOURTH BOLGIA and l o o k s down a t the s o u l s of the FORTUNE TELLERS AND DIVINERS. Here are the s o u l s o f a l l those who attempted by f o r b i d d e n a r t s t o look i n t o the f u t u r e . Among those damned a r e : T I RESIAS. 4 g

As punishment T i r e s i a s ' s head i s t u r n e d backwards on h i s body

so t h a t he must always walk backwards and never look forward

a g a i n . E l i o t makes e x c e l l e n t use of the reminder of T i r e s i a s ' s

punishment s i n c e one of the themes o f The Waste Land i s the

f u t i l i t y , and indeed, the s i n of f o r e s e e i n g the f u t u r e r a t h e r

than being c o n t e n t w i t h one's God-given p r e s e n t s t a t e .

E l i o t has commented on the f o r c e of Dante's i n f l u e n c e :

"I s t i l l , a f t e r f o r t y y e a r s , r e g a r d h i s p o e t r y as the most 50

p e r s i s t e n t and deepest i n f l u e n c e upon my own v e r s e " . He

c o n t i n u e s : C e r t a i n l y I have borrowed l i n e s from him, i n the attempt to reproduce, o r r a t h e r t o arouse i n the r e a d e r ' s mind the memory, o f some Dantesque scene, and thus e s t a b l i s h a r e l a t i o n s h i p between the medieval i n f e r n o and modern l i f e . Readers of my

' i°Dante A l i g h i e r i , The I n f e r n o , t r a n s . , John C i a r d i (Toronto: The New American L i b r a r y , 1954), Canto V I I I , l i n e s 15-18.

49 John C i a r d i , The I n f e r n o , p.174.

5 0 T . S . E l i o t , "What Dante Means to Me" (1950), To C r i t i c i z e the C r i t i c (London: Faber and Faber L t d . , 1945), p.125.

16

Waste Land w i l l perhaps remember t h a t the v i s i o n of my c i t y c l e r k s t r o o p i n g over London B r i d g e from the r a i l w a y s t a t i o n to t h e i r o f f i c e s evoked the r e f l e c t i o n *I had not thought death had undone so many'(.^

For n e o - c l a s s i c a l poets the

e x t e r n a l world o f f e r e d o n l y i m p e r f e c t models o f nature from which the a r t i s t , proud of h i s independence must s e l e c t t r a i t s here and t h e r e to compose the i d e a l l y b e a u t i f u l . The A n c i e n t s , however, had a l r e a d y s t u d i e d the e x t e r n a l world and c r e a t e d a second Nature, approved as b e a u t i f u l by the judgment of two thousand y e a r s and d o u b t l e s s l y s u p e r i o r because i t had e l i m i n a t e d the i m p e r f e c t i o n s and c o n f u s i o n s o f the crude e x t e r n a l world,.,,

As a n e o - c l a s s i c i s t , E l i o t o b j e c t e d to Romanticism's l a c k o f

o b j e c t i v i t y , and r e s t r a i n t , t o g e t h e r w i t h i t s avoidance of

t r a d i t i o n a l i d e a s . Although E l i o t admired Bla k e ' s p o e t r y ,

f o r example, he n e v e r t h e l e s s r e g r e t t e d t h a t B l a k e ' s c a p a c i t i e s

were not " c o n t r o l l e d by a r e s p e c t f o r impersonal reason, f o r

common sense, f o r the o b j e c t i v i t y o f s c i e n c e . . . [and] ...a 53

framework of accepted t r a d i t i o n a l i d e a s " .

James Thomson has commented t h a t i t " i s not v e r y easy to

d i s c u s s the c l a s s i c a l background of Mr. E l i o t , a l t h o u g h i t 54

i s v ery d i s t i n c t l y t h e r e , because he uses i t . " Perhaps

Thomson f i n d s d i s c u s s i o n of E l i o t ' s n e o - c l a s s i c i s m d i f f i c u l t

because, as E l i o t h i m s e l f has acknowledged, the vague meaning

of the terms "romanticism* and ' c l a s s i c i s m ' l i m i t s t h e i r

"What Dante Means to Me", To C r i t i c i z e the C r i t i c , p.128. Gallaway, pp.215-216. T.S. E l i o t , " W i l l i a m Blake" (1920), S e l e c t e d Essays, p.322. Thomson, p.260.

17

u s e f u l n e s s :

The d a n g e r o f u s i n g t e r m s l i k e ' r o m a n t i c ' and ' c l a s s i c ' - t h i s d o e s n o t however g i v e us p e r m i s s i o n t o a v o i d them a l t o g e t h e r - d o e s n o t s p r i n g so much f r o m t h e c o n f u s i o n c a u s e d by t h o s e who u s e t h e s e t e r m s a b o u t t h e i r own work, as f r o m i n e v i t a b l e s h i f t s o f m e a n i n g i n c o n t e x t . r c

T h u s , i n h i s e s s a y , "What i s a C l a s s i c ? " , E l i o t e x p l i c i t l y

e x a m i n e s h i s own m e a n i n g o f t h e t e r m ' c l a s s i c ' . He b e l i e v e d

t h a t a c l a s s i c c o u l d " o n l y o c c u r when a c i v i l i z a t i o n i s

m a t u r e ; when a l a n g u a g e and a l i t e r a t u r e a r e m a t u r e ; and i t 5 6

must be t h e work o f a m a t u r e m i n d . " A t t h e same t i m e

E l i o t saw t h e n e e d f o r a s o c i e t y w i t h m a t u r i t y o f manners and

i n command o f a w e l l d e v e l o p e d "common S t y l e " i n l i t e r a t u r e .

T h u s , when E l i o t o r Hulme c a l l f o r a c l a s s i c a l r e v i v a l , t h e y

do n o t mean an e x a c t r e t u r n t o t h e s t r i n g e n t r u l e s o f s o c i e t y

and l i t e r a t u r e w h i c h were p r e v a l e n t i n P o p e ' s e r a . R a t h e r ,

t h e y demand a r e t u r n t o b a s i c n e o - c l a s s i c a l l i t e r a r y t h e o r i e s .

A l t h o u g h t h e e i g h t e e n t h c e n t u r y , a s E l i o t s t a t e s , was n o t

a s i t t h o u g h t i t s e l f , " t h e f i n e s t p e r i o d i n E n g l i s h l i t e r a t u r e " ,

n e v e r t h e l e s s i t was s t i l l a p e r i o d whose l i t e r a t u r e E l i o t

a d m i r e d and whose l i t e r a r y q u a l i t i e s , he t h o u g h t , s h o u l d be

b o t h o b s e r v e d and e m u l a t e d . T h u s , a l t h o u g h "we h a v e no c l a s s i c

age, and no c l a s s i c p o e t i n E n g l i s h . . . w e must m a i n t a i n t h e 5 8

c l a s s i c i d e a l b e f o r e o u r e y e s . " E l i o t f e l t t h a t t h e r e was

^ T . S . E l i o t , A f t e r S t r a n g e Gods (Lo n d o n : F a b e r and F a b e r L t d . , 1934), p.26.

"What i s a C l a s s i c ? " , On P o e t r y and P o e t s , p.55. 5 7 I b i d . , p.59. 5 8 I b i d . , p.59.

18

no need f o r one p e r i o d i n E n g l i s h l i t e r a t u r e to be completely

c l a s s i c a l , s i n c e "the p e r i o d which most n e a r l y f i l l s the 59

c l a s s i c a l d e f i n i t i o n i s not the g r e a t e s t . " I n s t e a d he

b e l i e v e d t h a t "those l i t e r a t u r e s , of which E n g l i s h i s one of

the eminent, i n which the c l a s s i c a l q u a l i t i e s are s c a t t e r e d

between v a r i o u s authors and s e v e r a l p e r i o d s , may w e l l be the

r i c h e r . " 6 0

E a r l y i n the t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y T.E. Hulme, f r i e n d and

advocate to E l i o t and Pound, c a l l e d f o r a p o e t r y t h a t was

f o r m a l l y p r e c i s e and whose " p r e t e n s i o n s are l i m i t e d to simple 61

and v i v i d d e s c r i p t i o n . " E l i o t contended t h a t "no s e n s i b l e author, i n the midst o f something t h a t he i s t r y i n g t o w r i t e ,

can stop to c o n s i d e r whether he i s going to be romantic or 6 2

the o p p o s i t e " . N e v e r t h e l e s s , i t must be conceded t h a t he

leaned towards c l a s s i c i s m , i n Hulme's sense, and i n The

Waste Land propounds the t r a d i t i o n a l n e o - c l a s s i c a l view o f

the s o c i a l , moral, and r e l i g i o u s l i m i t a t i o n s o f man.

T.E. Hulme c o n c e i v e d of romanticism as the b e l i e f i n man

having u n l i m i t e d p o t e n t i a l - romantic man a s p i r e s to godhead,

to heaven, and b e l i e v e s t h a t he can a c h i e v e transcendence. However,

c l a s s i c i s m , f o r Hulme, i s the b e l i e f t h a t man i s r e s t r i c t e d ,

a " l i m i t e d animal whose nature i s a b s o l u t e l y c o n s t a n t . I t

i s o n l y by t r a d i t i o n and o r g a n i z a t i o n t h a t a n y t h i n g can be

"What i s a C l a s s i c ? " , On Poetry and Poets, p.54. 6 0 I b i d . , p.54. 61

T.E. Hulme, i n S h a p i r o , p.116. 6 2 A f t e r Strange Gods, p.26.

19

got out o f him." Led by t r a d i t i o n , a n e o - c l a s s i c a l poet

would thus w r i t e a c c u r a t e l y o n l y of the f i n i t e world, of man

hampered by o r i g i n a l s i n , a concern which E l i o t i s o b v i o u s l y

i n agreement w i t h when q u o t i n g B a u d e l a i r e :

'In the l i g h t of these a b s o l u t e v a l u e s , man h i m s e l f i s judged to be e s s e n t i a l l y l i m i t e d and i m p e r f e c t endowed w i t h O r i g i n a l S i n . While he can o c c a s i o n a l l y a c complish a c t s which partake of p e r f e c t i o n , he can never be p e r f e c t . C e r t a i n secondary r e s u l t s i n r e g a r d to o r d i n a r y human a c t i o n i n s o c i e t y f o l l o w from t h i s . A man i s e s s e n t i a l l y bad, he can o n l y accomplish a n y t h i n g of v a l u e by d i s c i p l i n e - e t h i c a l and p o l i t i c a l . Order i s thus not merely n e g a t i v e , but c r e a t i v e and l i b e r a t i n g . I n s t i t u t i o n s are n e c e s s a r y • 1

In w r i t i n g p o e t r y o f the ' f i n i t e ' w o r l d , E l i o t succeeds i n

p r e s e n t i n g r e a l i t y i n the terms which Hulme recommends f o r

t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y n e o - c l a s s i c a l poets and which are s i m i l a r

t o those which Pope p r e s e n t s f o r e i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y r e a d e r s ,

While Romantic i n t e l l e c t u a l s viewed man as having

l i m i t l e s s p o t e n t i a l i t y , n e o - c l a s s i c i s t s c o n c e i v e d of man as 6 5

" l i m i t e d , d u a l i s t i c , and i m p e r f e c t " . The r e l i g i o u s b e l i e f s

o f Pope and E l i o t compound w i t h t h e i r p h i l o s o p h i c a l and

l i t e r a r y b e l i e f s through t h e i r bond w i t h c l a s s i c i s m . Hulme

expresses t h i s o u t l o o k by w r i t i n g t h a t "the essence of

romanticism i s l o c a t e d i n i t s i d o l a t r y of the i n d i v i d u a l who, 6 6

f o r the r o m a n t i c s , should have u n l i m i t e d powers." Pope

and E l i o t c o n s i s t e n t l y oppose t h i s type o f romanticism.

Man should l i m i t h i s a s p i r a t i o n s ; he should be c o n t e n t w i t h

T.E. Hulme, i n Sh a p i r o , p.91. 64

" B a u d e l a i r e " , S e l e c t e d Essays, p.392. T h r a l l , Hibbard and Holman, p.310.

^ M u r r a y K r i e g e r , The New A p o l o g i s t s f o r Poetry ( M i n n e a p o l i s : The U n i v e r s i t y of Minnesota P r e s s , 1969), p.33.

20

h i s p r e s e n t l i f e on e a r t h , and not seek to t r a n s c e n d h i s p r e s e n t

s t a t e i f he i s to ever know happiness.

In the " U n i v e r s a l P r a y e r " , Pope s t a t e s t h a t man should

be c o n t e n t w i t h h i m s e l f and the knowledge t h a t God e x i s t s

and t h a t God i s good:

Thou Great F i r s t Cause, l e a s t understood: Who a l l my Sense c o n f i n e d

To know but t h i s , t h a t Thou a r t Good, And t h a t myself am b l i n d . ^

These l i n e s correspond w i t h the n o t i o n expressed by E l i o t i n

the Four Q u a r t e t s , t h a t w h i l e many men tend to seek knowledge

beyond t h a t which they p r e s e n t l y possess, they d e l v e o n l y

i n t o the f u t u r e and not the p a s t . " M a t u r i t y o f mind...needs 6 8

h i s t o r y , and the c o n s c i o u s n e s s o f h i s t o r y . " The p a s t i s

p a r t o f man's p r e s e n t b e i n g . The t r u e C h r i s t i a n man sho u l d

be aware o n l y o f h i s p r e s e n t moment i n time - h i s one-to-one

r e l a t i o n s h i p w i t h God - and not be p r e o c c u p i e d w i t h the f u t u r e : Men's c u r i o s i t y searches p a s t and f u t u r e And c l i n g s to t h a t dimension. But t o apprehend The p o i n t o f i n t e r s e c t i o n o f the t i m e l e s s With time, i s an o c c u p a t i o n f o r the s a i n t .

Thus one a s p e c t o f the n e o - c l a s s i c a l o u t l o o k i s a sense o f the

f i n i t e n e s s o f man, supplemented perhaps by a need f o r an

o r d e r l y r e l i g i o u s h i e r a r c h y .

I t was T.E. Hulme who l e d the r e v o l t o f e a r l y t w e n t i e t h -

century n e o - c l a s s i c a l w r i t e r s a g a i n s t the s u p e r f l u o u s and

Alexander Pope, " U n i v e r s a l P r a y e r " , eds., Normal A u l t and John B u t t (London: Methuen and Co. L t d . , 1964), l i n e s 5-8.

6 8 "What i s a C l a s s i c ? " , On Poe t r y and Poets, p.60.

6 9 " D r y Salvag e s " , Four Q u a r t e t s , l i n e s 199-202.

21

hazy use o f language, e s p e c i a l l y e p i t h e t s , which he f e l t were

"'beads on a c h a i n ' , p h y s i c a l t h i n g s c a r r y i n g no r e a l i t y .

A g a i n s t words he opposed the image as a u n i t and the analogy 70

as an instrument of thought". One of the most s t r i k i n g

f e a t u r e s of The Waste Land i s the imagery, which f o l l o w s

the p a t t e r n l a i d by Hulme, who advocated "new and o r i g i n a l ways

of s a y i n g t h i n g s " i f "poetry was to be a c c u r a t e " , "a new 71

k i n d of imagery: f r e s h , unusual metaphors and a n a l o g i e s . " Hulme b e l i e v e d t h a t " a l l emotion depends on r e a l s o l i d v i s i o n

72

or sound. I t i s p h y s i c a l . " S i n c e p l a i n speech " i s e s s e n t i a l l y

i n a c c u r a t e " , i t i s o n l y by "new metaphors" t h a t i t can be made

p r e c i s e . T h e r e f o r e Hulme advocated a p o e t r y i n a v i s u a l 73

sense where each word "must be an image seen, not a c o u n t e r . "

E z r a Pound, who had a g r e a t i n f l u e n c e on E l i o t ' s t h i n k i n g

and who was i n t u r n i n f l u e n c e d by Hulme, l e d the Imagist

movement, which advocated the f o l l o w i n g l i t e r a r y r u l e s : 1. D i r e c t treatment o f the ' t h i n g ' whether

s u b j e c t i v e o r o b j e c t i v e . 2. To use a b s o l u t e l y no word t h a t does not

c o n t r i b u t e t o the p r e s e n t a t i o n . 3. As r e g a r d i n g rhythm: to compose i n the

sequence o f the m u s i c a l phrase, not i n sequence of a metronome.^

70 T.E. Hulme, Notes on Language and S t y l e , ed., H e r b e r t

Read (Washington: U n i v e r s i t y of Washington Chapbooks, no d a t e ) , p.7.

71 T.E. Hulme, quoted i n Gertrude P a t t e r s o n , T.S. E l i o t :

Poems i n the Making (New York: Manchester U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1971), p.21.

72 T.E. Hulme, Notes on Language and S t y l e , p.10.

73 I b i d . , p.11.

74 E z r a Pound, from "A R e t r o s p e c t " , i n S h a p i r o , p.105.

2 2

I n t h e c o m p o s i t i o n o f h i s p o e t r y , e s p e c i a l l y T h e W a s t e L a n d ,

i t i s w e l l k n o w n t h a t E l i o t w a s g u i d e d b y t h e r u l e s f o r m e d b y

P o u n d a n d t h e I m a g i s t m o v e m e n t .

I n m a n y r e s p e c t s P o p e ' s c r i t i c i s m c o n f o r m s t o

P o u n d ' s I m a g i s t i c c r i t e r i a . H e a l s o r e c o m m e n d e d " d i r e c t

t r e a t m e n t o f t h e ' t h i n g ' " , o b s e r v i n g t h a t t h e e l a b o r a t e n e s s

o f c o n c e i t , f o r e x a m p l e , o n l y c l o u d s t h e p o e t ' s s u b j e c t . A

p o e t w h o a t t e m p t s t o s h o w h i s i n t e l l i g e n c e t h r o u g h w i t , c o n c e i t ,

a n d w o r d i n e s s i s n o t a p o e t o f c r a f t . L i k e P o u n d , P o p e d i r e c t s

p o e t s t o " u s e n o s u p e r f l u o u s w o r d , n o a d j e c t i v e w h i c h d o e s

7 5

n o t r e v e a l s o m e t h i n g " f o r " w o r d s a r e l i k e l e a v e s , a n d w h e r e

t h e y m o s t a b o u n d , / M u c h f r u i t o f s e n s e b e n e a t h i s r a r e l y

f o u n d . " ( E C 3 0 9 - 3 1 0 ) T h e p o e t o f p o o r q u a l i t y a t t e m p t s t o

h i d e h i s i n a b i l i t y t o e x p r e s s h i s t h o u g h t s b e h i n d g l i t t e r i n g

v e r b o s i t y : S o m e t o C o n c e i t a l o n e t h e i r t a s t e c o n f i n e

A n d g l i t t e r i n g t h o u g h t s s t r u c k o u t a t e v e r y l i n e ; P l e a s e d w i t h a w o r k w h e r e n o t h i n g ' s j u s t o r f i t ; O n e g l a r i n g C h a o s a n d w i l d h e a p o f w i t . ^ E C 2 8 9 - 2 9 2 )

I n h i s p o e t r y P o p e e x p r e s s e d t h e n e e d f o r d i r e c t , c o n c i s e ,

a n d n o n - m e c h a n i c a l p o e t r y :

P o e t s l i k e p a i n t e r s , t h u s , u n s k i l l e d t o t r a c e T h e n a k e d n a t u r e a n d t h e l i v i n g g r a c e , W i t h g o l d a n d j e w e l s c o v e r e v e r y p a r t , A n d h i d e w i t h o r n a m e n t s t h e i r w a n t o f a r t . T r u e W i t i s N a t u r e t o a d v a n t a g e d r e s s e d , W h a t o f t w a s t h o u g h t , b u t n e ' e r s o w e l l e x p r e s s e d ; S o m e t h i n g , w h o s e t r u t h c o n v i n c e d a t s i g h t w e f i n d , T h a t g i v e s u s b a c k t h e i m a g e o f o u r m i n d . ^ E C 2 9 3 - 3 0 0 )

7 5 E z r a P o u n d , f r o m " A R e t r o s p e c t " , i n S h a p i r o , p . 1 0 6 .

23

These views are a l s o expressed by E l i o t i n the Four Q u a r t e t s

where he c o n s i d e r s the proper manner of c r e a t i n g a memorable

poem:

What we c a l l the beg i n n i n g i s o f t e n the end And to make an end i s to make a b e g i n n i n g . The end i s where we s t a r t from. And every phrase And sentence t h a t i s r i g h t (where every word i s a t home, Taking i t s p l a c e to support the o t h e r s , The word n e i t h e r d i f f i d e n t nor o s t e n t a t i o u s , An easy commerce of the o l d and the new, The common word exact without v u l g a r i t y , The formal word p r e c i s e but not p e d a n t i c , The complete c o n s o r t dancing together) Every phrase and every sentence i s an end and a b e g i n n i n g , Every poem an e p i t a p h .

Pound, Pope, and E l i o t b e l i e v e d , as Hulme has phrased i t ,

t h a t t h e r e should be "a p o e t r y t h a t i s f o r m a l l y p r e c i s e and 77

whose p r e t e n t i o n s are l i m i t e d t o simple and v i v i d d e s c r i p t i o n , "

A t the same time, they a l s o lamented t h a t d e f e c t o f c o n t r i v e d

p o e t r y which f o r c e d the words to f i t the rhythm. Many people

review p o e t r y , Pope wrote, not " f o r the d o c t r i n e but the

music th e r e . " ( E C 340) Pope, w h i l e d i s c u s s i n g the f a u l t o f

r h y t h m i c a l l y c o n t r i v e d p o e t r y , i l l u s t r a t e d t h a t f a u l t through

exaggerated r h y t h m i c a l use i n the f o l l o w i n g l i n e s :

These equal s y l l a b l e s alone r e q u i r e , Though o f t the ear the open v o w e l l s t i r e ; While e x p l e t i v e s t h e i r f e e b l e a i d do j o i n ; And ten low words o f t creep i n one d u l l l i n e : While they r i n g round the same u n v a r i e d chimes, With sure r e t u r n s of s t i l l expected rhymes^ 341-345)

" L i t t l e G i d d i n g " , Four Q u a r t e t s , l i n e s 214-225. K r i e g e r , p.33.

24

Two hundred years l a t e r Pound expressed the same sentiment i n

prose when he o b j e c t e d t h a t "the words are s h o v e l l e d i n t o f i l l 7 8

a m e t r i c p a t t e r n o r to complete the n o i s e o f a rhyme sound."

He added, when a poet uses "a symmetrical form, [ a f a v o r i t e o f

Pope and the n e o - c l a s s i c i s t s ] don't put i n what you want t o 79

say and then f i l l up the remaining vacuum w i t h s l u s h . "

In harmony w i t h n e o - c l a s s i c i s t p r i n c i p l e s , E l i o t ' s s t y l e

i s " p r e c i s e and co n c e n t r a t e d ; he experiments w i t h form, as the

c l a s s i c s and n e o - c l a s s i c s l i k e Pope r a r e l y d i d , but he i s 8 0

never f o r m l e s s , as h i s i m i t a t o r s too o f t e n a r e . " Thus

E l i o t uses the d i s c i p l i n e o f p o e t i c form which n e o - c l a s s i c a l

t r a d i t i o n f e l t n e cessary to e n c a p s u l a t e thought. Pound

s t r u c k the r i g h t balance when he wrote t h a t the "rhythmic

s t r u c t u r e should not d e s t r o y the shape of your words, or t h e i r 81

n a t u r a l sound, or t h e i r meaning."

Although i m p r e s s i v e l y a t ease i n d i s c u s s i n g a l l p e r i o d s

of E n g l i s h l i t e r a t u r e , E l i o t seems most c o m f o r t a b l e w i t h

n e o - c l a s s i c i s m . He focuses c o n s i d e r a b l e a t t e n t i o n upon seventeenth

and e i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y p o e t s , as w e l l as on s a t i r e , and he has

hi g h p r a i s e f o r both Dryden and Pope: 'Waller was smooth' indeed, but h i s smoothness i s f e e b l e n e s s , compared t o a n y t h i n g accomplished by Dryden o r Pope h i m s e l f : the smoothness of an ambling pad-pony compared to t h a t o f a f i e r y horse w i t h an expert r i d e r . Q O 7 8

E z r a Pound, "A R e t r o s p e c t " , i n S h a p i r o , p.105. 7 9 I b i d . , p.105. ^Thomson, p.261. 81

E z r a Pound, "A R e t r o s p e c t " , i n S h a p i r o , p.107. 8 2

T.S. E l i o t , "John Dryden", Homage to John Dryden (London: T.S. E l i o t , L. London and V i r g i n i a Woolf, 1924), p.11.

2 5

E l i o t ' s s i m i l a r i t y t o t h e s e n e o - c l a s s i c a l w r i t e r s c a n b e

f e l t i n t h e f o l l o w i n g c o m m e n t o n t h a t p e r i o d :

E n g l i s h l i t e r a t u r e b e t w e e n 1 6 6 0 a n d 1 7 9 8 w a s p r e d o m i n a n t l y a p r o s e l i t e r a t u r e . O f t h e p o e t s w h o w r o t e b e t w e e n t h o s e d a t e s t h e n a m e s o f a b a r e h a l f d o z e n l i v e i n t h e m e m o r y . D r y d e n a n d P o p e , m o r e o v e r , w e a r e a p t t o t h i n k o f a s c r i t i c s r a t h e r t h a n a s p o e t s - c r i t i c s o f s o c i e t y a n d i n s t i t u t i o n s a s w e l l a s o f l i t e r a t u r e . n ^

A s w i t h P o p e a n d D r y d e n , P o u n d a n d E l i o t a r e o f t e n t h o u g h t

o f a s c r i t i c s a s r e a d i l y a s t h e y a r e r e g a r d e d a s p o e t s .

I n a d i s c u s s i o n o f P o p e ' s r e l a t i o n s h i p t o E l i o t , o n e

c a n n o t i g n o r e t h e i n f l u e n c e w h i c h J o h n D r y d e n h a s h a d u p o n b o t h

p o e t s , f o r a s E l i o t w r o t e : " D r y d e n i s a s u c c e s s o r o f

J o n s o n , a n d t h e r e f o r e t h e d e s c e n d e n t o f M a r l o w e ; h e i s t h e

a n c e s t o r o f n e a r l y a l l t h a t i s b e s t i n t h e p o e t r y o f t h e

8 4

e i g h t e e n t h c e n t u r y . " T h e n e o - c l a s s i c a l e r a h a d b e e n m u c h

m a l i g n e d , a n d E l i o t f o u n d h i m s e l f c o n s t a n t l y d e f e n d i n g D r y d e n

a n d P o p e f r o m a d v e r s e l i t e r a r y c r i t i c s : " I t u s e d t o b e

t h o u g h t t h e p o e t i c s t y l e s o f D r y d e n a n d P o p e w e r e a r t i f i c i a l .

O n e h a s o n l y t o c o m p a r e t h e m w i t h t h e s t y l e o f D r y d e n ' s g

i m m e d i a t e p r e d e c e s s o r , A b r a h a m C o w l e y , t o p r o v e t h e c o n t r a r y . "

E v e n i n t h e e i g h t e e n t h c e n t u r y D r y d e n w a s d e f a m e d b y

c e r t a i n p o e t s a n d c r i t i c s . A l e x a n d e r P o p e , h o w e v e r , w a s n o t

o n e o f t h e s e c r i t i c s , a n d h e r e c a l l e d t h a t i t " w a s D r y d e n

w h o m a d e W i l l ' s c o f f e e h o u s e t h e g r e a t r e s o r t f o r t h e w i t s o f

C l a r e n c e C . G r e e n , p . 2 3 2 .

T . S . E l i o t , " J o h n D r y d e n " ( 1 9 2 1 ) , S e l e c t e d E s s a y s , p . 3 0 5 .

" J o h n D r y d e n " , i n H o m a g e t o J o h n D r y d e n , p . 1 0 .

26

h i s time." L i k e E l i o t , Pope r e c o g n i z e d Dryden 1s g r e a t n e s s

and b e l i e v e d t h a t the l i t e r a r y h e r i t a g e which Dryden c r e a t e d

would endure: "what Timotheus was, i s DRYDEN now." (EC 383)

Fame i s f l e e t i n g ; o n l y g r e a t p o e t r y and g r e a t poets are

r e c o g n i z e d and perpetuated, as Pope contends i n the f o l l o w i n g

passage:

No l o n g e r now t h a t golden age appears, When P a t r i a r c h w i t s s u r v i v e d a thousand y e a r s : Now l e n g t h o f Fame (our second l i f e ) i s l o s t , And bare t h r e e s c o r e i s a l l even t h a t can boast; Our sons t h e i r f a t h e r s ' f a u l t y language see, And such as Chaucer i s , s h a l l Dryden b e . ^ E C 4 7 3 - 4 8 3 )

E l i o t ' s a d m i r a t i o n f o r e i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y w r i t e r s i s

r e f l e c t e d i n h i s technique and themes. In t h i s c o n n e c t i o n

c r i t i c s have o f t e n s t r e s s e d the importance o f E l i o t ' s moral

tone. However, v e r y l i t t l e comment has been made on h i s

s a t i r e , and i t i s i n the p r a c t i c e o f the s a t i r i s t ' s a r t t h a t

E l i o t and Pope seem p a r t i c u l a r l y to concur. The s a t i r i s t i s

the c r i t i c o f s o c i e t y - commenting on, and a t t a c k i n g v a r i e t i e s

of h y p o c r i s y and a f f e c t a t i o n .

E l i o t b e l i e v e d i n s a t i r e as an i n f l u e n t i a l form o f p o e t r y ,

and condemned those people who were too d u l l to r e a l i z e i t s

importance:

. . . t h e i r i n s e n s i b i l i t y does not merely s i g n i f y i n d i f f e r e n c e t o s a t i r e and w i t , but l a c k o f p e r c e p t i o n o f q u a l i t i e s not c o n f i n e d to s a t i r e and w i t and p r e s e n t i n the work of o t h e r poets whom these persons f e e l t h a t they understand.

Robert J . A l l e n , The Clubs o f Augustan London (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1933), Harvard S t u d i e s i n E n g l i s h , V o l . V I I , p.28.

27

To those whose t a s t e i n p o e t r y i s formed e n t i r e l y upon the E n g l i s h p o e t r y of the n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y - to the m a j o r i t y - i t i s d i f f i c u l t to e x p l a i n or excuse Dryden: the t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y i s s t i l l n i n e t e e n t h , although i t may i n time a c q u i r e i t s own c h a r a c t e r . - -

o /

S i m i l a r l y , Pope observed t h a t many seventeenth and e i g h t e e n t h -

c e n t u r y r e a d e r s missed the s t r e n g t h o f Dryden's s a t i r i c

a r t and t h a t o t h e r s who p e r c e i v e d the aim were b l i n d e d by

p e r s o n a l p r e j u d i c e and r e f u s e d to see the a r t i s t r y o f Dryden's

p o e t r y , which Pope thought both p e r c e p t i v e and r e f i n e d :

P a r t i e s i n Wit a t t e n d on those of S t a t e , And p u b l i c f a c t i o n doubles p r i v a t e hate. P r i d e , M a l i c e , F o l l y , a g a i n s t Dryden r o s e , In v a r i o u s shapes of Parsons, C r i t i c s , Beaus; But sense s u r v i v e d , when merry j e s t s were past; For r i s i n g m e r i t w i l l buoy up a t l a s t . / T , ^ , A r.,

^ 2 ^ ( E C 456-461)

From the n e o - c l a s s i c i s t v i e w p o i n t , the r o l e of the poet

as c r i t i c i s v i t a l . Dryden p l a y s an i n f l u e n t i a l r o l e i n the

p o e t i c c r i t i c i s m o f both Pope and E l i o t because he l a i d the

f o u n d a t i o n upon which many i n f l u e n t i a l n e o - c l a s s i c i s t poets

have c r e a t e d t h e i r own p o e t r y . S i m i l a r l y , E l i o t saw Pope as

an example o f a poet who has molded a l i t e r a r y h e r i t a g e and

c r e a t e d a p o e t r y which w i l l l a s t through time: For ' i n f l u e n c e ' , as Dryden had i n f l u e n c e , a poet must not be so g r e a t as to overshadow a l l f o l l o w e r s . Dryden was f o l l o w e d by Pope, and a c e n t u r y l a t e r , by Samuel Johnson; both men of g r e a t and o r i g i n a l g e n i u s , who developed the medium l e f t them by Dryden i n ways which c a s t honour both on them and on him.gg

T.S. E l i o t , "John Dryden", S e l e c t e d Essays, p.305. "John Dryden", i n Homage to John Dryden, p.6.

28

Both Pope and E l i o t have commented e x t e n s i v e l y on the

composition of p o e t r y and prose and on the p r a c t i c e of l i t e r a r y

c r i t i c i s m . In "The P e r f e c t C r i t i c " , E l i o t s t a t e d t h a t the

a r t i s t i s , "each w i t h i n h i s own l i m i t a t i o n s - o f t e n e s t to be

depended upon as a c r i t i c ; h i s c r i t i c i s m w i l l be c r i t i c i s m ,

and not the s a t i s f a c t i o n of a suppressed c r e a t i v e wish -8 9

what, i n most o t h e r persons, i s apt t o i n t e r f e r e f a t a l l y . "

In the Essay on C r i t i c i s m , Pope h o l d s the same o p i n i o n as E l i o t

on the matter of the author as c r i t i c :

In Poets as t r u e genius i s but r a r e , True T a s t e as seldom i s the C r i t i c ' s share; Both must a l i k e from Heaven d e r i v e t h e i r l i g h t , These born t o judge, as w e l l as those to w r i t e . L e t such t e a c h o t h e r s who themselves e x c e l , And censure f r e e l y who have w r i t t e n w e l l . ,,

J (EC 11-16)

Pope and E l i o t r e g a r d s u c c e s s f u l authors as the b e s t q u a l i f i e d

and l e a s t p a r t i a l c r i t i c s .

In t h e i r assessment of l i t e r a r y c r i t i c s , E l i o t and Pope

p i n p o i n t f a u l t s which d i m i n i s h the power and v e r a c i t y o f a

c r i t i c ' s words. The f a u l t s o f many c r i t i c s are not found i n

t h e i r manner of w r i t i n g , but r a t h e r i n p r e j u d i c e s and p a r t i a l i t i e s

which are r e f l e c t e d i n t h e i r c r i t i c i s m . In "Johnson as C r i t i c " ,

E l i o t blames Johnson f o r h i s w h i m s i c a l a b i l i t y to i g n o r e f a u l t s

i n one author which he r e c o g n i z e s i n o t h e r s . The " v e r s i f i c a t i o n

i s sometimes no b e t t e r than t h a t o f a schoolboy's e x e r c i s e " ,

w r i t e s E l i o t o f Blackmore's " C r e a t i o n " ; Johnson, he w r i t e s , 89

T.S. E l i o t , "The P e r f e c t C r i t i c " , The Sacred Wood (London: Methuen and Co. L t d . , 1950), p.7.

i n d i s c u s s i n g Blackmore "must have been b l i n d e d to the d e f e c t s 90

which he would have reproved i n Dryden or Pope". The p r i n c i p a l

reason f o r t h i s b l i n d n e s s may have been g i v e n i n Pope's

Essay on C r i t i c i s m :

Of a l l the Causes which c o n s p i r e t o b l i n d Man's e r r i n g judgment, and misguide the mind, What the weak head w i t h s t r o n g e s t b i a s r u l e s , Is P r i d e , the n e v e r - f a i l i n g v i c e o f f o o l s . , i r > v i \

In Pope's o p i n i o n , p r i d e stands i n the way of a c r i t i c ' s

honest judgment. P r i d e makes the c r i t i c b e l i e v e t h a t i t i s h i s

o p i n i o n - and h i s alone - which i s the o n l y e v a l u a t i v e t r u t h .

E l i o t has w r i t t e n t h a t the c r i t i c " i f he i s to j u s t i f y h i s

e x i s t e n c e should endeavour to d i s c i p l i n e h i s p e r s o n a l 91

p r e j u d i c e s and cr a n k s . " I t i s p r i d e which makes many

c r i t i c s look o n l y t o t h e i r own i n t e l l i g e n c e r a t h e r than

c o n s u l t i n g w i t h f e l l o w c r i t i c s . The c r i t i c "should endeavour

to...compose h i s d i f f e r e n c e s w i t h as many of h i s f e l l o w s as 92

p o s s i b l e , i n the common p u r s u i t o f t r u e judgment." As

Pope so a p t l y comments i n a c o u p l e t o f a d v i c e t o the c r i t i c :

T r u s t not y o u r s e l f ; but your d e f e c t s know, Make use of every f r i e n d - and every f o e . ^ E C 213-214)

E l i o t b e l i e v e d t h a t r e a d e r s should abandon the c r i t i c s

who r e f u s e t o " c o l l a b o r a t e " - who r e f u s e t o abandon t h e i r

p e r s o n a l p r e j u d i c e s i n favour o f an o b j e c t i v e e l u c i d a t i o n and

e v a l u a t i o n o f a work of a r t . He came to suspect t h a t the

90 T.S. E l i o t , "Johnson as C r i t i c " (1944), On Poetry and

Poets, p.194. 91

T.S. E l i o t , "The F u n c t i o n o f C r i t i c i s m " (1923), S e l e c t e d Essays, p.25.

92 I b i d . , p.25.

3 0

a r b i t r a r y c r i t i c " o w e d h i s l i v e l i h o o d t o t h e v i o l e n c e a n d

e x t r e m i t y , t o o t h e r c r i t i c s , o r e l s e t o s o m e t r i f l i n g o d d i t i e s

o f h i s o w n w h i c h h e c o n t i n u e s t o s e a s o n t h e o p i n i o n w h i c h m e n

a l r e a d y h o l d a n d w h i c h o u t o f v a n i t y a n d s l o t h t h e y p r e f e r

9 3

t o m a i n t a i n . " A s P o p e s t a t e d , e a c h c r i t i c b e l i e v e s h i s

o w n o p i n i o n a n d c a t e r s t o h i s o w n f o i b l e s e v e n t h o u g h h e i s

p l a c i n g h i s o p i n i o n s b e f o r e t h e p u b l i c r e a d e r s :

A u t h o r s a r e p a r t i a l t o t h e i r w i t , ' t i s t r u e , B u t a r e n o t C r i t i c s t o t h e i r j u d g m e n t t o o ? ^.T-IS)

b e c a u s e :

' T i s w i t h o u r j u d g m e n t s a s o u r w a t c h e s , n o n e G o j u s t a l i k e , y e t e a c h b e l i e v e s h i s o w n . ^ E C -y_gj

A n d w h e n t h e c r i t i c s f i n d s t r o n g p o i n t i n a n a u t h o r ' s w o r k s ,

p e r h a p s i t i s b e c a u s e t h e y , l i k e " w e b u t p r a i s e o u r s e l v e s i n

o t h e r m e n . " ( E C 4 5 5 )

T h i s v a n i t y m a k e s t h e c r i t i c a n u n r e l i a b l e c o m m e n t a t o r

o n l i t e r a t u r e , s i n c e i t e v o k e s e m o t i o n s w h i c h p r e j u d i c e h i s

v i e w s : " £ A ] l i t e r a r y c r i t i c s h o u l d h a v e n o e m o t i o n s e x c e p t t h o

9 4

i m m e d i a t e l y p r o v o k e d b y a w o r k o f a r t " . E l i o t ' s i n s i s t e n c e

t h a t t h e c r i t i c s h o u l d a p p r o a c h a r t w i t h a n i m p a r t i a l c r i t i c a l

o p i n i o n i s w e l l k n o w n . T h e c r i t i c " m u s t n o t m a k e j u d g m e n t s o f

w o r s e o r b e t t e r . H e m u s t s i m p l y e l u c i d a t e ; t h e r e a d e r w i l l 9 5

f o r m t h e c o r r e c t j u d g m e n t f o r h i m s e l f . " P o p e a l s o e x p r e s s e s

t h i s o p i n i o n w h e n h e c o m m e n t s t h a t w e " c a n n o t b l a m e i n d e e d " ,

( E C 2 4 2 ) b u t i n " e v e r y w o r k r e g a r d t h e w r i t e r ' s E n d " . ( E C 2 5 5 ) 9 3

" T h e F u n c t i o n o f C r i t i c i s m " , S e l e c t e d E s s a y s , p . 2 5 . 9 4 , 9 5 .

9 4 " T h e P e r f e c t C r i t i c " , T h e S a c r e d W o o d , p . 1 2 .

I b i d . , p . 1 1 .

31

The c r i t i c and the reader can both enjoy l i t e r a t u r e , and

l e a r n from i t i f they are r e c e p t i v e :

A p e r f e c t Judge w i l l read each work o f Wit With the same s p i r i t t h a t i t s author w r i t : Survey the WHOLE, nor seek s l i g h t f a u l t s to f i n d Where nature moves, and r a p t u r e warms the mind; Nor l o s e , f o r t h a t malignant d u l l d e l i g h t , The generous p l e a s u r e to be charmed w i t h w i t . 2 3 3 - 2 3 8 )

Although he should not make o p p r e s s i v e judgments, the

c r i t i c who p r e s c r i b e s r u l e s and d i s s e c t s p o e t r y f o r the mere

purpose of d i s s e c t i n g and p r e s c r i b i n g i s not p e r f o r m i n g

h i s job, a c c o r d i n g to E l i o t : In "matters o f g r e a t importance 96

the c r i t i c must not c o e r c e . " In o r d e r to be o f v a l u e ,

c r i t i c i s m "must always p r o f e s s an end i n view, which, r o u g h l y

speaking, appears to be the e l u c i d a t i o n o f works of a r t 97

and the c o r r e c t i o n of t a s t e . " Pope too i n s t r u c t s the c r i t i c as t o the manner of approaching the e d u c a t i o n o f the r e a d e r :

' T i s not enough, your c o u n s e l s t i l l be t r u e ; B l u n t t r u t h s more m i s c h i e f than n i c e f a l s e h o o d s do; Men must be taught as i f you taught them not, And t h i n g s unknown proposed as t h i n g s f o r g o t . ^ ^ 2 - 5 7 5 )

Pope's o p i n i o n u n i t e s w i t h E l i o t ' s b e l i e f t h a t the "dogmatic

c r i t i c , who l a y s down a r u l e , who a f f i r m s a v a l u e , has l e f t 9 8

h i s l a b o u r incomplete." O f t e n i n the process o f e l u c i d a t i n g the work o f a r t ,

"The P e r f e c t C r i t i c " , The Sacred Wood, p.11. "The F u n c t i o n o f C r i t i c i s m " , S e l e c t e d E s s a y s , p.24. "The P e r f e c t C r i t i c " , The Sacred Wood, p.11.

32

the c r i t i c , a l though not e m o t i o n a l l y b i a s e d , can become too

narrow i n h i s a n a l y s i s of form. The " p u r e l y ' t e c h n i c a l ' c r i t i c

- the c r i t i c , t h a t i s , who w r i t e s to expound some n o v e l t y or

impart some l e s s o n to p r a c t i t i o n e r s o f an a r t - can be c a l l e d 99

a c r i t i c o n l y i n a narrow sense." Pope's views are s i m i l a r : N e g l e c t the r u l e s each v e r b a l C r i t i c l a y s . For not to know some t r i f l e s , i s a p r a i s e . Most C r i t i c s , fond o f some s u b s e r v i e n t a r t , S t i l l make the Whole depend upon a P a r t : They t a l k o f p r i n c i p l e s , but n o t i o n s p r i z e , And a l l to one l o v e d F o l l y s a c r i f i c e . ^ r r \

(EC 261-266)

E l i o t d i s a p p r o v e d of the t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y t r e n d i n l i t e r a r y

c r i t i c i s m "which seems to demand o f p o e t r y , not t h a t i t s h a l l

be w e l l w r i t t e n but t h a t i t s h a l l be ' r e p r e s e n t a t i v e o f i t s

age'."''"^ T h i s i s a complaint which Pope a l s o v o i c e d . Poets

laboured under the m i s c o n c e p t i o n t h a t they had t o w r i t e by

r o t e the 'same1 p o e t r y as the s u c c e s s f u l poets o f t h e i r age."*"^

The attempts by hacks t o i m i t a t e Pope's success i n a r t i c u l a t i n g

the s p i r i t o f h i s age i s r i d i c u l e d i n the E p i s t l e to

Dr. Arbuthnot:

One d e d i c a t e s i n h i g h h e r o i c prose, And r i d i c u l e s beyond a hundred f o e s : One from a l l G r u b s t r e e t w i l l my fame defend, And, more ab u s i v e , c a l l s h i m s e l f my f r i e n d . ^ ^ 109-112)

^ " T h e P e r f e c t C r i t i c " , The Sacred Wood, p.11. "'"^T.S. E l i o t , The Use o f P o e t r y and the Use o f C r i t i c i s m

(London: Faber and Faber L t d . , 1933), p.25. "^^"Pope's d i s d a i n f o r hack w r i t e r s i s p a r t i c u l a r l y r e v e a l e d

through h i s r i d i c u l e o f Benlowes, "famous f o r h i s own bad Poetry and f o r p a t r o n i z i n g bad Poets" (Pope's second f o o t n o t e to the Dunciad I I I ) . Pope commented, i n the Dunciad I I I l i n e 21, t h a t "Benlowes, p r o p i t i o u s s t i l l to blockheads, bows".

3 3

I n a d d i t i o n , p o e t r y w r i t t e n a c c o r d i n g t o t h e e p h e m e r a l t a s t e

o f a n a g e m a y b e l a c k i n g i n t h e q u a l i t i e s o f ' g o o d ' p o e t r y .

P a i n s , r e a d i n g , s t u d y , a r e t h e i r j u s t p r e t e n c e , A n d a l l t h e y w a n t i s s p i r i t , t a s t e a n d s e n s e . . r „ , ™ »

1 ^ ( E D A 1 5 9 - 1 6 0 )

S i m i l a r l y E l i o t ' s p r e f e r e n c e f o r f i x e d s t a n d a r d s o f t a s t e i s

e v i d e n t i n h i s c r i t i c i s m :

I w i s h t h a t w e m i g h t d i s p o s e m o r e a t t e n t i o n t o t h e c o r r e c t n e s s o f e x p r e s s i o n , t o t h e c l a r i t y o r o b s c u r i t y , t o t h e c h o i c e o f w o r d s w h e t h e r j u s t o r i m p r o p e r , e x a l t e d o r v u l g a r , o f o u r v e r s e : i n s h o r t t o t h e g o o d o r b a d b r e e d i n g o f o u r p o e t s .

I f p o e t r y i s t o b e s i n c e r e i t s h o u l d b e w r i t t e n f r o m t h e

h e a r t - w r i t t e n a s E l i o t s a y s o f T h e W a s t e L a n d - " t o r e l i e v e

£ t h e p o e t ' s ] e m o t i o n s " a n d a s " a p u r e l y p e r s o n a l a c t " . ^ " ^

I n t h e s e v e n t e e n t h c e n t u r y , J o h n D r y d e n , i n A D e f e n c e o f a n E s s a y

o n D r a m a t i c P o e s y , w r o t e t h a t i t w a s t h e p o e t ' s c o n c e r n

" t o a f f e c t t h e s o u l , a n d e x c i t e t h e p a s s i o n s , a n d a b o v e a l l ,

1 0 4

t o m o v e a d m i r a t i o n " . S i m i l a r l y , f o r P o p e , t h e g e n u i n e p o e t

c o n v e y s h i s d e e p e s t s e n s e o f r e a l i t y t o t h e r e a d e r , w h i l e t h e

s h a l l o w p o e t w r i t e s o n l y t o s h o w o f f h i s l e a r n i n g - o r f o r t h e

m o n e y h e w i l l r e c e i v e :

E a c h W i g h t , w h o r e a d s n o t , a n d b u t s c a n s a n d s p e l l s , E a c h W o r d - c a t c h e r , t h a t l i v e d o n s y l l a b l e s .

J ( E D A 1 6 5 - 1 6 6 )

R e g i m e n t e d a r t w a s s e e n i n t h e w o r s h i p o f A r i s t o t l e i n

t h e s e v e n t e e n t h a n d e i g h t e e n t h c e n t u r i e s . A r i s t o t l e w a s a

p i l l a r o f n e o - c l a s s i c a l c r i t i c i s m . P o p e w r o t e t h a t t h e r e a r e

T h e U s e o f P o e t r y a n d t h e U s e o f C r i t i c i s m , p . 2 5 . 1 0 3

T . S . E l i o t , r e c o r d e d b y R i c h a r d C a s e , " T . S . E l i o t i n C o n c o r d " , A m e r i c a n S c h o l a r X V I ( A u t u m n 1 9 4 7 ) , p . 4 4 .

1 0 4 J o h n D r y d e n , q u o t e d b y C l a r e n c e C . G r e e n , p . 1 1 3 .

Those c r i t i c s who conclude that " a l l were desperate sots and

fools,/Who durst depart from A r i s t o t l e ' s r u l e s . " (EC 271-272)

E l i o t believed that " A r i s t o t l e i s a person who has suffered

from the adherence of persons who must be regarded less as his

d i s c i p l e s than as his sec t a r i e s . One must be firml y d i s t r u s t f u l

of accepting A r i s t o t l e i n a canonical s p i r i t . " B o t h the

c r i t i c and the poet, according to E l i o t and Pope, should not

follow r i g i d technical p r i n c i p l e s , such as those of " A r i s t o t l e

£whoJ had what i s c a l l e d the s c i e n t i f i c mind.""'"^ Judging

a writer of one era by the stringent rules established many

centuries previous i s a grievous c r i t i c a l error. As Pope

put i t : "To judge therfore [ s i c ] of Shakespear by A r i s t o t l e ' s

rules i s l i k e t r y i n g a man by the Laws of one Country, who 107

acted under those of another."

105 "The Perfect C r i t i c " , The Sacred Wood, p.11.

106T, ., Ibid., p.13. 107 Alexander Pope, quoted by Clarence C. Green, p.99.

35

CHAPTER I I

N e o - c l a s s i c a l Themes i n Pope and E l i o t

What The Rape of the Lock was to the Augustans... The Waste Land has become to the Moderns. I t i s i n e s c a p a b l e . , n o

In "What i s a C l a s s i c ? " , E l i o t m a intained t h a t "unless

we are a b l e to enjoy the work o f Pope, we cannot a r r i v e a t 10 9

a f u l l u nderstanding of E n g l i s h p o e t r y . " The i m p l i c a t i o n

i s t h a t the reader who i s unable to a p p r e c i a t e the themes and

forms of e i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y n e o - c l a s s i c a l s a t i r e w i l l be

unable to a p p r e c i a t e the complex themes o f l a t e r p o e t r y .

S i m i l a r l y , the reader who does not a p p r e c i a t e the n e o - c l a s s i c a l

concepts expressed i n E l i o t ' s l i t e r a r y c r i t i c i s m and p o e t r y

cannot come to a f u l l u n derstanding of h i s work and of the

modern p o e t r y which was i n f l u e n c e d by him.

N e o - c l a s s i c a l p o e t r y i s concerned w i t h s o c i e t y and man's

d a i l y l i f e : "By comparison w i t h o t h e r times, n e o - c l a s s i c a l

l i t e r a t u r e i s markedly s o c i a l and urban. Though he s t a r v e d

i n a P a r i s slum or a G r u b - s t r e e t g a r r e t , the poet f e l t h i m s e l f

a p a r t of s o c i e t y " . 1 ' ' ' 0 The Rape of the Lock and The Waste Land

show the i n c o m p a t i b i l i t y between t r a d i t i o n a l moral standards

and a c t u a l ways o f l i v i n g i n the c o n t e x t of the s o c i a l mores

of the e i g h t e e n t h and t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r i e s .

108 Robert E. K n o l l , Storm over the Wasteland (Nebraska:

S c o t t , Foresman and Company, 1964), p . I . 109

"What i s a C l a s s i c ? " , On P o e t r y and Poets, p.60. 1 1 0 M a r k s , p.19.

The most famous poems of Pope and E l i o t are not o n l y

o u t s t a n d i n g examples of the p o e t r y of t h e i r age but a l s o

epitomes of n e o - c l a s s i c a l s a t i r e , e s p e c i a l l y i n t h e i r

conspicuous d i d a c t i c i s m . The r o l e of the s a t i r i s t , whatever

h i s c e n t u r y , i s to reform s o c i e t y . In The Idea of a C h r i s t i a n

S o c i e t y , E l i o t r e l a t e s the problems of r e f o r m i n g s o c i e t y to

the proper concept of what i s r i g h t and what i s wrong. In

h i s prose w r i t i n g as w e l l as i n much o f h i s p o e t r y , E l i o t

o f t e n examined the moral s t r u c t u r e of s o c i e t y :

Any machine, however b e a u t i f u l to look a t and however wonderful a product of b r a i n s and s k i l l can be used f o r bad purposes as w e l l as good: and t h i s i s t r u e of s o c i a l machinery as o f c o n s t r u c t i o n s of s t e e l . I t h i n k t h a t more important than the i n v e n t i o n o f a new machine, i s the c r e a t i o n of a temper of mind i n people such t h a t they can l e a r n to use a new machine r i g h t l y . More important s t i l l a t the moment would be the d i f f u s i o n of knowledge o f what i s wrong - m o r a l l y wrong - and o f why i t i s wrong.

Although s a t i r e was not a popular medium i n the e a r l y decades

of the t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y , E l i o t used s a t i r e e x t e n s i v e l y ,

p robably t a k i n g h i s l e a d to some ex t e n t from Pound's ve n t u r e

w i t h "Hugh Selwyn Mauberley" which appeared j u s t p r i o r to the

p u b l i c a t i o n of The Waste Land.

N e o - c l a s s i c a l concepts are always r e l a t e d t o t h e i r

c u l t u r a l and s o c i a l s e t t i n g , to n e o - c l a s s i c i s m i n the b r oadest 112

sense. With r e g a r d to t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y n e o - c l a s s i c i s m ,

T.E. Hulme b e l i e v e d t h a t a "poem should be c l e a r l y d e f i n e d . . .

^ \ h e Idea of a C h r i s t i a n S o c i e t y , p.98 Marks, p . v n .

37

as an a c c u r a t e p r e s e n t a t i o n o f the r e a l i t y o f ' e x q u i s i t e 113 moments', without 'moaning o r whining about something or o t h e r . ' "

Pope and E l i o t p r e s e n t r e a l i t y i n the terms which Hulme suggests.

They do not w r i t e merely of the beauty of l i f e and nature, but

r a t h e r c o n c e n t r a t e on the d a i l y moments i n man's l i f e i n the

l i g h t o f the h i s t o r i c a l shadow o f mankind. T h i s n e o - c l a s s i c a l

concern w i t h man and h i s c i v i l i z a t i o n i s humanism, one o f the

major d i s t i n g u i s h i n g f a c t o r s o f n e o - c l a s s i c a l l i t e r a t u r e .

The n e o - c l a s s i c a l a r t i s t sees "the imagery o f common

114

l i f e . . . t h e imagery o f the s o r d i d l i f e o f a g r e a t m e t r o p o l i s " .

The p o e t - s a t i r i s t c o n v e r t s t h i s s o r d i d n e s s and p e t t i n e s s o f

contemporary l i f e i n t o a r r e s t i n g images which c r e a t e b e a u t i f u l

and i n c i s i v e p o e t r y . In r e l a t i o n t o t h i s p o e t i c t r a n s f o r m a t i o n ,

Northrop F r y e has observed t h a t we "are g e t t i n g c l o s e to one

of the fundamental f a c t s about s a t i r e : t h a t the s a r d o n i c

v i s i o n i s the seamy s i d e o f the t r a g i c v i s i o n . " 1 1 ^ Pope and

E l i o t both examine the s o r d i d n e s s o f contemporary l i f e . With

h i s c o n s e r v a t i v e , h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e , E l i o t p e r c e i v e s the

e v i l s o f western man's warped emotional and s p i r i t u a l v a l u e s .

He sees the waste o f our c i v i l i z a t i o n not "as a s i n g l e moment 116

i n h i s t o r y , p a r t i c u l a r t o the West i n the t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y , "

113 T.E. Hulme, quoted by Gertrude P a t t e r s o n , T.S. E l i o t :

Poems i n the Making (New York: Manchester U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1971), p.21.

114 " B a u d e l a i r e " , S e l e c t e d Essays, p.388.

5 N o r t h r o p F r y e , "The Nature of S a t i r e " , i n S a t i r e Theory and P r a c t i c e , ed., C h a r l e s A. A l l e n and George D. Stephens (Belmont, C a l . : Wadsworth P u b l i s h i n g Co. Inc., 1964), p.26.

1 1 6 B . C . Southam, A Guide t o the S e l e c t e d Poems of T.S. E l i o t (New York: Harcourt, Brace, and World, Inc., 1968), p.69.

38

but as "an i n c l u s i v e , comparative v i s i o n , a p e r s p e c t i v e o f 117

h i s t o r y . , , J" L /

In n e o - c l a s s i c a l s a t i r e , such as E l i o t ' s and Pope's,

c o r r u p t i o n of the i d e a l " i s almost always a t l e a s t i m p l i c i t ,

i t o n l y r a r e l y appears as the s o l e s u b j e c t o f the s a t i r e . The

b a s i c p o l a r i t y o f an i d e a l ( u s u a l l y i n the past) and the degenerate p r e s e n t p r o v i d e s a u s e f u l frame f o r the argument o f

118

a s a t i r e " . Authors i n the n e o - c l a s s i c a l t r a d i t i o n look

to the c l a s s i c a l p a s t f o r p e r f e c t i o n i n a r t and s o c i e t y , seeking

t o teach t h e i r s o c i e t y the need f o r a change from the p r e s e n t

abandonment of t a s t e and c u l t u r e . For n e o - c l a s s i c i s t s ,

t h e r e i s a chaos of v a l u e s i n the u n f o r t u n a t e emphasis on

c u r r e n t e x p e r i e n c e , and t h e i r remedy to t h i s chaos can be

found i n a r e s p e c t f o r the h i e r a r c h y o f v a l u e s e v i d e n t i n

the c l a s s i c a l t r a d i t i o n .

E l i o t b e l i e v e d t h a t man i s "not l i k e l y to know what i s to

be done u n l e s s he l i v e s i n what i s not merely the p r e s e n t , but

the p r e s e n t moment of the p a s t , u n l e s s he i s c o n s c i o u s , not of 119

what i s dead, but of what i s a l r e a d y l i v i n g . " As

n e o - c l a s s i c i s t s and s a t i r i s t s , then, Pope and E l i o t do not

encourage the c r e a t i o n o f a new s t a t e of s o c i e t y but expose

the decadence i n the e x i s t i n g s i t u a t i o n and encourage a

consciousness of f i r m h i s t o r i c a l v a l u e s . O f t e n , the s a t i r i s t Southam, p.69.

118 Ronald Paulson, The F i c t i o n s o f S a t i r e ( B a l t i m o r e ,

Maryland: John Hopkins P r e s s , 1967), p.10. 119

" T r a d i t i o n and the I n d i v i d u a l T a l e n t " , S e l e c t e d Essays, p.22.

39

sees "the f a c t t h a t the s o c i e t y of the p r e s e n t does not

r e p u d i a t e the o l d forms but r a t h e r c o n c e a l s i t s own p e r v e r s i o n 120

behind them, paying v i r t u e the compliment o f h y p o c r i s y . "

In The Waste Land and many of h i s o t h e r poems, E l i o t

espouses the theme of emotional and s p i r i t u a l s t e r i l i t y

e x e m p l i f i e d i n the decadence of t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y s o c i e t y , a

v i s i o n which to some e x t e n t he gained from h i s r e a d i n g s o f

B a u d e l a i r e . W r i t i n g i n the age o f Queen Anne, Pope too

pursues the theme of emotional and s p i r i t u a l s t e r i l i t y .

The Rape of the Lock a l s o e x h i b i t s a world i n which i t has

been observed t h a t " i n i t s v a n i t y and s e l f - s a t i s f a c t i o n , i t 121

i s too l i t t l e concerned f o r o t h e r p e o p l e " .

One of the most decadent scenes i n The Waste Land i s t h a t

of T i r e s i a s ' s o b s e r v a t i o n o f emotional s t e r i l i t y i n the

c o p u l a t i o n of the t y p i s t and her young man. T i r e s i a s

w i t nessed the mockery of l o v e through l a c k o f emotion i n the

s o - c a l l e d 'love a c t 1 . With the s a t i r i s t ' s m e r c i l e s s eye f o r

d e t a i l , E l i o t has T i r e s i a s pay c l o s e a t t e n t i o n t o the minute

d e t a i l s o f feminine undergarments: " s t o c k i n g s , s l i p p e r s ,

c a misoles and s t a y s " (TWL 227) and "out of the window p e r i l o u s l y

spread/Her d r y i n g combinations touched by the sun's l a s t

r a y s " (TWL 224-225). S i n c e a combination i s a feminine

undergarment which covers a woman's body from the top o f her

bosom, over the w a i s t and t h i g h s , E l i o t takes advantage of i t s

120 Paulson, The F i c t i o n s o f S a t i r e , p.24.

121 Peter Dixon, The World of Pope's S a t i r e s (London: Methuen

and Co. L t d . , 1968), p.53.

40

likeness to the feminine form to emphasize the emptiness of the

physical r e l a t i o n s h i p which i s central to the scene. The

garment, l i k e the t y p i s t l a t e r i n the scene, i s " p e r i l o u s l y

spread", ready to accept a lover, and l i k e the t y p i s t , i t i s

empty, void of any animation. The garment i s spread i n

acceptance previous to i t s owner's actual acceptance, a

foreshadowing of what i s to come, so that the reader can be

l i k e T i r e s i a s i n perceiving the scene and f o r e t e l l i n g the

r e s t .

In addition to feminine garments, E l i o t also makes note

of feminine f r a i l t i e s and habits - the "one half-formed thought"

"Well now that's done: and I'm glad i t ' s over'" (TWL 251-252)

while the t y p i s t "smoothes her hair with automatic hand."

(TWL 255) The man's actions, however, are as automatic as

the young woman's reactions. He i s assured of his v i c t o r y ;

his advances are mock-heroically described as an assault and

his success as the winning of a b a t t l e . I t i s the b a t t l e of

the sexes and the young man i s confident that he w i l l emerge

the v i c t o r :

He, the young man carbuncular, a r r i v e s , A small house agent's cl e r k , with one bold stare, One of the low on whom assurance s i t s As a s i l k hat on a Bradford m i l l i o n a i r e . /m,,T n->*\

(TWL 231-234) This small pimply young c l e r k :

Endeavours to engage her i n caresses Which s t i l l are unreproved; i f undesired. Flushed and decided, he assaults at once; Exploring hands encounter no defence, m„ T

r 3 (TWL 237-240) Although the act has not been f o r c i b l e rape, the young man has

41

f o r c e d h i s advances on a young woman who does not d e s i r e him.

There i s no enjoyment i n the 'act o f l o v e ' f o r e i t h e r the

man or the woman. The sex a c t has become as automatic as the

smoothing o f h a i r o r the p l a y i n g o f a gramophone.

Pope, i n a somewhat analogous f a s h i o n , d e s c r i b e s the

manner i n which male l o v e r s a t t a i n t h e i r conquests as he

d e s c r i b e s those feminine f o i b l e s which account f o r the male's

easy a s s a u l t . Cantos I I and I I I o f The Rape of the Lock

open w i t h views of the t r i v i a l thoughts and c o n v e r s a t i o n s w i t h

which the women of the c o u r t passed t h e i r time. Women i n

The Rape of the Lock equate the " s t a i n i n g " o f t h e i r honour

w i t h the s t a i n i n g o f a "new brocade" d r e s s o r the m i s s i n g o f

a masquerade b a l l . Pope's A r i e l , l i k e T i r e s i a s , sees the

mockery of l o v e , the concern w i t h t r i v i a l i t y and the f a i l u r e

to respond t o l i f e s e r i o u s l y . The men, p e r s o n i f i e d by the

Baron, t r e a t l o v e as a conquest o f the female o f t h e i r c h o i c e .

T h i s conquest i s d e s c r i b e d m o c k - h e r o i c a l l y l i k e a c r u c i a l

stratagem:

Resolved to win, he medit a t e s the way, By f o r c e to r a v i s h , or by f r a u d b e t r a y ; For when success a Lover's t o i l a t t e n d s ; Few ask, i f f r a u d o r f o r c e a t t a i n e d h i s ends.,

11RL 1 J. j l ~ j

Thus i n the poem, B e l i n d a ' s h a i r i s raped, f o r c e f u l l y taken,

and t h i s a c t i s symbolic of the rape of the woman h e r s e l f .

The male and female c h a r a c t e r s o f both poems f a i l t o p e r c e i v e

the v a l u e o f l o v e i n t h e i r s h a l l o w and d e s t r u c t i v e p a r o d i e s o f

the t r a d i t i o n a l r i t u a l of c o u r t s h i p .

42

The matter of s e x u a l r e l a t i o n s h i p s i s c e n t r a l t o both

E l i o t and Pope: "For E l i o t , of course, a superb t r i n i t y o f

c u l t u r e , sex, and r e l i g i o n i s humanity's most worthy g o a l

and the s i c k n e s s o f modern c i v i l i z a t i o n i s t h a t the t h r e e 1 2 2

impulses operate i n i s o l a t i o n . "

Both Pope and E l i o t d e p i c t the c u t t i n g i r o n y o f western

s o c i e t y ' s ambivalence towards l o v e and the sex a c t . In

The Rape of the Lock, f o r example, women are "f a c e d w i t h a

both-and paradox: the d e s i r e not to be v i o l a t e d and y e t 123

e x p l i c i t p r e p a r a t i o n f o r i t . " The women i n both poems are

r e p e l l e d by the thought o f v i o l a t i o n and y e t f e e l f o r c e d by

the conventions o f t h e i r sex to submit t o men's advances.

T h i s sense o f f a l s e m o r a l i t y and h y p o c r i s y o f v a l u e s i s

prese n t e d i n The Rape of the Lock through the s e c r e t p r ayer f o r

v i o l a t i o n which l u r k s i n B e l i n d a ' s h e a r t c o n c u r r e n t l y w i t h

her complaints o f l o s s . Her p r o t e s t s a t v i o l a t i o n are d i r e c t l y v o i c e d :

F o r e v e r c ursed be t h i s d e t e s t e d day, Which snatched my be s t , my f a v o r i t e c u r l away! Happy 1 ah, ten times happy had I been, I f Hampton Court these eyes had never s e e n ! ^ T R L I V 1 4 7 - 1 5 0 )

The epigraph to the poem, however, r e v e a l s B e l i n d a ' s s e c r e t

d e s i r e : "I was u n w i l l i n g B e l i n d a , to r a v i s h your l o c k s ; but

r e j o i c e to have conceded t h i s t o your p r a y e r s . " (TRL t r a n s l a t i o n

of the epigraph, from M a r t i a l )

122 Hamilton, i n M a r t i n , p.107.

12 3 Rebecca P r i c e P a r k i n , The P o e t i c Workmanship of Alexander

Pope (New York: Octagon Books, Inc., 1966), p.51.

Sex, i n both The Waste Land and The Rape of the Lock, i s

s t e r i l e - i t g i v e s n e i t h e r p r o p a g a t i o n o f l i f e nor f u l f i l l m e n t

of p l e a s u r e . Most o f the women i n The Waste Land, as i n

The Rape of the Lock, are not m a r r i e d . In a d d i t i o n , a l t h o u g h the

married women i n the pub s e c t i o n o f "A Game o f Chess" have

brought f o r t h c h i l d r e n as a r e s u l t o f sexual union, these

o f f s p r i n g are not the d e s i r e d i s s u e o f l o v e . The l a c k o f l o v e

between husband and w i f e and the l a c k of l o v e f o r c h i l d r e n a re

i l l u s t r a t e d i n the f o l l o w i n g l i n e s :

(She's had f i v e a l r e a d y , and n e a r l y d i e d o f young George.)

W e l l , i f Albert won't l e a v e you alone, t h e r e i t i s , I s a i d ,

What you g e t mar r i e d f o r i f you don't want c h i l d r e n ? (TWL 159, 161-162)

" I t i s a l l symptomatic o f the boredom of l o v e which i s degraded 124

i n contemporary s o c i e t y to a mechanical r e l a t i o n s h i p . "

Although marriage i s s a n c t i o n e d by the church as the

moral union o f man and woman, the c h a r a c t e r s i n Pope's and

E l i o t ' s poems e i t h e r spurn i t o r misuse i t . Marriage was

t r a d i t i o n a l l y s a n c t i o n e d by C h r i s t i a n Churches f o r the purpose

of p r o p a g a t i n g f u t u r e g e n e r a t i o n s : The v a r i o u s c h a r a c t e r s who appear i n |The Waste Land] have t h i s i n common: they are mis u s i n g t h e i r s e x u a l c a p a c i t i e s i n ways which make them q u i t e l i t e r a l l y b a r r e n , so t h a t i n t h e i r s e x u a l a c t i v i t y they sow death i n s t e a d of l i f e . ^ 5

Fayek M. Ishak, The M y s t i c a l P h i l o s o p h y o f T.S. E l i o t (New Haven, Conn.: C o l l e g e and U n i v e r s i t y Press P u b l i s h e r s , 1970), p.67.

I O C Audrey F. C a h i l l , T.S. E l i o t and the Human Predicament

(Cape Town, South A f r i c a : U n i v e r s i t y of N a t a l P r e s s , 1967), p.39

44

L i l , i n "A Game of Chess" has stopped the l i f e p r o c e s s , having

had an a b o r t i o n : " I t ' s them p i l l s I took, to b r i n g i t o f f ,

she s a i d . " (TWL 159)

C e n t r a l t o both Pope and E l i o t i s the theme of the

de g r a d a t i o n of western v a l u e s and the v i c e s which a r i s e from

t h i s d e g r a d a t i o n . Pope wrote t h a t " d i s d a i n and i n d i g n a t i o n

a g a i n s t v i c e i s (I thank God) the o n l y d i s d a i n and i n d i g n a t i o n 126

I have. I t i s s i n c e r e , and i t w i l l be a l a s t i n g one."

The d e g r a d a t i o n i s p i c t u r e d i n waste and i n h e r e n t l a c k o f purpose,

o f t e n symbolized by p h y s i c a l waste - the a l l e y s and the

garbage. In The Waste Land E l i o t symbolizes the want of purpose

through images of u g l i n e s s and d e s o l a t i o n - the "stony r u b b i s h "

(TWL 23), the "dead t r e e " (TWL 115), the "White bodies naked

on the low damp ground/And bones c a s t i n a low dry g a r r e t , /

R a t t l e d by the r a t ' s f o o t o n l y , year to year" (TWL 193-195),

and the "Dead mountain mouth of c a r i o u s t e e t h t h a t cannot

s p i t " (TWL 339).

The s t r o n g moral b a s i s o f E l i o t ' s d e p i c t i o n o f contemporary

s o c i e t y can be seen i n The Idea o f a C h r i s t i a n S o c i e t y i n which he commented t h a t " i t does not r e q u i r e a C h r i s t i a n a t t i t u d e t o p e r c e i v e t h a t the modern system o f s o c i e t y has a

127 g r e a t d e a l i n i t t h a t i s i n h e r e n t l y bad", due e s s e n t i a l l y ,

126 Alexander Pope i n L i t e r a r y C r i t i c i s m o f Alexander Pope,

ed., B e r t r a n d A. Goldgar ( L i n c o l n : U n i v e r s i t y of Nebraska P r e s s , 1965), p.40.

127 The Idea o f a C h r i s t i a n S o c i e t y , p.32.

45

he b e l i e v e d , to the u n d e r l y i n g d i s i n t e g r a t i o n of c l a s s i c a l

p o l i t i c a l , r e l i g i o u s , and sexual v a l u e s . While the t a r g e t o f

The Rape of the Lock appears to be s u p e r f i c i a l , t h a t of

feminine v a n i t y - t h e r e " a r e deeper themes i n v o l v i n g the

condemnation of v i c e . L i v i n g i n a waste l a n d , both Pope's and

E l i o t ' s c h a r a c t e r s are unable to make q u a l i t a t i v e judgments

about events. The c h a r a c t e r s i n The Rape of the Lock, f o r

example, p r e f e r appearance to r e a l i t y and thus l i v e i n an i l l u s o r y

w o r l d . They have no concept of the r e a l i t y o f the wasted

world c r e a t e d by t h e i r own i n s e n s i b i l i t y - a world i n which

they w i l l be f o r c e d t o l i v e trapped f o r the r e s t o f t h e i r

l i v e s . Thus, B e l i n d a and her c o m p a t r i o t s are puppets o f the

s o c i e t y which they themselves s u s t a i n and they s u f f e r the

consequences. The "crowd flowed over London B r i d g e " (TWL 6 2 ) ,

E l i o t ' s a l l u s i o n t o Dante's I n f e r n o , dramatized i n the s o u l l e s s

i n d i v i d u a l s marching over the b r i d g e i n t o H e l l ' s i n n e r c i r c l e ,

i s a k i n to the f a t e of the i n d i v i d u a l s i n Pope's world who

are a t the mercy of a s e l f - s e r v i n g p o p u l a t i o n i n which "hungry

judges soon the sentence sign,/And wretches hang t h a t jurymen

may d i n e " (TRL I I I 21-22).

I t has been observed o f E l i o t and i t might be s a i d of Pope

t h a t the "purposelessness of l i f e i s d i s g u i s e d by a r e s t -128

l e s s n e s s of a c t i o n and a c o n c e n t r a t i o n on minor events."

The i n h a b i t a n t s of the waste lands o f Pope and E l i o t are

i n t e r c h a n g e a b l e as they "drank c o f f e e , and t a l k e d f o r an

C a h i l l , p.42.

46

hour" (TWL 11) and then "sometimes c o u n s e l take - and sometimes

te a " (TRL I I I 8) or "soot h i n g c h o c o l a t e " . 1 2 9 To f i l l the v o i d

of t h e i r l i v e s the c h a r a c t e r s i n " v a r i o u s t a l k the i n s t r u c t i v e

hours they past,/Who gave the b a l l , or p a i d the v i s i t l a s t "

(TRL I I I 11-12). The on l y change comes i n the games o f chess

and ombre which u l t i m a t e l y d e c i d e the c h a r a c t e r s ' f a t e .

Chess moves i n The Waste Land r e p r e s e n t the steps i n a

lov e a f f a i r i n which the l o v e r s p l a n "What s h a l l we do t o ­

morrow?/ .. .And we s h a l l p l a y a game of c h e s s , / P r e s s i n g

l i d l e s s eyes and w a i t i n g f o r a knock upon the door." (TWL

133, 136-138) E l i o t , i n h i s notes on the poem, r e f e r s t o 130

"the game o f chess i n Mi d d l e t o n ' s Women Beware Women"

i n which the chess moves r e p r e s e n t the steps i n a s e d u c t i o n .

In the game o f ombre p l a y e d i n The Rape of the Lock, a l t h o u g h

i t i s B e l i n d a who wins the game, her exuberance i n winning

lead s to her symbolic s e d u c t i o n , the rape of her l o c k by

the Baron.

Pe t e r Quennell compares the c a r d game i n The Rape o f

the Lock to a m i n i a t u r i z a t i o n o f s o c i e t y : Pope... extended h i s range by d e s c r i b i n g the world o f ca r d s , which form a m i n i a t u r e c o u r t i n s i d e a c o u r t , p a i n t e d r e p l i c a s o f the c o u r t l y personages who f i l l the room and pre s s around the t a b l e . . . I f the human p r o t a g o n i s t s are e p i c heroes and h e r o i n e s s k i l l f u l l y reduced t o comic s i z e , the cards a re r e d u c t i o n s o f

129 "The F i r e Sermon", F a c s i m i l e E d i t i o n , The Waste Land

ed., V a l e r i e E l i o t (New York: Harcourt, Brace, J o v a n o v i c h Inc., 1972), p.38, l i n e 10.

1 3 0 T h e Waste Land, C o l l e c t e d Poems 1909-1935, p.80.

47

r e d u c t i o n s , the d i m i n u t i v e c o u n t e r p a r t s of a l r e a d y d i m i n i s h e d f i g u r e s . . . i t i s indeed a work 'where the l i t t l e becomes g i g a n t i c . ' ^^]_

In The Waste Land, E l i o t chooses both cards and chess to

r e p r e s e n t s o c i e t y ' s movements. In chess, the p i e c e s r e p r e s e n t

human f i g u r e s whose movements i n the game symbolize the a c t i v i t i e s

o f the v a r i o u s c h a r a c t e r s i n the poem. J u s t as the Queen i s the

most prominent f i g u r e i n the game of chess, i t i s the female who

i s the dominant f i g u r e i n The Waste Land. I t i s a female, Madame

S o s o s t r i s , who c a s t s T a r o t cards and f o r e t e l l s the f u t u r e , and

whose cards s t r u c t u r e the b a s i c themes of the poem. The f i r s t

T a r o t c a r d which she sees i s the man w i t h t h r e e staves which

symbolizes i d e a l s and hope. The r e v e r s e d meaning of t h i s c a r d ,

however, i s more s i g n i f i c a n t t o the poem. R e v e r s a l r e p r e s e n t s

r e j e c t i o n and l o s s which o v e r t a k e s a l l of the c h a r a c t e r s i n The

Waste Land. The blank c a r d r e p r e s e n t s the f o o l - f o l l y , i r ^

r a t i o n a l i t y , i n d i s c r e t i o n , t h o u g h t l e s s n e s s . Even the r e v e r s e d

meaning of t h i s c a r d i s a p p l i c a b l e to the themes of The Waste

Land. The r e v e r s a l means a f a u l t y c h o i c e , a h e s i t a t i o n - apathy

and n e g l i g e n c e . In both E l i o t and Pope, the c h a r a c t e r s have a

narrow o u t l o o k which a f f e c t s both t h e i r inward responses and outward

a c t i o n s . In The Waste Land, as the T a r o t p r e d i c t s , they

tend to evade the r e a l i t i e s of both t h e i r i n n e r and o u t e r worlds.

Although the f o r t u n e t e l l e r does not t u r n up the Hanged

Man, t h i s c a r d does have an i n f l u e n c e on the tone o f The Waste

E d u c a t i o n o f Genius 1968), pp.81-82.

Pet e r Quennell, Alexander Pope: The 1688-1728 (London: Weidenfeld and N i c o l s e n ,

48

Land. The Hanged Man r e p r e s e n t s l i f e i n suspension, a f a i l u r e

to g i v e o f one's s e l f and a p r e o c c u p a t i o n w i t h one's s e l f .

The a r i s t o c r a t i c Marie, "the t y p i s t home a t teatime", "the

young man c a r b u n c u l a r " , the women i n the pub, the lady on the

"burnished throne" - a l l of the c h a r a c t e r s f a i l t o g i v e o f

themselves, as t y p i f i e d i n the f o l l o w i n g passage:

The wind under the door. What i s t h a t n o i s e now? What i s the wind doing?

Nothing a g a i n n o t h i n g . 'You know nothing? Do you see nothing? Do you

remember ' N o t h i n g ? ' ( T W L 1 1 7 _ 1 2 2 )

A vacuum. An u n w i l l i n g n e s s to make the necessary e f f o r t o f

l i v i n g and c a r i n g . The c h a r a c t e r s do not even use t h e i r

senses. The p r e t e n c e o f s e n s u a l i t y i n love-making i s a merely

mechanical p a s s i o n i n an a p a t h e t i c world i n which people

hang i n suspension.

The c o n c l u d i n g c a r d which Madame S o s o s t r i s c a s t s i s t h a t

of "crowds of people, w a l k i n g round i n a r i n g " (TWL 56) which

c l o s e l y resembles the d e s c r i p t i o n o f the T a r o t c a r d o f

'Judgment' and a l s o resembles the crowds o f people condemned

to walk around i n the c i r c l e s o f H e l l . A l l the p r e c e d i n g

n e g a t i v e p r e d i c t i o n s o f the T a r o t c u l m i n a t e i n the r e v e r s e d

p o s i t i o n o f 'Judgment' - del a y , postponement, f a i l u r e t o f a c e

f a c t s , unhappiness, i n d e c i s i o n , d i s i l l u s i o n m e n t and p r o c r a s ­

t i n a t i o n . However, i n choosing 'Judgment', E l i o t has s e l e c t e d a

most a p p r o p r i a t e l y o p t i m i s t i c symbolic c a r d t o conclude the

v i s i o n of the f u t u r e . The p o s i t i v e meaning of the c a r d "suggests

4 9

r e j u v e n a t i o n . . . R e b i r t h . Change of P o s i t i o n . Readjustment. 132

Improvement. Development."

Few of the c h a r a c t e r s are found moving i n harmony w i t h

t h e i r s o c i e t y or t h e i r n a t u r a l surroundings s i n c e they are

c o n s t a n t l y seeking a meaning f o r t h e i r l i v e s o u t s i d e o f

t r a d i t i o n a l v a l u e s . Two c h a r a c t e r s who embody f a l s e v a l u e s and

who can be c l o s e l y p a r a l l e l e d are Madame S o s o s t r i s of The

Waste Land and A r i e l of The Rape of the Lock. I t i s Madame

S o s o s t r i s who g i v e s a r e a d i n g o f the f u t u r e and p r e s e n t s a warning,

In Canto I of The Rape of the Lock, A r i e l a l s o reads the f u t u r e

and g i v e s a warning. While A r i e l uses o n l y A s t r o l o g y , the

" c l e a r M i r r o r or thy r u l i n g S t a r " (TRL I 108), E l i o t ' s "famous

c l a i r v o y a n t e " (TWL 43) combines both the r e a d i n g of T a r o t

cards and A s t r o l o g y to f o r e t e l l the f u t u r e . A r i e l f o r e s e e s

some dread event and warns B e l i n d a by s a y i n g :

I saw a l a s ! some dread event impend, Ere to the main t h i s morning sun descend, But heaven r e v e a l s not what, or how, or where: Warned by the S y l p h , oh Pious Maid b e w a r e ! ^ T R L j 1 0 9 - 1 1 2 )

L i k e A r i e l , Madame S o s o s t r i s sees some e v i l event p o r t e n d i n g

and l i k e A r i e l she does not know what t h a t event i s . She sees

many omens, reads many c a r d s : Here i s the man w i t h t h r e e staves and here the wheel, And here i s the one-eyed merchant, and t h i s c a r d , Which i s blank, i s something he c a r r i e s on h i s back, Which I am f o r b i d d e n t o see. I do not f i n d The Hanged Man. Fear death by w a t e r . ^ ^ 1 ^ 5 0 - 5 4 )

S.R. Kaplan, T a r o t Cards f o r Fun and Fortune T e l l i n g (New York: U.S. Games Systems, Inc., 1970), p.10.

5 0

A l t h o u g h s h e g i v e s h e r p r e d i c t i o n , o r w a r n i n g , i t i s p r o j e c t e d

s o f a r i n t o t h e f u t u r e a n d i s s o v a g u e t h a t i t d o e s n o t h e l p

t h e c h a r a c t e r s i n T h e W a s t e L a n d t o c o p e w i t h t h e i r p r e s e n t

p r o b l e m s a n d e v i l s . M a d a m e S o s o s t r i s r e p r e s e n t s t h e i r o n i c

s u p e r s t i t i o u s n e s s o f m u c h c o n t e m p o r a r y r e l i g i o u s f e e l i n g .

A s a y o u n g m a n , E l i o t f e l l a w a y f r o m h i s f a m i l y ' s

r e l i g i o n , U n i t a r i a n i s m , a n d b e c a m e a n a g n o s t i c . H e n e i t h e r

p r o f e s s e d n o r d e n i e d G o d , b u t r a t h e r s o u g h t p r o o f t h r o u g h

k n o w l e d g e f o r e s t a b l i s h i n g a r e l i g i o u s p o s i t i o n . I n o r d e r t o

f i n d p e a c e w i t h h i m s e l f , h o w e v e r , h e f o u n d t h a t h e c o u l d n o t

t o t a l l y a b a n d o n r e l i g i o u s b e l i e f , a n d t h u s s o u g h t s o m e t y p e o f

f a i t h . S e a r c h i n g f o r s o m e t h i n g t o f i l l t h e r e l i g i o u s v o i d ,

h e e x p l o r e d B u d d h i s m , o t h e r e a s t e r n r e l i g i o n s , a n d m y s t i c i s m

w h i c h a l l a i d e d i n h i s t e a c h i n g i n 1 9 1 5 w h e n h e " r e t u r n e d t o

1 3 3

A m e r i c a a n d b e c a m e a l e c t u r e r i n c o m p a r a t i v e r e l i g i o n s . "

H e c o n t i n u e d t o s e e k a r e l i g i o u s c o m m i t m e n t , a n d h e n c e t u r n e d

t o e x p l o r e t h e c o n c e p t o f C a t h o l i c i s m , w h i c h i n t u r n t h r o u g h

h i s f r i e n d s h i p w i t h L o r d H a l i f a x l e d h i m t o t h e m o d i f i e d C a t h o l i c

s t a t e m e n t o f t h e C h u r c h o f E n g l a n d .

D u r i n g t h e l a t e n i n e t e e n t h a n d e a r l y t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r i e s

a g o o d m a n y i n t e l l e c t u a l s d e l i b e r a t e d a b o u t a n d r e j e c t e d

C h r i s t i a n i t y . T h i s d e l i b e r a t i o n c a n b e s e e n i n t h e e a r l y

s t r u g g l e s o f t h e y o u n g T . S . E l i o t , w h o , l i k e m a n y l a t e

V i c t o r i a n a g n o s t i c s , b e l i e v e d s t r o n g l y t h a t r e l i g i o n , l i t u r g y ,

a n d w o r s h i p w e r e t h i n g s o f t h e p a s t . E l i o t ' s c o n s e r v a t i s m ,

1 3 3 R o b e r t S e n c o u r t , T . S . E l i o t , A M e m o i r ( N e w Y o r k : D o d d ,

M e a d a n d C o . , 1 9 7 1 ) , p . 5 2 .

51

which emerged i n his adoption of Anglicanism came at a time when

s t r i c t adherence to a r e l i g i o n was unpopular. Although

published i n 1922, p r i o r to E l i o t ' s conversion to Anglicanism

in 1927, The Waste Land shows signs of his exploration of

various r e l i g i o n s and his struggle with the problem of deciding

whether or not to adopt C h r i s t i a n i t y . One section of the poem

which shows the presence of Anglicanism i s "The B u r i a l of the

Dead", an adaptation of the t i t l e of the funeral service of

the Church of England, "The Order for the B u r i a l of the

Dead".

Pope, l i k e E l i o t , also went against the i n t e l l e c t u a l

currents of his day as far as r e l i g i o n was concerned. Pope was

Roman Catholic, and s t r i c t l y adhered to his f a i t h . He

"professed his r e l i g i o n steadfastly, r e j e c t i n g the i n v i t a t i o n s

of powerful fri e n d s , Oxford and Atterbury, that he come over

with them and enjoy the p o l i t i c a l emoluments to which h i s 134

genius e n t i t l e d him." Throughout his career as a poet,

Pope kept his firm b e l i e f i n Catholicism, as witnessed i n

many r e l i g i o u s references and symbols i n his poetry. He

declared his f a i t h openly i n a l e t t e r to Jonathan Swift

i n which he claimed to be "of the r e l i g i o n of Erasmus, a

c a t h o l i c " . 1 3 5

In the early eighteenth century, with the decline of

r e l i g i o u s fervor, r e l i g i o u s poetry also declined both i n

134 William K. Wimsatt J r . , ed., Alexander Pope, Selected

Poetry and Prose (Toronto: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1951), p.xx.

135 Pope's l e t t e r to Swift quoted i n Wimsatt, p.xx.

52

bulk and popularity. Peter Quennell remarks that since the

"death of Henry Vaughan i n 1695, something had gone out of 136

English devotional verse." Addison, one of the few poets

who ventured to write r e l i g i o u s poetry, i l l u s t r a t e d eighteenth-

century r e l i g i o u s concepts i n t h i s hymn: The Spacious firmament on high, With a l l the blue ethereal sky, And spangled heavens, a shining frame Their great O r i g i n a l p r o c l a i m . ^ 7

Addison's hymn " i l l u s t r a t e s the Augustan conception of r e l i g i o u s

poetry: a form of Loyal Address presented to the Divine

Sovereign, rather than the record of a private S p i r i t u a l 138

adventure." In his "Messiah: A Sacred Eclogue", published

in the Spectator, May 14, 1712, Pope too adopts the formal and

objective mode rather than a personal testament of h i s

f a i t h , and yet he manages to temper his poem with a c e r t a i n

amount of personal sentiment.

Both Pope and E l i o t f e e l that western society has l e t "

non-essential trappings take predominance i n r e l i g i o n ,

r e s u l t i n g i n a loss of the sense of what i s v i t a l to the

salvation of man and his soul. E l i o t and Pope believe that

when man becomes aware of God he gains release from his

tainted nature through release of energy i n the process of

increasing love for God and his fellow man.

^^Quennell, p. 54. 137

Joseph Addison, "The Spacious Firmament on High", Restoration and Augustan Poets, eds., W.H. Auden and Norman Homes Pearson (New York: Viking Press, 1950), l i n e s 1-4.

^^Quennell, p. 54.

53

To the a n t h r o p o l o g i c a l eye b e l i e f s , r e l i g i o n s and m o r a l i t i e s are human h a b i t s - i n t h e i r odd v a r i e t y too human. Where the a n t h r o p o l o g i c a l o u t l o o k p r e v a i l s , s a n c t i o n s w i t h e r . In a contemporary co n s c i o u s n e s s t h e r e i s i n e v i t a b l y a g r e a t d e a l of the a n t h r o p o l o g i c a l , and the background of The Waste Land i s thus seen to have a f u r t h e r s i g n i f i c a n c e . To be, then, too much c o n s c i o u s and c o n s c i o u s of too much - t h a t i s the p l i g h t : " A f t e r such knowledge, what f o r g i v e n e s s ? "

The modern fondness f o r d i s s e c t i o n o f man's i n t i m a t e l i f e -

h i s environment, s o c i a l r e l a t i o n s , c u l t u r e and r e l i g i o n -

tends t o d i s i n t e g r a t e the ve r y f a b r i c of human e x i s t e n c e .

Man l o s e s h i s b e l i e f s ; he l o s e s the impetus to observe laws

and customs, and he l o s e s moral judgment. The "academic

a n a l y s i s o f r e l i g i o n and the a c t u a l p r a c t i c e o f the r e l i g i o u s

l i f e seemed t o E l i o t almost a n t i t h e t i c a l . He p r e f e r r e d , 140

as always, t o adopt the non-academic p o i n t o f view."

Pope and E l i o t share a sense of man's fundamental and

unchangeable l i m i t a t i o n s - i n a d d i t i o n t o t h e i r common b e l i e f

i n C h r i s t i a n i t y . As a r e s u l t of t h e i r b e l i e f s , both poets

d e l v e i n t o the a g e l e s s problem of human in a d e q u a c i e s and the

p o s s i b i l i t y o f the r e s o l u t i o n o f these i n a d e q u a c i e s through

r e l i g i o n . In Notes Towards the D e f i n i t i o n o f C u l t u r e , E l i o t

remarked t h a t "no c u l t u r e has appeared or developed except

t o g e t h e r w i t h r e l i g i o n : a c c o r d i n g to the p o i n t of view o f

the o b s e r v e r , the c u l t u r e w i l l appear to be the product of 141

the r e l x g i o n , or the r e l i g i o n the product of the c u l t u r e . "

F.R. L e a v i s , i n Hugh Kenner, p.91. 140

Robert Sencourt, p.52. 141

T.S. E l i o t , Notes Towards the D e f i n i t i o n o f C u l t u r e , (London: Faber and Faber L i m i t e d , 1948), p.15.

54

R e l i g i o n i s c l e a r l y o b s o l e t e i n The Waste Land:

In t h i s decayed h o l e among the mountains In the f a i n t moonlight, the g r a s s i s s i n g i n g Over the tumbled graves, about the c h a p e l There i s the empty c h a p e l , o n l y the wind's home. I t has no windows, and the door s w i n g s / m T T T _. 0, -,r>r>\

^ (TWL 386-390)

In t h i s scene of decay, even the graves are "tumbled". A l l

t h a t remains o f r e l i g i o n are decaying symbols of a b e l i e f t h a t

once was. An example o f t h i s l a c k o f t r a d i t i o n and the

c o r r u p t i o n which f o l l o w s i t can be found i n the person of

E l i o t ' s Jew i n "Gerontian" whose l a c k o f a c l e a r h e r i t a g e i s

e v i d e n t i n t h a t he was "Spawned i n some estaminet o f Antwerp/ 142

B l i s t e r e d i n B r u s s e l s , patched and p e e l e d i n London." In

The Rape o f the Lock, al t h o u g h the a c t u a l A r a b e l l a Fermor was

a s s o c i a t e d w i t h a s o c i a l h e r i t a g e , the c h a r a c t e r B e l i n d a

spurns t r a d i t i o n , h e r i t a g e , the v a l u e s o f r e l i g i o n , sex r o l e s ,

and marriage.

For Pope and E l i o t as n e o - c l a s s i c i s t s , man's problems

and e v i l s are a r e s u l t of the abandonment of h i g h standards

of t a s t e and m o r a l i t y , the d i s i n t e g r a t i o n of v a r i o u s t r a d i t i o n s

a s s o c i a t e d w i t h c i v i l i z a t i o n , p a r t i c u l a r l y moral t r a d i t i o n s .

In t h e i r p o e t r y , both men e x p l o r e the 'sham' r e l i g i o n o f

o c c u l t i s m - man's urge to know the f u t u r e . The e x p l o r a t i o n

o f the o c c u l t i s not man s e a r c h i n g f o r r e l i g i o n and s e l f -

knowledge, but r a t h e r an avoidance of s e l f by a v o i d i n g the

one-to-one dependent r e l a t i o n s h i p w i t h God, which i s

142 T.S. E l i o t , " G erontian", C o l l e c t e d Poems 1909-1935, l i n e s 9-10

55

e s s e n t i a l l y an i n t r o s p e c t i v e m a t t e r . E l i o t i s o p p o s e d t o

o c c u l t i s m b e c a u s e i t a p p e a r s t o be man's s e a r c h f o r u l t i m a t e

k n o w l e d g e - t h e F a u s t i a n s e l f - d e s t r u c t i v e d e s i r e t o have

a l l t h e a n s w e r s .

The o r i g i n a l F a l l o f Man o c c u r r e d b e c a u s e man w a n t e d t o

a c h i e v e g o d h e a d - t o know a l l t h a t God knew. W e s t e r n man

f a l l s a nd f a i l s i n h i s d a i l y l i f e b e c a u s e he t o o wants t o

a c h i e v e u l t i m a t e k n o w l e d g e . I n a p a s s a g e on t h e o c c u l t i n t h e

F o u r Q u a r t e t s , E l i o t t e l l s o f h i s d i s a p p r o v a l o f man's f u t i l e

s e a r c h o f t h e o c c u l t f o r k n o w l e d g e o f t h e f u t u r e i n c o n t r a s t

w i t h t h e u l t i m a t e k n o w l e d g e o f C h r i s t - "The p o i n t o f i n t e r ­

s e c t i o n o f t h e t i m e l e s s / W i t h t i m e " . 1 4 ' * T h i s d i s a p p r o v a l i s

e x p r e s s e d i n t h e f o l l o w i n g l i n e s :

To communicate w i t h M a r s , c o n v e r s e w i t h s p i r i t s To r e p o r t t h e b e h a v i o r o f t h e s e a m o n s t e r , D e s c r i b e t h e h o r o s c o p e , h a r u s p i c a t e o r s c r y , O b s e r v e d i s e a s e i n s i g n a t u r e , e v o k e B i o g r a p h y f r o m t h e w r i n k l e s o f t h e p a l m And t r a g e d y f r o m f i n g e r s ; r e l e a s e omens By s o r t i l e g e , o r t e a l e a v e s , r i d d l e t h e i n e v i t a b l e W i t h p l a y i n g c a r d s , f i d d l e w i t h p e n t a g r a m s Or b a r b i t u r i c a c i d s , o r d i s s e c t The r e c u r r e n t image i n t o p r e - c o n s c i o u s t e r r o r s -To e x p l o r e t h e womb, o r tomb, o r dreams; a l l t h e s e a r e u s u a l P a s t i m e s and d r u g s and f e a t u r e s o f t h e p r e s s : And a l w a y s w i l l be, some o f them e s p e c i a l l y : When t h e r e i s d i s t r e s s o f n a t i o n a n d p e r p l e x i t y Whether on t h e s h o r e s o f A s i a , o r i n t h e Edgeware Road. Men's c u r i o s i t y s e a r c h e s p a s t and f u t u r e And c l i n g s t o t h a t d i m e n s i o n . 1

The w e l l - o r d e r e d c e r e m o n i e s o f o c c u l t i s m - T a r o t c a r d s ,

h o r o s c o p e s , and s p i r i t u a l i s m - r e p l a c e g e n u i n e r e l i g i o u s

1 4 3

"Dry S a l v a g e s " , F o u r Q u a r t e t s , l i n e 2 0 2 , 1 4 4 I b i d . , l i n e s 1 8 4 - 2 0 0 .

ceremonies i n the s o c i e t y o f E l i o t ' s Waste Land. The "Son of

man", who i s a l s o the son of God, no lo n g e r i s p r e s e n t i n

modern man's world; he i s no lo n g e r the r o o t or the branch

of r e l i g i o n because r e l i g i o n i s e i t h e r dead or i n suspended

animation, a l l t h a t i s l e f t i s a "heap of broken images"

(TWL 22). R e p l a c i n g a C h r i s t i a n - b a s e d r e l i g i o n - the t r u e

r e l i g i o n - E l i o t sees the o c c u l t as r e p r e s e n t e d by Madame

S o s o s t r i s "with a wicked pack of c a r d s . " (TWL 46)

M y s t i c i s m was r e j e c t e d by the n e o - c l a s s i c i s t s i n fav o u r

o f Deism; thus i t i s o n l y n a t u r a l t h a t n e o - c l a s s i c a l w r i t e r s

would shy away from the s u p e r n a t u r a l and the o c c u l t and a t t e n d

to the e a r t h l y s t a t e of man. P a r t of the n e o - c l a s s i c a l

v i e w p o i n t i s the b e l i e f i n the r e a l i t y and v a l u e o f P r o v i d e n c e ,

which expresses i t s e l f i n the o r d e r i n g o f nature and i n

p e r c e p t i v e g u i d e l i n e s f o r human b e h a v i o r . Hulme observed on one

o c c a s i o n :

That p a r t o f the f i x e d nature o f man i s the b e l i e f i n the D e i t y . T h i s should be as f i x e d and t r u e f o r every man as b e l i e f i n the e x i s t e n c e o f matter i n the o b j e c t i v e world. I t i s p a r a l l e l t o a p p e t i t e , the i n s t i n c t of sex, and a l l the o t h e r f i x e d q u a l i t i e s .

In the Essay on Man, Pope argues t h a t man's momentary

happiness i s c o n t i n g e n t upon h i s ignorance o f the f u t u r e .

The i n a b i l i t y to f o r e s e e f u t u r e events i s the b a s i s of man's

hope of a b e t t e r f u t u r e s t a t e s i n c e "hope s p r i n g s e t e r n a l i n

145 Hulme, i n Shapi r o , p.93.

146 the human b r e a s t " . Most of the t h i n g s by which man l i v e s

are based on f a i t h - the l i b e r a t i n g l i f e - g i v i n g f e e l i n g i n

C h r i s t which r e s u l t s i n content i n man's d a i l y l i f e . Pope

b e l i e v e s t h a t l a c k of foreknowledge i s a g r a c i o u s g i f t g i v e n

by God to ensure man's momentary happiness:

Heaven from a l l c r e a t u r e s h i d e s the book o f F a t e , A l l but the page p r e s c r i b e d , t h e i r p r e s e n t s t a t e . • • • Oh b l i n d n e s s to the f u t u r e ! k i n d l y given., '148

Because, as Pope w r i t e s :

One t r u t h i s c l e a r , WHATEVER IS, IS RIGHT.

The f i r s t , l a s t purpose of the human s o u l ; ...know, where F a i t h , Law, Morals a l l began, A l l end, i n LOVE OF GOD, and Love of MAN. 1 4 g

By h i s a d d i t i o n o f the s y l p h s i n the r e v i s i o n s of The

Rape o f the Lock Pope p l a c e d i n the poem some c l e a r s i g n o f

the s o c i e t y ' s warped r e l i g i o u s o r d e r . The s y l p h s , gnomes, and

nymphs which appear i n the poem are based on the forms found

i n the R o s i c r u c i a n r e l i g i o n which Pope l e a r n e d from Comte de

G a b a l i s . Commenting on the h i e r a r c h y o f Pope's p r e t e r n a t u r a l

beings, George Wilson Knight wrote t h a t :

We have a g r a d u a t i o n , as i t were, from one c o n c r e t e l i v i n g whole to the next; from words, c o n c r e t e or a b s t r a c t nouns o r v e r b s , to ' p e r s o n i f i c a t i o n * as a l i t e r a r y f i g u r e to dramatic e n t i t i e s such as the

Alexander Pope, Essay on Man, ed., Maynard Mack (London Methuen and Co. L t d . , 1964), pp.239-326, l i n e 95.

147 Essay on Man, l i n e s 76-77.

148 T, . , . . o c I b i d . , l i n e 85. 1 4 9 I b i d . , l i n e s 337-339.

58

sylphs and gnomes of The Rape of the Lock; from t h e r e to a g a l l e r y of a c t u a l p e r s o n a l i t i e s and t h e r e to s o c i e t y and the n a t i o n .

T h i s o r d e r i n g of the n a t u r a l world and s p i r i t w orld i s o f

importance i n s e t t i n g the l i v e s o f the c h a r a c t e r s i n the

c o n t e x t of t r a d i t i o n a l v a l u e s . As Pope wrote:

The use of these machines i s e v i d e n t : s i n c e no e p i c poem can p o s s i b l y s u b s i s t without them, the w i s e s t way i s to r e s e r v e them f o r your g r e a t e s t n e c e s s i t i e s : when you cannot e x t r i c a t e your hero by any human means, or y o u r s e l f by your own w i t , seek r e l i e f from heaven, and the gods w i l l do your b u s i n e s s v e r y r e a d i l y .

E l i o t too makes use of the machinery of the gods, nymphs,

and s y l p h s borrowed from a n c i e n t r e l i g i o u s myths. The s y l p h s

and nymphs are t r a d i t i o n a l guardians of female c h a s t i t y .

In "The F i r e Sermon" E l i o t w r i t e s t h a t the "nymphs are

departed" (TWL 175), and f o r emphasis r e p e a t s t h i s statement.

T h i s i n s i s t e n c e can be i n t e r p r e t e d as the d e p a r t u r e of

c h a s t i t y and m o r a l i t y as w e l l as the d e p a r t u r e from the

b e l i e f i n the s p i r i t u a l w orld.

In p l a c e of b e l i e f i n a D e i t y , the s o c i e t i e s s a t i r i z e d

by E l i o t and Pope have warped v a l u e s and b e l i e f s which are

d e r i d e d through the r e l i g i o u s r i t e s which have been i n c o r p o r a t e d

i n t o the poems. Both Pope and E l i o t juxtaposed r e l i g i o n and

female v a n i t y , f o r example, to c r e a t e a c o n f l i c t of R e l i g i o n

and E r o s . Both The Waste Land and The Rape of the Lock come to

150 George Wilson Knight, Laureate of Peace (London:

Routledge and Kegan P a u l , 1954), p.13. 151

Alexander Pope, "The A r t of S i n k i n g i n P o e t r y . For Machines" as quoted i n " I n t r o d u c t i o n " t o The Rape o f the Lock (Oxford: Oxford U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1960), p.29.

59

focus on a r i c h woman's t o i l e t . The d e t a i l s o f c o s m e t i c s ,

j e w e l s , t r i n k e t s , and other p a r a p h e r n a l i a used to adorn the

women and t h e i r bed-chambers are d e s c r i b e d as i f the a r t i c l e s a re

ordered f o r some r e l i g i o u s r i t e . B e l i n d a i n The Rape of

the Lock and the u p p e r - c l a s s woman of E l i o t ' s canto "A Game

of Chess", are seen i n "sacred r i t e s o f p r i d e " (TRL I 128).

The women comb t h e i r h a i r and adorn themselves i n order t o

become v i r t u a l goddesses f o r the men w i t h whom they w i l l come

i n t o c o n t a c t .

P a r t i c i p a n t s i n the " r i t e s o f p r i d e " , these women are

symbolized i n the j u x t a p o s i t i o n o f s e r i o u s r e l i g i o u s o b j e c t s w i t h

cosmetic t r i n k e t s . B e l i n d a has on the d r e s s i n g t a b l e her

c e l e b r a t e d c o l l e c t i o n of " P u f f s , Powders, Patches, B i b l e s ,

B i l l e t - d o u x . " (TRL I 138) The B i b l e , a C h r i s t i a n symbol,

the s t o r y o f western r e l i g i o n , i s t o s s e d a l o n g s i d e cosmetics

and o l d l o v e l e t t e r s . In The Waste Land, E l i o t p r e s e n t s the

Jewish Menorah, the seven-branched c a n d l e s t i c k , as shedding

l i g h t on a l l the t r i v i a i n the woman's room and on her

d r e s s i n g t a b l e :

...the g l a s s Held up by standards wrought w i t h f r u i t e d v i n e s From which a golden Cupidon peeped out (Another h i d h i s eyes behind h i s wing) Doubled the flames o f the sevenbranched c a n d e l a b r a R e f l e c t i n g l i g h t upon the t a b l e as The g l i t t e r of her jewels rose to meet i t From s a t i n cases poured i n r i c h p r o f u s i o n , ^^-^ 7 3 - 8 5 )

In both i n s t a n c e s r e l i g i o u s o b j e c t s have been profaned i n

the e r o t i c l i v e s o f r i c h and f r i v o l o u s women. To both

GO

poets t h i s overshadowing by the e r o t i c and m a t e r i a l i s t i c

over the s p i r i t u a l r e p r e s e n t s an important f a c e t i n the

decay of c i v i l i z a t i o n .

The i n c o n g r u i t y of a s o c i e t y which pretends h u m i l i t y ,

r e s p e c t , and b e l i e f when none t r u l y e x i s t s i s i l l u s t r a t e d

by the f o l l o w i n g l i n e s from The Rape of the Lock:

On her white b r e a s t a s p a r k l i n g c r o s s she wore Which Jews might k i s s and i n f i d e l s adore. . T_ _ Q.

{ 1KL J. 1 / — o)

With Chaucerian i r o n y , the C h r i s t i a n symbol of the c r o s s i s

worn i n mockery merely as a f r i v o l o u s adornment to s e t o f f

the beauty of B e l i n d a ' s white b r e a s t r a t h e r than as a symbol

of her b e l i e f s .

In the c o u r t s o c i e t y which Pope d e p i c t s , e v e r y t h i n g must

be c o r r e c t l y o r d e r e d f o r p l e a s i n g appearance. T h i s n e c e s s i t y

i s r e f l e c t e d i n the d e s c r i p t i o n of the tea p a r t y a t Hampton

Court, whose m e t i c u l o u s order i n t i m a t e s a r e l i g i o u s reverence

f o r p e r f e c t i o n and beauty. The t r a y s on which the cups are

c a r r i e d are even r e f e r r e d t o as " a l t a r s " : For l o ! the board w i t h cups and spoons i s crowned,

The b e r r i e s c r a c k l e , and the m i l l t u r n s round; On s h i n i n g a l t a r s o f Japan they r a i s e The s i l v e r lamp; the f i e r y S p i r i t s b l a z e ; From s i l v e r spouts the g r a t e f u l l i q u o r s g l i d e , While China's e a r t h r e c e i v e s the smoking t i d e ^ T R L 105-110)

The spoons, cups, and t r a y s which resemble a r t i c l e s a r r a y e d

f o r a r e l i g i o u s ceremony symbolize the c u l t of shallow

c o r r e c t n e s s o f e i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y s o c i e t y .

As w i t h e i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y s o c i e t y , t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y s o c i e t y ,

as seen by E l i o t , i s o v e r l y c o n s c i o u s o f a s u p e r f i c i a l sense of order,

6 1

T h e r e a r e s t r o n g p a r a l l e l s i n t h i s r e s p e c t , i n t h e o r i g i n a l

a n d d i s c a r d e d d r a f t o f " T h e F i r e S e r m o n " a n d b e t w e e n E l i o t ' s

d e s c r i p t i o n o f M a r i e ' s s o c i e t y i n t h e o p e n i n g o f " T h e B u r i a l

o f t h e D e a d " a n d B e l i n d a ' s w o r l d i n T h e R a p e o f t h e L o c k .

M a r i e , t h e g i r l o f t h e h y a c i n t h g a r d e n , d e s c r i b e s h e r p a s t t o

a m a l e c o m p a n i o n w h o s h a r e s h e r m e m o r i e s . H e r l o v e r r e f l e c t s

o n h i s f a i l u r e w h e n h e s a y s " I w a s n e i t h e r / L i v i n g n o r d e a d ,

a n d I k n e w n o t h i n g , / L o o k i n g i n t o t h e h e a r t o f l i g h t , t h e

s i l e n c e . " ( T W L 3 9 - 4 1 ) H i s e x i s t e n c e , a s t h e l i v e s o f t h e

o t h e r c h a r a c t e r s i n T h e W a s t e L a n d , i s a p i c t u r e o f l i f e i n

d e a t h , d e a t h i n l i f e - a l i f e u n a w a r e o f i t s p o t e n t i a l i t i e s ,

u n c e r t a i n e v e n o f t h e r e a l i t y o f i t s o w n e x i s t e n c e . T h e r e i s

a f i n e n o s t a l g i a , t h o u g h , a s E l i o t p a i n t s a n e v o c a t i v e p i c t u r e

o f t h e " s h o w e r o f r a i n " , t h e " s u n l i g h t " , " t h e H o f g a r t e n " a n d

" t h e h y a c i n t h g a r d e n " , t h e h a p p y m o m e n t s o f p a s t l o v e r e c a l l e d

b y t h e s t a t e m e n t " Y o u g a v e m e h y a c i n t h s f i r s t a y e a r a g o " . ( T W L 3 5 )

M a r i e ' s l i f e i s o r d e r e d b y h e r p o s i t i o n i n s o c i e t y , a s

i n d i c a t e d b y h e r c h i l d h o o d s t a y a t t h e " a r c h - d u k e ' s " , h e r

s u m m e r a t S t a r n b e r g e r s e e , a n d h e r h a b i t o f s p e n d i n g w i n t e r s

i n t h e s o u t h . H e r s o c i a l r e g i m e n t a t i o n i s d o m i n a n t b o t h i n

h e r d e s c r i p t i o n o f h e r s o c i a l l i f e a n d i n t h e p r i d e i n h e r

b i r t h r i g h t , s i n c e s h e i s a w a r e o f b e i n g n o t R u s s i a n , b u t

G e r m a n : " B i n g a r k e i n e R u s s i n , s t a m m ' a u s L i t a u e n , e c h t

d e u t s c h . " ( T W L 1 2 )

I n T h e R a p e o f t h e L o c k t h e c h a r a c t e r s a l s o l a c k a s t r o n g

s e n s e o f s e l f - a w a r e n e s s , a n d y e t , a s p r e v i o u s l y d i s c u s s e d ,

t h e y h a v e a s t r o n g s e n s e o f s o c i a l s t a t u s . B e l i n d a ' s

62

p r e f e r e n c e f o r forms i s expressed i n her speech a t the end of

Canto IV when she t h o u g h t l e s s l y i m p l i e s t h a t she would

r a t h e r have l o s t her c h a s t i t y than her g l o r i o u s l o c k of h a i r .

When the r e i s no m o r a l i t y or inward beauty to accompany

p h y s i c a l beauty:

How v a i n are a l l these g l o r i e s , a l l our p a i n s , Unless good sense p r e s e r v e what beauty g a i n s : That men may say, when we the f r o n t - b o x g r a c e : 'Behold the f i r s t i n v i r t u e as i n f a c e ! ' , c , Q .

(1 JtvLi V 1 b — 1 o)

As i n The Rape of the Lock, the d i d a c t i c nature of The

Waste Land becomes apparent i n the f i f t h s e c t i o n , "What the

Thunder S a i d " . In t h i s s e c t i o n E l i o t i n s e r t s a number of

d i r e c t r e l i g i o u s a l l u s i o n s and pronouncements. The v o i c e of

"the t h i r d who walks always b e s i d e you" (TWL 360) - perhaps

the s p i r i t of God - becomes embodied i n the thunderous v o i c e

whose words form the moral summation of the poem. The a d v i c e

g i v e n by the "thunder" i s "Datta" (TWL 402); "Dayadhvan" (TWL 412) ;

"Damyata" (TWL 419), which E l i o t has taken from a Hindu

Upanishad. T r a n s l a t e d , t h i s a d v i c e i s Give; Sympathize;

C o n t r o l . These pronouncements are a p p l i c a b l e t o the

n e o - c l a s s i c a l r e l i g i o u s p o s i t i o n , which advocates t h a t one

should g i v e of one's s e l f , sympathize w i t h man's c o n d i t i o n ,

and c o n t r o l one's a c t i o n s i n l i f e - comparable to Hulme's p o s i t i o n

on c l a s s i c i s m . E l i o t concludes The Waste Land w i t h the

c l o s i n g b l e s s i n g o f an Upanishad: "Shantih s h a n t i h

s h a n t i h " (TWL 434), "'The Peace which p a s s e t h understanding* 152

i s our e q u i v a l e n t to t h i s word." Thus E l i o t i s s a y i n g

"Notes on The Waste Land", C o l l e c t e d Poems 1909-1935, p.84.

63

t h a t i f man f o l l o w s the moral p r e s c r i p t i o n , g i v e n i n the t h r e e

words of "What the Thunder S a i d " , the r e s u l t w i l l be the

long awaited peace i n l i f e i n The Waste Land.

64

CHAPTER I I I

N e o - c l a s s i c a l Form i n Pope and E l i o t

In The Rape of the Lock by " p l a c i n g so much emphasis on the 'moral' of the e p i c , Pope was c o n t r i b u t i n g to the e p i c t r a d i t i o n as he understood i t . To him, the t r a d i t i o n was not even remote, l e t alone dead. H i s views of the h e r o i c t r a d i t i o n were somewhat a k i n to those of T.S. E l i o t , whose f i r m b e l i e f i n the c o n t i n u i t y of t r a d i t i o n i s expressed i n ' T r a d i t i o n and the I n d i v i d u a l T a l e n t ' and 'The F u n c t i o n of C r i t i c i s m ' " . , c_ l b J

In the n e o - c l a s s i c a l l i t e r a t u r e of the e i g h t e e n t h c e n t u r y

- and v e r s e s a t i r e i n p a r t i c u l a r - i t was necessary to

e x h i b i t e x a c t i n g p r i n c i p l e s of form i n o r d e r to i l l u m i n a t e

the poet's c e n t r a l moral themes. The " e i g h t e e n t h century was 154

c l a s s i c a l i n i t s r e s p e c t f o r a u t h o r i t y " . Poets were "to m a i n t a i n standards, copy models and p a t t e r n s , comply w i t h

155

c o n v e n t i o n s , and c h a s t i s e l a w l e s s n e s s . " The p i t f a l l

was the e i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y c u l t of p o e t i c ' c o r r e c t n e s s ' .

E l i o t ' s comment on t h i s type of d e v o t i o n was t h a t " t r a d i t i o n

w ithout i n t e l l i g e n c e i s not worth h a v i n g " b e c a u s e " t r a d i t i o n 157

cannot mean s t a n d i n g s t i l l . " Hack w r i t e r s may pursue the

' c u l t of c o r r e c t n e s s ' , but w r i t e r s of m e r i t , such as Dryden,

Pope and E l i o t , "however formal t h e i r s t y l e , were always

d r i v i n g a t t h i n g s and people, a t l e a s t i n t h e i r most 153

George T. Wright, The Poet i n the Poem (Los Angeles: U n i v e r s i t y of C a l i f o r n i a P r e s s , 1962), p.56.

154 Henry A. Beers, A H i s t o r y of E n g l i s h Romanticism i n the

E i g h t e e n t h Century (New York: Gordian Press Inc., 1899), p.47. 155 X 3 3 I b i d . , p.47. ^ ^ A f t e r Strange Gods, p.19. 157 • L 3 / I b i d . , p.24.

c h a r a c t e r i s t i c work; they d i d not j u s t embroider f a m i l i a r 158

themes w i t h t r a d i t i o n a l g r a c e s . "

The form of the s a t i r e s of Pope and E l i o t i n v o l v e s a

humorous d i s t o r t i o n of the f a m i l i a r whose p u r p o s e / n e v e r t h e l e s s /

i s to b r i n g the reader i n t o terms w i t h r e a l i t y . E l i o t ' s

c o n s c i o u s n e s s o f the nature of s a t i r e can be r e a l i z e d i n h i s

comment on d i d a c t i c p o e t r y , which he b e l i e v e d to be p o e t r y of moral e x h o r t a t i o n which, as w i t h

some of Dryden's poems, i n the seventeenth c e n t u r y , are s a t i r e s i n the sense t h a t they aim to r i d i c u l e the o b j e c t s a g a i n s t which they are d i r e c t e d , and a l s o d i d a c t i c i n the aim to persuade the reader to a p a r t i c u l a r p o l i t i c a l or r e l i g i o u s p o i n t of view.^^g

The a r t of the s a t i r i s t i s c h a r a c t e r i s t i c a l l y t h a t of

d i s t o r t i n g a contemporary i n c i d e n t which o f f e n d s reason i n t o

a f i c t i o n which becomes c e n t r a l to h i s s a t i r e . T h i s change

from the n a t u r a l p e r s p e c t i v e to the d i s t o r t e d i n d i c a t e s the

a b s u r d i t y of the e x i s t i n g c r i t i c i z e d c o n d i t i o n i n s o c i e t y .

The s a t i r i s t o f t e n juxtaposes the contemporary world w i t h a

h i s t o r i c a l or f i c t i o n a l world i n o r d e r to perform the t r a d i t i o n a l

f u n c t i o n of s a t i r e - the e d u c a t i o n of the reader to the e r r o r

of h i s ways, c u s t o m a r i l y the e r r o r s o f v i c e and f o l l y .

The s a t i r i s t e i t h e r s u b t l y or o b v i o u s l y i n d i c a t e s the

moral nature of h i s work through h i s t e c h n i q u e s . By a t t a c k i n g

v i c e o b l i q u e l y , the s a t i r i s t pretends to c e l e b r a t e t h a t which

he d e s p i s e s ; he speaks f o r example "with enthusiasm of U t o p i a s

158 Thomson, p.207. 159 "The S o c i a l F u n c t i o n of P o e t r y " , On Poetry and Poets, p.11

66

which he proves to be w a s t e l a n d s " . 1 * ^ A primary t o o l o f the

s a t i r i s t , v e r b a l i r o n y i s an i n v e r s i o n o f the poet's a c t u a l meaning.

The words c a r r y the o p p o s i t e i n t e n t i o n o f what they o r d i n a r i l y

mean and as such they serve t o i l l u s t r a t e i n c o n g r u i t i e s i n

a c t u a l s i t u a t i o n s , as i n the b e l i e f by the Baron and the

"young man c a r b u n c u l a r " t h a t they are accepted, even welcomed,

by the women whom they seek t o e x p l o i t .

" S a t i r e i s not f o r the l i t e r a l - m i n d e d . I t e x i s t s on a t 161

l e a s t two l e v e l s , the o v e r t and the i m p l i e d " . The reader

must r e c o g n i z e the c o n f l i c t i n g sense o f v a l u e s p o i n t e d up

by i r o n y i n or d e r f o r t h i s d e v i c e t o be s u c c e s s f u l . O f t e n the

reader w i l l uphold one s e t of standards w h i l e the personae o f

the s a t i r e uphold another. An example o f t h i s j u x t a p o s i t i o n o f

c o n t r a s t i n g v a l u e s can be seen i n The Rape o f the Lock where

B e l i n d a t o s s e s " P u f f s , Powders, Patches, B i b l e s , B i l l e t - d o u x "

(TRL I 138) t o g e t h e r on her d r e s s i n g t a b l e as i f they a l l

have the same purpose and importance. S i m i l a r l y , i n or d e r t o

emphasize normal e x p e c t a t i o n s about s p r i n g , a l o n g s i d e the

n e u r o s i s o f h i s n a r r a t o r , E l i o t o f f e r s the f o l l o w i n g c e l e b r a t e d

j u x t a p o s i t i o n : A p r i l i s the c r u e l l e s t month, b r e e d i n g L i l a c s out of the dead l a n d , m ixing Memory and d e s i r e , s t i r r i n g D u l l r o o t s w i t h s p r i n g r a i n . , m T T T ,

^ ^ (TWL 1-4)

1 6 0 A l v i n B. Kernan, The P l o t o f S a t i r e (New Haven: Y a l e

U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1965), p.82. James S u t h e r l a n d , E n g l i s h S a t i r e (Cambridge: Cambridge

U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1958), p.20.

67

S p r i n g has become not a joyous awakening but i n s t e a d a c r u e l

p a i n f o r c i n g new l i f e i n t o the world. With the s a t i r i s t ' s

i r o n i c a l v i s i o n , E l i o t has r e v e r s e d the c o n v e n t i o n a l e v o c a t i o n

of the season.

In 1939 E l i o t s t a t e d t h a t man was p l a c i n g too much f a i t h

i n h i s own power to c o n t r o l the w o r l d :

We are a l l d i s s a t i s f i e d w i t h the way i n which the world i s conducted: some b e l i e v e t h a t i t i s a misconduct i n which we a l l have c o m p l i c i t y ; some b e l i e v e t h a t i f we t r u s t o u r s e l v e s e n t i r e l y t o p o l i t i c s , s o c i o l o g y , or economics we s h a l l o n l y s h u f f l e from one m a k e s h i f t to another..

16 2.

Pope a l s o expressed f e a r about the ' o v e r - c o n f i d e n c e ' and

' o v e r - r e a c h i n g ' of c i v i l i z e d man and d i s g u s t w i t h the greed

i n government, the church, and commerce. In the t h i r d Moral

Essay he c r i t i c i z e s the u n d e r l y i n g m a t e r i a l i s m which causes men 163

to be "sunk i n l u c r e ' s s o r d i d charms". In the I m i t a t i o n of Horace, Pope commented how men are " a l i k e i n n o t h i n g but

164 one l u s t f o r g o l d " . E l i o t ' s m i s g i v i n g s about the snare of m a t e r i a l i s m i s s i m i l a r to Pope's:

Perhaps the dominant v i c e of our time, from the p o i n t of view of the Church, w i l l be proved to be A v a r i c e . S u r e l y t h e r e i s something wrong i n our a t t i t u d e towards money. The a c q u i s i t i v e , r a t h e r than the c r e a t i v e and s p i r i t u a l i n s t i n c t s are encouraged

16 2 The Idea of a C h r i s t i a n S o c i e t y , p.98.

163 Alexander Pope, Moral Essay I I I , E p i s t l e to B a t h u r s t ,

ed., F.W. Bateson (London: Methuen and Company L t d . , 1951), l i n e 145. 164

Alexander Pope, I m i t a t i o n o f Horace, ed., John B u t t (London: Methuen and Company L t d . , 1961), E p i s t l e I, l i n e 24.

165 The Idea of a C h r i s t i a n S o c i e t y , p.97.

68

The s a t i r e s of Pope and E l i o t were intended to break up

" s t e r e o t y p e s , f o s s i l i z e d b e l i e f s , s u p e r s t i t i o n s , t e r r o r s ,

crank t h e o r i e s , p e d a n t i c dogmatism, a g g r e s s i v e f a s h i o n , and 166 a l l o t h e r t h i n g s t h a t impede the f r e e movement of s o c i e t y . "

They are concerned w i t h man's l a c k of i n s i g h t about h i m s e l f ,

b e l i e v i n g t h a t "most people are p u r b l i n d , i n s e n s i t i v e , perhaps 167

a n a e s t h e t i z e d by custom and d u l l n e s s and r e s i g n a t i o n . "

They i n s i s t , i n s h o r t , t h a t r e a d e r s be made to "see the

t r u t h - a t l e a s t t h a t p a r t of the t r u t h which they h a b i t u a l l y

i g n o r e . " 1 6 8

The s a t i r i s t has been c h a r a c t e r i z e d as "a r e s p o n s i b l e c r i t i c o f men and manners who g i v e s the r u l e s o f a happy and

169

v i r t u o u s l i f e " . In such works as The Idea o f a C h r i s t i a n

S o c i e t y and A f t e r Strange Gods, where E l i o t c l e a r l y a c t s i n

the r o l e o f moral c r i t i c , the f r a i l t y of contemporary c i v i l i z a t i o n

i s expressed i n statements which are s i m i l a r t o the s a t i r i c

t a r g e t s i n h i s poems. For E l i o t , p o e t r y - and s a t i r e i n

p a r t i c u l a r - was not an unchecked emotional o u t p o u r i n g ,

but a work of f a s t i d i o u s s e l e c t i o n . In f a c t , g r e a t p o e t r y ,

he b e l i e v e d , might "be made without the d i r e c t use of any 170

emotion whatever". "Poetry i s not a t u r n i n g l o o s e of

emotion, but an escape from emotion; i t i s not the e x p r e s s i o n

1 6 6 N o r t h r o p F r y e , i n A l l e n and Stephens, p.20. 1 6 7 G i l b e r t Highet, The Anatomy of S a t i r e ( P r i n c e t o n , N.J.:

P r i n c e t o n U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1962), p.19. 1 6 8 I b i d . , p.19.

Kernan, p.8. 1 7 0 " T r a d i t i o n and the I n d i v i d u a l T a l e n t " , S e l e c t e d Essays, p.18

Gy

171

o f p e r s o n a l i t y , but an escape from p e r s o n a l i t y . "

S a t i r e i n v o l v e s condemnation o f s o c i e t y by r e f e r e n c e

to an i d e a l through the s a t i r i s t ' s e f f o r t s i n measuring the 172

a b e r r a t i o n from the i d e a . The s o c i e t i e s o f the e i g h t e e n t h

and t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r i e s seemed t o Pope and E l i o t t o be

'o v e r - c o n f i d e n t ' i n t h e i r m a t e r i a l s u c c e s s : "When the

met a p h y s i c i a n s were demonstrating t h a t a l l was f o r the b e s t

i n the b e s t o f a l l p o s s i b l e worlds a number of major writers) 173

were p o i n t i n g out t h a t a g r e a t deal...was wrong." N e v e r U t e l e s s ,

t y p i c a l o f n e o - c l a s s i c a l a r t i s t s , Pope and E l i o t s t r o v e f o r

a balanced v i s i o n . Pope, f o r example, i n the Essay on Man

shows how the Great Chain of Being i l l u s t r a t e s the beauty

of God's o r d e r i n the worl d . On the o t h e r hand, i n The

Dunciad he c r e a t e s a p i c t u r e o f growing darkness and e v i l

where men behave as they would i f they r e v e r s e d the Chain o f

Being, as Pope p r e d i c t e d i n Essay on Man: Men would be Angels, Angels would be Gods. A s p i r i n g to be Gods, i f Angels f e l l , A s p i r i n g to be Angels, Men r e b e l : And who but wishes to i n v e r t the laws Of ORDER, s i n s a g a i n s t t h 1 E t e r n a l Cause.

More than e i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y n e o - c l a s s i c a l s a t i r i s t s ,

E l i o t v a r i e d the form o f s a t i r e , experimenting, f o r example,

wit h f r e s h rhythms and a new s o r t o f c o l l a g e e f f e c t i n

The Waste Land, because he saw "poetry as having a s o c i a l

171 " T r a d i t i o n and the I n d i v i d u a l T a l e n t " , S e l e c t e d Eeutgys, p. 21,

1 7 2 W i l l e y , p.101. 1 7 3 I b i d . , p.100. 174

Essay on Man, I, l i n e s 126-130.

70

f u n c t i o n of v i t a l i z i n g the language of i t s audience i n o r d e r 175

to v i t a l i z e t h e i r p e r c e p t i o n s of the world." As Harry

Rutledge remarks of The Waste Land:

T h i s u t t e r l y e n g r o s s i n g , f a s c i n a t i n g poem r e f l e c t s , and y e t breaks w i t h , the past; i t blends the h i s t o r i c a l p a s t w i t h the h i s t o r i c a l p r e s e n t ; i t f r e e l y combines the m a j e s t i c m y t h o l o g i c a l prophet T i r e s i a s w i t h a p a t h e t i c stenographer and her c o a r s e 'young man c a r b u n c u l a r 1 . n n c l / o

By examining the scenes and t e c h n i q u e s i n Pope's and E l i o t ' s

p o e t r y , the reader can observe the c l o s e r e l a t i o n s h i p between

t h e i r p r a c t i c e as n e o - c l a s s i c a l s a t i r i s t s . In c o n n e c t i o n w i t h E l i o t ' s s a t i r e , one r e c a l l s F.R. L e a v i s ' s

o b s e r v a t i o n t h a t The Love Song o f J . A l f r e d P r u f r o c k was a

poem o f such a s t a r t l i n g new s t y l e t h a t i t "must indeed 177

have been d i f f i c u l t t o take s e r i o u s l y i n 1917". The poem

i s d i f f i c u l t to take s e r i o u s l y because i t i s a s a t i r e i n the

mock-heroic mode. E l i o t b u r l e s q u e s the e p i c through the

c o n t r a s t of P r u f r o c k ' s amusingly t r i v i a l s t a t u r e w i t h the

s e r i o u s theme o f man's t i m i d i t y i n approaching both l i f e

(aging) and death.

P r u f r o c k begins w i t h the t r a d i t i o n a l e p i g r a p h which s e t s

f o r t h the theme which w i l l be m a i n t a i n e d throughout the

poem. The t r a n s l a t i o n of the e p i g r a p h , an a d a p t a t i o n from Dante's I n f e r n o , reads:

I f I b e l i e v e d t h a t my r e p l y were made to one who c o u l d ever climb to the world a g a i n , t h i s flame would shake no more. But s i n c e no shade

K r i e g e r , p.51. 176

Rutledge, i n Morford, p.144. 177

F.R. L e a v i s , New Bearings i n E n g l i s h Poetry (Michigan: Ann Arbour Paperbacks, 1960), p.75.

71

ever r e t u r n e d - i f what I am t o l d i s t r u e -from t h i s b l i n d world i n t o the l i v i n g l i g h t , w i t h out f e a r o f dishonour I answer you.._ 0

I / O

The epigraph i s f i t t i n g s i n c e P r u f r o c k ' s voyage through l i f e

becomes an extended mock-epic o f Dante's voyage through H e l l .

E l i o t uses mock-heroic s t r u c t u r e to emphasize the

i r o n y i n P r u f r o c k ' s speeches - the nauseating image of P r u f r o c k ' s

b a l d i n g head upon a p l a t t e r i n c o n t r a s t w i t h h i s a c t u a l 179

s i t u a t i o n surrounded by "tea and cakes and i c e s " , and a l i f e

measured out "with c o f f e e spoons" (LSP 51); Though I have seen my head (Grown s l i g h t l y bald)

brought i n upon a p l a t t e r I am no prophet - and here's no g r e a t matter; I have seen the moment of my gre a t n e s s f l i c k e r , And I have seen the e t e r n a l Footman h o l d my c o a t ,

and s n i c k e r , And i n s h o r t , I was a f r a i d . / T n n n..

(LSP 80-84)

Here, as elsewhere, E l i o t "solemnly d r e s s e s h i s contemporaries

j^Prufrock, the aging c l e r k j i n e p i c robes too l a r g e f o r them, and c o n f i d e n t l y puts A c h i l l e ' s spear i n hands which cannot h o l d

180

i t . " A lthough P r u f r o c k says t h a t he i s no prophet, by

im p l y i n g a r e l a t i o n s h i p between h i s s t a t u r e and t h a t o f

St. John, he has drawn a h e r o i c comparison. But P r u f r o c k i s

not brave; he i s not g r e a t ; h i s moment of gre a t n e s s w i l l never

k i n d l e i n t o the flame of success, i t w i l l o n l y f l i c k e r .

Even death s n i c k e r s a t the i n s i g n i f i c a n c e o f t h i s man who

f a c e s n e i t h e r l i f e nor death w i t h courage. The I n f e r n o , XXVI, l i n e s 58-63.

179 The Love Song of J . A l f r e d P r u f r o c k , C o l l e c t e d Poems

1909-1935, l i n e 77. A l l f u t u r e r e f e r e n c e s t o t h i s poem are taken from t h i s e d i t i o n and w i l l be i n t e r n a l i z e d u s i n g the a b b r e v i a t i o n LSP f o l l o w e d by the l i n e numbers.

Kernan, p.82.

'Burlesque' has come to be commonly known as a type of

t h e a t r i c a l show which i n c l u d e s s t r i p - t e a s e dancing, broad humour,

and s h o r t s k i t s , a l l o f which have a heavy s e x u a l emphasis.

Although b u r l e s q u e l i t e r a t u r e i s not u s u a l l y r e l a t e d to

t h e a t r i c a l b u r l e s q u e , some shared f e a t u r e s of the two are

comparable:

The s e x u a l , mixed w i t h the s c a t o l o g i c a l , o f f e r e d the s a t i r i s t the most e x p r e s s i v e symbol he c o u l d f i n d f o r the exposed p r i v a t e world. I t i s , o f course, an area of e x p e r i e n c e he p e r s i s t e n t l y t u r n s to when he wishes to remind man o f h i s u n h e r o i c , animal s e l f . ^ g ^

T y p i c a l of s a t i r e i n g e n e r a l , the b u r l e s q u e does not i n v o l v e

a s e r i e s o f scenes which resemble a p l o t , but i n s t e a d c o n s i s t s

of " l o o s e l y r e l a t e d scenes and busyness [ s i c ] which c u r l s back 18 2

on i t s e l f " . In a l i t e r a r y b u r l e s q u e , the author p r e s e n t s

s h o r t scenes resembling c a r i c a t u r e s or c a r t o o n s o f i n d i v i d u a l s

or s i t u a t i o n s which p l a c e heavy emphasis on the s e x u a l a s p e c t o f

man's l i f e . These ' s k i t s ' are 'given' by the author as a type

of comic amusement f o r the reader i n which the c h a r a c t e r s

p r o v i d e the song, dance, and humour comparable to the melange

of t h e a t r i c a l b u r l e s q u e .

Burlesque i s l i k e a sounding board which p i c k s up and

sends out sympathetic v i b r a t i o n s - s i m i l a r t o the s c i e n t i f i c

p r i n c i p l e of resonance frequency. The o r i g i n a l v i b r a t i o n s are

p i c k e d up and d i s t o r t e d t o become new v i b r a t i o n s . Thus t h e r e

i s a mimetic q u a l i t y to b u r l e s q u e , as e x e m p l i f i e d i n Pope's

Dunciad which i s a d i s t o r t e d i m i t a t i o n of Dryden's s a t i r e

MacFlecknoe.

1 8 1 P a u l s o n , p.107, 1 8 2 K e r n a n , p.100.

7 3

I n t h e D u n c i a d , P o p e u s e s l o w b u r l e s q u e t o d e p i c t w e a k

a n d w i c k e d i n d i v i d u a l s w h o a r e d e g r a d e d d i s t o r t i o n s o f p e r s o n s

w h o w e r e p r o m i n e n t i n s e v e n t e e n t h a n d e i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y

s o c i e t y . M a n i s b l i n d t o r e a l i t y a n d h a s c r e a t e d e x a l t e d

i m a g e s o f h i m s e l f . I n t h e D u n c i a d , P o p e ' s d u n c e s a r e a n e x a m p l e

o f t h i s p e r v e r s i o n , f o r t h e y b e l i e v e t h e m s e l v e s t o b e g r e a t w i t s :

T u r n i n g h i s v o i c e , a n d b a l a n c i n g h i s h a n d s . H o w f l u e n t n o n s e n s e t r i c k l e s f r o m h i s t o n g u e ! H o w s w e e t t h e p e r i o d , n e i t h e r s a i d , n o r s u n g l ^ g ^

T h e s e l i n e s a r e P o p e ' s c o m m e n t o n J . H e n l e y , t h e o r a t o r , w h o

p r e a c h e d o n l y f o r p r o f i t a n d t h e p l e a s u r e o f h e a r i n g t h e s o u n d

o f h i s o w n v o i c e . T h e b u r l e s q u e i s m e a n t t o s h o w t h e i n c o n g r u i t y

b e t w e e n t h e " n o b l e v i s i o n o f r a t i o n a l m a n a n d t h e h a t e f u l

1 8 4

s p e c t a c l e o f h i s a c t u a l b e h a v i o r . "

I n t h e D u n c i a d , t h e d u n c e s c o n s t r u c t h e r o i c i m a g e s o f

t h e m s e l v e s , m o n u m e n t s t o t h e i r s e l f - i m p o r t a n c e , a n d i n s o d o i n g

t h e y r e v e a l t h e i r p e t t i n e s s a n d b a d t a s t e : K i n d S e l f - C o n c e i t t o s o m e h e r g l a s s a p p l i e s , W h i c h n o o n e l o o k s i n w i t h a n o t h e r ' s e y e s : B u t a s t h e F l a t t e r e r o r D e p e n d e n t p a i n t , B e h o l d s h i m s e l f a P a t r i o t , C h i e f , o r S a i n t . / r , T T T , -->^\

W h i l e b e h o l d i n g t h e m s e l v e s a s p a t r i o t s , c h i e f s , a n d s a i n t s , t h e

d u n c e s s h o w t h e m s e l v e s a s t h e y a c t u a l l y a r e - i o b s c e n e b o o r s

w h o p a r t i c i p a t e i n u r i n a t i n g c o n t e s t s , n o i s e - m a k i n g , a n d

1 8 3 A l e x a n d e r P o p e , T h e D u n c i a d , e d . , J a m e s S u t h e r l a n d ( L o n d o n :

M e t h u e n a n d C o . L t d . , 1 9 6 3 ) , 3 r d e d i t i o n , r e v i s e d , D u n c i a d I I I , l i n e s 2 0 0 - 2 0 2 . A l l f u t u r e r e f e r e n c e s t o t h i s p o e m a r e f r o m t h i s e d i t i o n a n d w i l l b e i n t e r n a l i z e d u s i n g t h e a b b r e v i a t i o n D f o l l o w e d b y t h e b o o k a n d l i n e n u m b e r s .

1 8 4 F r a n k B r a d y a n d M a r t i n P r i c e , e d s . , E n g l i s h P r o s e a n d

P o e t r y 1 6 6 0 - 1 8 0 0 ( T o r o n t o : H o l t , R i n e h a r t a n d W i n s t o n , 1 9 6 1 ) , p . x v i i ,

m u d - s l i n g i n g . In some i n s t a n c e s Pope c o n t r a s t s the G r u b s t r e e t

u g l i n e s s w i t h the c l a s s i c a l h e r o i c scene.

Pope p a r a l l e l s the s q u a l o r of the dunces' world w i t h t h e i r

o f f e n c e s a g a i n s t the d i g n i t y and moral s e r i o u s n e s s o f the

author's v o c a t i o n . He comments wryly on " C u r l l ' s chaste p r e s s "

(D I 40) when C u r l l a c t u a l l y was a b o o k - s e l l e r who p u b l i s h e d ,

not c h a s t e , but obscene books. "Now N i g h t descending, the

proud scene was o'er/But l i v e d i n S e t t l e ' s numbers one day

more" (D I 89-90) comments on S e t t l e , the o f f i c i a l poet of

London who wrote rhymes of t o p i c a l events. He d i d not take

p r i d e i n h i s work as a poet, but wrote o n l y f o r the honour

and f i n a n c i a l compensation. The most pungent bu r l e s q u e i n

The Dunciad i s t h a t of Thomas Osborne. Pope w r i t e s t h a t

Osborne was a c t u a l l y a b o o k - s e l l e r i n Gray's Inn who

p u b l i s h e d advertisements f o r a year t o g e t h e r , p r e t e n d i n g to s e l l Mr. Pope's s u b s c r i p t i o n books of Homer's I l i a d a t h a l f the p r i c e : Of which he had none, but c u t to the s i z e of them (which was quarto) the common books i n f o l i o , w i t h out C o p p e r p l a t e s , on a worse paper, and never above h a l f the v a l u e . , o r

l o b

In The Dunciad Pope d i m i n i s h e s Osborne by making him the f i r s t

of the dunces to accept the c h a l l e n g e i n the u r i n a t i n g c o n t e s t :

The Goddess then: "who b e s t can send on h i g h The s a l i e n t spout, f a r - s t r e a m i n g to the sky:,_. _ . . . . F i r s t Osborne leaned a g a i n s t h i s l e t t e r e d p o s t ; I t r o s e , and laboured to a curve a t m o s t . ^ ^ 171-172) • • •

A second e f f o r t brought but new d i s g r a c e : The W i l d Meander washed the A r t i s t ' s f a c e : . ^ T T ,_ r

(D I I 175-176)

Alexander Pope, f o o t n o t e 24, to the Dunciad I I .

75

Pope hopes, however, t h a t the decay and s o r d i d n e s s which i s

e x e m p l i f i e d i n The Dunciad can somehow be r e v e r s e d so t h a t

the world becomes pure a g a i n , perhaps through a pro c e s s s i m i l a r

to t h a t e x e m p l i f i e d i n the f o l l o w i n g c o u p l e t :

So c l o u d s r e p l e n i s h e d from some bog below, Mount i n dark volumes, and descend i n snow. lT. T T. 0 , 0 ~>r~>\

\U ±1 J D Z - J D J )

As Pope's Dunciad b u r l e s q u e s Dryden 1s Macflecknoe, E l i o t

i n The Waste Land uses low burlesque treatment o f R i c h a r d

Wagner's Ring operas. In "The F i r e Sermon" E l i o t degrades

the s t a t u r e of the t h r e e Wagnerian Rhine Maidens t o the t h r e e

immoral Thames daughters. They echo the o r i g i n a l German and

Norse legends o f Wagner's operas through t h e i r chorus o f

"W e i a l a l a l e i a / W a l l a l a l e i a l a l a " (TWL 77-78) which i s a

combination o f the v a r i o u s chants o f the Rhine Maidens. In

the o r i g i n a l legend the t h r e e maidens were s u p e r n a t u r a l

daughters o f the r i v e r . E l i o t d i s t o r t s them i n t o human

women w i t h human f o l l i e s and human v i c e s . The Rhine Maidens

are always coy and ready f o r a s e x u a l chase; they tempt

l o v e r s but never accept t h e i r advances. The women o f E l i o t ' s

poem, al t h o u g h r e p u l s e d by se x u a l advances, p a s s i v e l y a c c e p t

t h e i r l o v e r s . One o f the daughters o f the Thames n a r r a t e s the

events of her l o v e a f f a i r :

'Trams and dusty t r e e s . Highbury bore me. Richmond and Kew Undid me. By Richmond I r a i s e d my knees Supine on the f l o o r o f a narrow canoe.' / m T 7 T o r i n ~>n.\ c (TWL 291-294)

In The Rhinegold the r i v e r i s pure, a "dark green surge";

" s i l v e r y l i g h t " ; "the f l o o d around flows a stream as o f s t a r s "

and " f l a s h e s the foam"."1""" In The Waste Land we see i r o n y

i n E l i o t ' s d e s c r i p t i o n o f the Thames, which, r a t h e r than b e i n g a

l i f e - g i v i n g , p u r i f y i n g source and a beauty of nature, i s an

i r o n i c reminder of death by drowning and a symbol of s t a g n a t i o n

through p o l l u t i o n . On summer n i g h t s , the r i v e r c a r r i e s the

c i t y ' s l i t t e r - " b o t t l e s , sandwich p a p e r s , / S i l k h a n d k e r c h i e f s ,

cardboard boxes, c i g a r e t t e ends" (TWL 176-177). There i s r o t t i n g

s l i m e and v e g e t a t i o n as "A r a t c r e p t s o f t l y through the v e g e t a t i o n /

Dragging i t s s l i m y b e l l y on the bank" (TWL 187-189). The r i v e r

exudes the wastes of i n d u s t r y and t r a n s p o r t as i t " s w e a t s / O i l

and t a r . " (TWL 266-267) E l i o t attempted t o show the r e a d e r s the

e v i l s i n the excesses which l e d to the c r e a t i o n o f The Waste

Land o f the modern world.

In t r e a t i n g the Ring operas as a t r a v e s t y , however, E l i o t

has a l s o chosen the Norse legend f o r i t s own s u b t l y i n h e r e n t

themes which are a l s o s t r e s s e d i n The Waste Land. The Rhinegold

i s the b e g i n n i n g o f the Ring c y c l e , and the b e g i n n i n g of the c u r s e

which becomes the d e v a s t a t i o n , the t o p p l i n g o f the Gods from

t h e i r c l a s s i c p o s i t i o n . The rape o f the R h i n e g o l d from the

c a r e of the t h r e e Rhine Maidens c o u l d o n l y be accomplished i f

the attempted po s s e s s o r was w i l l i n g t o renounce the p l e a s u r e s

of l o v e . A l b e r i c h Nibelung c o n s i d e r e d l o v e o n l y i n the l u s t f u l

sense and t h e r e f o r e c u r s e d l o v e , becoming the p o s s e s s o r o f the

g o l d and the i n s t i g a t o r of the c u r s e . Because of h i s m a t e r i a l i s m ,

l o v e was l o s t i n the kingdom o f the Gods. However, at the end

R i c h a r d Wagner, The Rhinegold, t r a n s . , H.F. Corder (New York: O l i v e r S i t s o n Co., 1904), p.19.

77

o f the c y c l e l o v e was t r a n s f e r r e d t o humanity on e a r t h .

The greed of the Gods i s d i m i n i s h e d i n The Waste Land to

the greed of mankind:

We are being made aware t h a t the o r g a n i z a t i o n o f s o c i e t y on the p r i n c i p l e of p r i v a t e p r o f i t as w e l l as p u b l i c d e s t r u c t i o n , i s l e a d i n g to both the d e f o r m i t y of humanity by u n r e g u l a t e d i n d u s t r i a l i s m , and to the e x h a u s t i a n of n a t u r a l r e s o u r c e s , and t h a t a good d e a l o f our m a t e r i a l p r o g r e s s f o r which succeeding g e n e r a t i o n s may have to pay d e a r l y .

Man has f o r f e i t e d l o v e , and thus the sex a c t has become b o r i n g 188

" ' l i f e - g i v i n g ' cheery automatism of the modern world." The

j u x t a p o s i t i o n of m a t e r i a l greed and l a c k o f l o v e has l e d

to the v a c u i t y o f "My people humble people who expect/

Nothing" (TWL 304-305).

By r e f e r e n c e to the b u r n i n g o f Carthage i n "Burning b u r n i n g

burning burning/O Lord Thou p l u c k e s t me out/0 L o r d Thou

p l u c k e s t / b u r n i n g " (TWL 308-311) E l i o t makes a c o n n e c t i o n w i t h

the end o f the Ring c y c l e through the b u r n i n g o f S i e g f r i e d on

the f u n e r a l pyre, s i m u l t a n e o u s l y reminding man of s e l f - d e s t r u c t i o n .

Thus, w h i l e Wagner drew on and p r e s e r v e d the c l a s s i c s t a t u r e

of the m a g n i f i c e n t a n c i e n t German and Norse legends, E l i o t ,

i n c r e a t i n g a t r a v e s t y of the Ring c y c l e , has demeaned the

s t a t u r e o f the c h a r a c t e r s and t h e i r a c t i o n s w i t h i n the framework

of the legend.

There are a number of elements i n an e p i c poem which

187 The Idea o f a C h r i s t i a n - S o c i e t y , p.61. 188 " B a u d e l a i r e " , S e l e c t e d Essays, p.391.

78

author can s u c c e s s f u l l y b u rlesque i n o r d e r t o c r e a t e an

e f f e c t i v e mock-epic poem. Fe a t u r e s o f the e p i c which appear i n

both Pope's The Rape of the Lock and E l i o t ' s The Waste Land

are: the p r o p o s i t i o n or e p i g r a p h , i n v o c a t i o n , p r a y e r s , s a c r i f i c e

to the gods, appearance of the goddess, prophecy, e p i c f e a s t ,

and e p i c b a t t l e .

The e p i g r a p h to The Waste Land i s a q u o t a t i o n o f a few

l i n e s from a speech by T r i m a l c h i o i n S a t y r i c o n , which i s t r a n s l a t e d :

For once I myself saw w i t h my own eyes the S y b i l a t Cumae hanging i n a cage, and when boys s a i d t o her, ' S y b i l , what do you want?' she r e p l i e d "I want to d i e ' . 1 0 _

i o y

T h i s e p i g r a p h s t a t e s a death wish which i s connected to the

f u t i l i t y o f wanting foreknowledge and the f u t i l i t y o f a l i f e

w i t h out God. The e p i g r a p h t o The Rape of the Lock i s an

a d a p t a t i o n o f a q u o t a t i o n from M a r t i a l which, as has a l r e a d y been

d i s c u s s e d , i l l u s t r a t e s B e l i n d a ' s p e r v e r s e d e s i r e f o r v i o l a t i o n .

Another prominent opening f e a t u r e o f the e p i c and the

mock-epic i s the i n v o c a t i o n , which i s an i n t r o d u c t o r y appeal

f o r h e l p of the Muse - the poet a s k i n g f o r a i d or i n t e r c e s s i o n .

In The Rape o f the Lock, Pope a p p l i e s h i s i n v o c a t i o n t o h i s

f r i e n d John C a r y l l who suggested the a c t u a l event of the

c u t t i n g of the l o c k as a theme f o r Pope's poem: "Th i s v e r s e

to CARYLL, Muse! i s due". (TRL I 3) By d e d i c a t i n g The Waste 190

Land "For E z r a Pound i l m i g l i o r fabbro" (the b e t t e r craftsman)

1 8 9 T h e Waste Land, C o l l e c t e d Poems 1909-1935, p.59. 190 T, c_ I b i d . , p.59.

E l i o t d i r e c t l y expressed h i s indebtedness to Pound f o r h i s

m a s t e r f u l a s s i s t a n c e i n r e v i s i n g the poem.

Prominent i n most e p i c p o e t r y i s a prayer by the hero f o r

success i n b a t t l e . In The Rape o f the Lock, however/ the

hero i s a h e r o i n e , an amusing t w i s t of Pope's h i g h b u r l e s q u e .

But i t i s not B e l i n d a whom Pope has pray f o r success; i t i s the

Baron who i s the adversary i n the poem:

For t h i s , ere Phoebus r o s e , he had implored P r o p i t i o u s heaven, and every power adored, But c h i e f l y L o v e . . . ( T R L ^ 3 5 _ 3 7 )

• • • Then p r o s t r a t e f a l l s , and begs w i t h ardent eyes Soon to o b t a i n , and long possess the p r i z e ^ T R L -J-J 4 3 - 4 4 )

In The Waste Land E l i o t has changed the e p i c p r a y e r i n t o

images o f a b a r e l y remembered God. The c l o s e s t resemblance to

the e p i c p r a y e r comes i n the statement: "I w i l l show you f e a r

i n a h a n d f u l of dust" (TWL 30). T h i s l i n e r e f e r s to c h a p t e r

twelve o f E c c l e s i a t e s which r e c a l l s the preacher p r a y i n g -

"Remember now thy C r e a t o r i n the days o f thy youth" - f o r the

end of your l i f e w i l l soon come and then " s h a l l the dust r e t u r n

to the e a r t h as i t was: and the s p i r i t s h a l l r e t u r n unto God

who gave i t . V a n i t y o f v a n i t i e s , s a i t h the preacher; a l l i s 191

v a n i t y . " The p r a y e r i s o b v i o u s l y a p p l i c a b l e to the theme

of the poem, s i n c e man i n E l i o t ' s modern world i s a v a i n

c r e a t u r e who i s s e n s i t i v e not to God but to the o c c u l t .

In both Pope and E l i o t the a r t of b u r l e s q u e i s seen i n

those debased s a c r i f i c e s i n the contemporary world which are

191 E c c l e s i a s t e s x n , v e r s e s 1, 7-8.

80

made i n c o n t r a s t w i t h noble p a s t s a c r i f i c e s . In The Rape of

the Lock the Baron's s a c r i f i c e to the gods c o n s i s t s o f an a l t a r

to the Goddess o f Love, b u i l t o f "twelve v a s t Romances, n e a t l y

g i l t . / T h e r e l a y t h r e e g a r t e r s , h a l f a p a i r of gloves,-/And a l l

the t r o p h i e s o f h i s former l o v e s ; / W i t h tender B i l l e t - d o u x

he l i g h t s the pyre,/And breathes t h r e e amorous s i g h s to r a i s e

the f i r e . " (TRL 39-42) In The Waste Land E l i o t h i n t s a t

many s a c r i f i c e s made: the s a c r i f i c e o f death echoed by the

" r a t t l e o f bones, and ch u c k l e spread from ear to ear" (TWL 186);

P h i l o m e l ' s s a c r i f i c e o f her human body i n the change to b i r d

form i n o r d e r t o escape rape "by the barbarous k i n g " (TWL 99);

woman's s a c r i f i c e t o male s e x u a l demands, r e p r e s e n t e d by the

t y p i s t ' s p h y s i c a l (sexual) s a c r i f i c e ; the s a c r i f i c e o f T i r e s i a s ,

l o c k e d i n a t r a n s v e s t i t e body and f o r c e d t o watch the s o r d i d

s e x u a l u n i o n o f man and woman which he has r e l u c t a n t l y f o r e s e e n ;

the s a c r i f i c e o f nature to the greedy m a t e r i a l i s m o f mankind

i n d i c a t e d by the o i l and t a r of the p o l l u t e d r i v e r ; the s a c r i f i c e

of the Rhinegold t o the greed o f the Nibelung; and the f i n a l

reminder o f s a c r i f i c e through the burn i n g o f Carthage, sacked and

burned as a s a c r i f i c e t o the memory of Roman dead - "Burning,

b u r n i n g " - the f i r e which consumes and p u r i f i e s .

In The Rape o f the Lock Pope p l a y s the s u p e r n a t u r a l o f f

a g a i n s t n a t u r a l l i f e u s i n g mock-heroic e f f e c t s . B e l i n d a makes

some absurd appearances as an ' e a r t h l y ' goddess, the f i r s t b eing

i n Canto I, where jewels deck "the Goddess w i t h the g l i t t e r i n g

s p o i l " (TRL I 132). However, when the heavenly Goddess o f Love

81

makes her presence f e l t , B e l i n d a becomes an i n f e r i o r goddess.

I t i s w i t h i n Love's power to g r a n t the wishes o f the Baron.

Love, however, b e l i e v e s i t necessary to a i d the moral goddess

B e l i n d a and thus p r o v i d e s her w i t h "Sighs, sobs, and p a s s i o n s ,

and the war of tongues" (TRL IV 84) and " f a i n t i n g f e a r s , /

S o f t sorrows, m e l t i n g g r i e f s , and f l o w i n g t e a r s " (TRL IV 85-86),

a l l o f which are an attempt to nudge the Baron i n t o r e t u r n i n g

h i s p r i z e and i n t o begging f o r g i v e n e s s o f the now flawed, and

merely human h e r o i n e . In The Waste Land the goddess makes

her appearance i n "A Game of Chess" where she s i t s upon a

"burnished throne" and i s attended by golden cupidons o f l o v e .

In E l i o t ' s poem the goddess i s a l s o of e a r t h l y o r i g i n , and her

p u r i t y i s flawed by i n s i g n i f i c a n t s e x u a l c o n t a c t w i t h e a r t h l y

l o v e r s .

The prophecy i s an important element i n the p l o t o f an

e p i c or mock-epic poem. In The Waste Land Madame S o s o s t r i s

g i v e s the prophecy "Fear death by water" (TWL 55). E l i o t uses

the low b u r l e s q u e to undercut the p l a u s i b i l i t y o f the famous

c l a i r v o y a n t e ' s p r e d i c t i o n , showing her as a merely human

f o r e c a s t e r whose powers are impaired by a bad c o l d . I r o n i c a l l y ,

she " n e v e r t h e l e s s / I s known to be the w i s e s t woman i n Europe"

(TWL 44-45). She p r o p h e s i e s w i t h assurance: "Here, s a i d she,/

Is your c a r d " (TWL 47-48) , but she i s f e a r f u l o f her own

u n c e r t a i n f u t u r e : "One must be so c a r e f u l these days." (TWL 59)

The meaning o f her cards i s c l e a r w i t h i n the t o t a l c o n t e x t

of the poem, but i t i s a meaning t h a t i s hidden from her, and

82

thus she i s powerless to g i v e genuine a i d to the c h a r a c t e r s

whom she 'guides'.

In The Rape of the Lock, A r i e l , B e l i n d a ' s g u a r d i a n nymph,

sees h i m s e l f i n the a b s u r d l y melodramatic r o l e o f her 'guide'

through l i f e . The nymph pr o p h e s i e s "oh pio u s maid, beware!/

...Beware o f a l l , but most beware of man!" (TRL I 112, 114)

A r i e l i s a s u p e r n a t u r a l being, but h i s a b i l i t i e s l i e o n l y i n

p r e d i c t i n g the f u t u r e . He i s powerless to c o n t r o l B e l i n d a ' s

thoughts o r a c t i o n s , f o r he p e r c e i v e s an " e a r t h l y Lover

l u r k i n g a t her h e a r t " (TRL I I I 144) which l e a d s t o her c a r e ­

l e s s n e s s and l o s s o f the l o c k .

The e p i c b a t t l e i n The Rape of the Lock i s reduced t o a

b a t t l e o f cards and words, which, though, covers a f i e r c e

b a t t l e o f the sexes. The e p i c b a t t l e i n The Waste Land a l s o

becomes a b a t t l e o f the sexes. L i k e Pope, E l i o t a l s o makes

r e f e r e n c e to many h i s t o r i c b a t t l e s . The sounds o f b a t t l e

r e v e r b e r a t e i n the "shouting and the c r y i n g / P r i s o n and p a l a c e

i n r e v e r b e r a t i o n " (TWL 335-336). There a re the " F a l l i n g

towers" o f "Jerusalem" [the 1917 b a t t l e when the B r i t i s h

r e c a p t u r e d Jerusalem from the Turks] "Athens" [the b a t t l e o f

Thermopylae] " A l e x a n d r i a " [named f o r the g r e a t w a r r i o r Alexander

the Great] "Vienna" [remembered f o r the Arch-Duke F e r d i n a n d

whose a s s a s s i n a t i o n caused the f i r s t World WarJ "London"

[bombed by the Germans i n the f i r s t World War] (TWL 373-375). The

hero o f E l i o t ' s poem becomes mankind, f i g h t i n g the b a t t l e

a g a i n s t the meaninglessness o f modern l i f e .

83

The e p i c f e a s t , which precedes b a t t l e , i s d i m i n i s h e d i n

The Rape o f the Lock i n t o "the smoking t i d e " (TRL I I I 110)

of the c o f f e e p a r t y . In The Waste Land t h i s f e a s t i s reduced

even more i n d i g n i t y f o r i t i s r e p r e s e n t e d by the t y p i s t who

" l a y s out food i n t i n s . " (TWL 2 23)

The powerful gods o f the e p i c have become, i n The Rape

of the Lock, minute gnomes and s y l p h s which guard feminine

v a n i t y , w h i l e i n The Waste Land the gods have c o m p l e t e l y

vanished and even the "nymphs are departed." (TWL 178)

The w a r r i o r ' s s h i e l d , u s u a l l y m a g i c a l l y endowed, which

p r o t e c t s him from death, i s reduced i n both The Rape o f the

Lock and The Waste Land to the h e r o i n e ' s p e t t i c o a t s and

undergarments which, w h i l e they remain i n p l a c e , p r o t e c t

the female body from v i o l a t i o n . In The Waste Land the

p e t t i c o a t s and feminine garments are removed and are exposed

to the sun's r a y s , and are d r y i n g on the"window s i l l , thus

p e r m i t t i n g access to the woman h e r s e l f .

In the o r i g i n a l d r a f t o f The Waste Land, E l i o t i n s e r t e d

a s e c t i o n i n "The F i r e Sermon" which was, both i n s t y l e and

theme, a d i r e c t i m i t a t i o n o f The Rape of the Lock. E l i o t

meant t h i s parody as a compliment to Alexander Pope, whom he 192

c o n s i d e r e d "a master o f m i n i a t u r e . " E z r a Pound, however,

managed t o persuade E l i o t t o omit t h i s s e c t i o n i n the r e v i s i o n

of the poem. E l i o t r e c a l l s t h i s r e v i s i o n : I remember t h a t Pound once induced me to d e s t r o y what I thought an e x c e l l e n t s e t o f c o u p l e t s ; f o r , s a i d he, 'Pope has done t h i s so w e l l t h a t you cannot do i t b e t t e r ; and i f you mean t h i s as a

"John Dryden", S e l e c t e d Essays, p.310.

84

b u r l e s q u e , you had b e t t e r suppress i t , f o r you cannot parody Pope u n l e s s you can w r i t e b e t t e r v e r s e than Pope - and you c a n ' t . ^ g ^

Perhaps t h i s d i r e c t parody o f Pope was i n s e r t e d by E l i o t to

i n d i c a t e i n a more d i r e c t f a s h i o n than the poem as i t now

stands t h a t The Waste Land was intended t o be a b u r l e s q u e .

The scene of the t y p i s t and her l o v e r i n "The F i r e Sermon" i s

a p a r t i c u l a r l y c l e a r example of a h i g h b u r l e s q u e , w r i t t e n i n

mock-epic s t y l e , j u s t as the scene i n v o l v i n g Madame S o s o s t r i s

i n " B u r i a l o f the Dead" and the scene i n v o l v i n g the t h r e e r i v e r

maidens i n "The F i r e Sermon" are examples o f the low b u r l e s q u e .

High burlesque f l o u r i s h e d i n the c l a s s i c a l l i t e r a t u r e o f

Greece and Rome. T h e r e f o r e i t i s o n l y n a t u r a l t h a t the

n e o - c l a s s i c a l authors - who modelled t h e i r work on c l a s s i c a l

background and p r i n c i p l e s - should i m i t a t e the bu r l e s q u e .

The Rape o f the Lock i s Pope's t r i b u t e to the e p i c . He once

expressed the wish t h a t he c o u l d have w r i t t e n an e p i c poem,

but he succeeded i n s t e a d i n w r i t i n g an e x c e l l e n t mock-epic poem.

In The Rape of the Lock Pope has taken the elements o f the e p i c

and c r e a t e d a h i g h b urlesque modelled a f t e r The Ae n e i d which

he reduced t o f i v e p o e t i c c a n t o s . He t r e a t e d the c u t t i n g

o f a l o c k o f h a i r w i t h the c a t a c l y s m i c impact o f the rape

of Helen o f Troy.

Because of the nature o f bu r l e s q u e , the poet does not

c r e a t e c h a r a c t e r s w i t h i n d i v i d u a l i s t i c and d i s t i n c t p e r s o n a l

T.S. E l i o t , " I n t r o d u c t i o n " , E z r a Pound S e l e c t e d Poems (London: Faber and Faber L t d . , 1941), p.18.

85

q u a l i t i e s and h a b i t s . I n s t e a d he c r e a t e s c h a r a c t e r s who are

r e p r e s e n t a t i v e o f t h e i r sex or s t a t i o n i n l i f e : "what

£the s a t i r s t s j c a r e about i s t h e i r r e l a t i o n s h i p to c e r t a i n 194

enduring a r c h e t y p a l r o l e s . " H i s c h a r a c t e r s must be t r u l y

r e p r e s e n t a t i v e , y e t d i s t o r t e d v e r s i o n s of the o r i g i n a l s .

The c h a r a c t e r s ' a c t i o n s are r e p r e s e n t e d i n exaggerated c a r t o o n s

through which the s a t i r i s t , such as Pope, a t t a c k s t h e i r

" s t r i c t adherence to the a u t h o r i t y of t r a d i t i o n . . .|whichj

tended to reduce human be h a v i o r t o codes o f e t i q u e t t e and 195

r e s p e c t a b i l i t y " . The m a g n i f i c a t i o n o f the d e t a i l s o f the

tea s e r v i c e and t o i l e t t a b l e e x e m p l i f i e s the importance which

the l a d i e s o f the e i g h t e e n t h c e n t u r y p l a c e d on the d a i l y

ceremonies. Pope observed t h a t "the a n c i e n t Poets are i n one

r e s p e c t l i k e many Modern L a d i e s . L e t an A c t i o n be never so t r i v i a l i n i t s e l f , they always make i t appear of the utmost

196 importance." Thus through parody the author "makes the work, or the form, look r i d i c u l o u s by i n f u s i n g i t w i t h incongruous

197

i d e a s , or e x a g g e r a t i n g i t s a e s t h e t i c d e v i c e s . "

Although E n g l i s h n e o - c l a s s i c a l poets d i d not c r e a t e t h e i r

own e p i c s , they c a r e f u l l y s t u d i e d c l a s s i c a l e p i c s and s a t i r e s .

Pope's v e r s e b r i n g s the c l a s s i c a l e p i c s to mind by o f t e n

d i r e c t l y echoing them. In cantos two and f o u r of The Rape of

194 Wright, p.61. Noyes, p.xx.

196 Alexander Pope, i n a l e t t e r t o A r a b e l l a Fermor,

p r e f a c i n g The Rape o f the Lock. 1 9 7 G i l b e r t Highet, p.13.

86

the Lock t h e r e are echoes o f the descent to the E l y s i a n Shade

i n the d e s c r i p t i o n of the punishments o f the s y l p h s "stopped i n

v i a l s " (TRL I I 126) or "plunged i n l a k e s of b i t t e r washes"

(TRL I I 127). There i s Umbriel's descent i n t o the "gloomy

Cave o f Spleen" (TRL IV 16) where:

. . . l i v i n g Teapots stand, one arm h e l d out, One bent; the handle t h i s , and t h a t the spout: A P i p k i n t h e r e , l i k e Homer's T r i p o d walks; Here s i g h s a J a r , and t h e r e a Goose P i e t a l k s ; Men prove w i t h c h i l d , as powerful fancy works, And maids turned b o t t l e s , c a l l a l o u d f o r corks.. m_. T T X 7 . Q c

Low b u r l e s q u e uses d i m i n u t i o n , the appearance o f u g l y or

homely images which are intended to d i m i n i s h the d i g n i t y o f a

s u b j e c t . For example, i n The Waste Land, E l i o t b u r l e s q u e s

the Greek chorus by u s i n g T i r e s i a s as n a r r a t o r . T h i s c o n v e n t i o n

of Greek tragedy i s g i v e n through the r e p e t i t i o n o f v a r i o u s

phrases: "I T i r e s i a s , though b l i n d , t h r o b b i n g between two

l i v e s , / O l d man w i t h w r i n k l e d female b r e a s t s , can see" (TWL

218-219); "I T i r e s i a s , o l d man w i t h w r i n k l e d dugs/Perceived

the scene, and f o r e t o l d the r e s t " (TWL 228-229); "And I

T i r e s i a s have f o r e s u f f e r e d a l l " (TWL 243). A pseudo-chorus,

T i r e s i a s i s not an a c t o r i n the scene, j u s t as the nymphs o f

The Rape of the Lock hover about t h e i r charges, watching and

f o r e s e e i n g r a t h e r than p a r t i c i p a t i n g i n the a c t i o n . Pope

g e n e r a l l y d e r i d e s the t r a d i t i o n a l form of the e p i c by u s i n g i t

f o r t r i v i a l a f f a i r s , thereby emphasizing i n a d d i t i o n the

t r i v i a l i t y o f the p o r t r a y e d s i t u a t i o n through the use o f such

e l e v a t e d e p i c machinery.

87

F a s t i d i o u s n e s s i n d i c t i o n i s an a s p e c t of s a t i r e which the

seventeenth and e i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y n e o - c l a s s i c i s t s i n h e r i t e d

from t h e i r c l a s s i c a l models:

Pope's i n t e r e s t i n the word, however, i s something more p e r v a s i v e - something r e l a t e d t o the f a c t t h a t he and h i s f r i e n d s were among the l a s t men to be t r a i n e d t h o r o u g h l y i n an a n t i q u e k i n d of r e s p e c t f o r the word.^gg

Although as a poet Pope was i n v o l v e d i n the d e d i c a t e d s e a r c h

f o r the c r e a t i v e word - the ' r i g h t word i n the r i g h t p l a c e ' -

i n the f o u r t h canto of The Dunciad he i l l u s t r a t e s the p o s s i b i l i t y

o f the d e s t r u c t i v e i n f l u e n c e of words:

Give law to Words, or war w i t h words alone, Senates and Courts w i t h Greek and L a t i n r u l e , And t u r n the C o u n c i l to a Grammar S c h o o l ! ^ I V 178-180)

and S p o i l e d h i s own language, and a c q u i r e d no more; A l l C l a s s i c l e a r n i n g l o s t on C l a s s i c ground; And l a s t turned A i r , the Echo o f a S o u n d ! ^ I V 320-322)

Rather than h i d i n g the meaning o f h i s words behind c l a s s i c

l e a r n i n g , Pope used the v e r n a c u l a r o f h i s time - language which

h i s r eader would understand:

Pope's s a t i r e s are conspicuous f o r the v a r i e t y o f m a t e r i a l s which they a s s i m i l a t e and f o r t h e i r toughness i n naming t h i n g s by t h e i r o r d i n a r y names - a v i r t u e which Matthew A r n o l d was to f i n d i n Homer^gg

Pope experiments w i t h the c l a s s i c a l m a t e r i a l which he

i n h e r i t e d and y e t keeps h i s experiments w e l l w i t h i n the bounds

of the imabic pentameter rhymed c o u p l e t form:

198 Wimsatt, ed., p.xxv. 199 I b i d . , p . x l i v .

88

B e l i n d a s t i l l her downy p i l l o w p r e s t , _ i _ i _ i _ i _ i

Her g u a r d i a n SYLPH prolonged the balmy r e s t : , m n T T , n o r.. ( 1KL 1 ±y ~Zu )

Although the two l i n e s balance each o t h e r i n s y l l a b i c l e n g t h ,

by making the second l i n e appear l o n g e r Pope emphasized the

meaning of the word "prolonged". Although the c o u p l e t s are

always rhymed, Pope o c c a s i o n a l l y uses e x p e r i m e n t a l ' i m p e r f e c t '

rhyme. He does not a r t i f i c i a l l y f o r c e rhyme by u s i n g i n c o n -

gruent words to f i t the rhyme. An example o f t h i s rhyming i s

found i n the f o l l o w i n g c o u p l e t :

One C e l l t h e r e i s , c o n c e a l e d from v u l g a r eye, _ > _ i _ i _ i _ i

The Cave of Poverty and P o e t r y . ^ ^ 23-3^)

Another i n n o v a t i v e f e a t u r e o f Pope's s t y l e i s h i s p r a c t i c e o f

not merely rhyming m o n o s y l l a b i c words w i t h o t h e r m o n o s y l l a b i c

words but e n f o r c i n g the rhyme on o c c a s i o n by rhyming p o l y ­

s y l l a b i c words w i t h m o n o s y l l a b i c words - " d e t a i n s " rhymed w i t h

" c h a i n s " (TRL I I 23-24) and "maids" rhymed w i t h "masquerades"

(TRL I 71-72).

E l i o t has observed t h a t " i f an E n g l i s h poet i s t o l e a r n

how t o use words i n our time, he must devote c l o s e study t o

those who have used them b e s t i n t h e i r time; to those who, i n

t h e i r own day, have made the language new."^" E l i o t ' s

awareness o f the h i s t o r y o f language i s e v i d e n t everywhere i n

h i s p o e t r y . The Waste Land i s c l e a r l y r e p r e s e n t a t i v e o f

h i s " m e t r i c a l v i r t u o s i t y . I t s b a s i c measure i s the h e r o i c

T.S. E l i o t , "The S o c i a l F u n c t i o n o f P o e t r y " (1945), On Poetry and Poets, p.22.

8 9

2 0 1 l i n e , w h i c h i t h a n d l e s i n a l m o s t e v e r y p o s s i b l e w a y . "

_ • i _ i _ i _ i S w e e t T h a m e s , r u n s o f t l y t i l l I e n d m y s o n g ,

_ • _ > _ _ _ • _ i _ i S w e e t T h a m e s , r u n s o f t l y f o r I s p e a k n o t l o u d o r l o n g .

( T W L 1 8 3 - 1 8 4 )

T h e f i r s t l i n e i s i n i a m b i c p e n t a m e t e r , b u t t h e s e c o n d i s a

v a r i a t i o n u p o n t h a t m e t e r ; y e t b o t h l i n e s h a v e f i v e s t r o n g

a n d d i s t i n c t b e a t s , w h i c h g i v e a f e e l i n g o f h o m o g e n e i t y .

M o s t o f E l i o t ' s h e r o i c l i n e s a r e d e c a s y l l a b i c , a s a r e t h o s e o f

e i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y n e o - c l a s s i c i s t s s u c h a s P o p e , e x e m p l i f i e d

i n t h e f o l l o w i n g l i n e s :

i _ _ i _ i _ i _ i B u t a t m y b a c k f r o m t i m e t o t i m e I h e a r _ i _ i _ i _ i _ i

T h e s o u n d o f h o r n s a n d m o t o r s , w h i c h s h a l l b r i n g i _ i i _ _ _ i S w e e n e y t o M r s . P o r t e r i n t h e s p r i n g . ( T W L 1 9 6 _ 1 9 9 )

E l i o t ' s f r e e d o m i n v e r s e s t r u c t u r e c a n b e a t t r i b u t e d t o

h i s v i e w s o n m e t r e :

A n y l i n e c a n b e d i v i d e d i n t o f e e t a n d a c c e n t s . T h e s i m p l e r m e t r e s a r e a r e p e t i t i o n o f o n e c o m b i n a t i o n , p e r h a p s a l o n g a n d a s h o r t . . . f i v e t i m e s r e p e a t e d . T h e r e i s h o w e v e r , n o r e a s o n w h y , w i t h i n a s i n g l e l i n e , t h e r e s h o u l d b e a n y r e p e t i t i o n ; w h y t h e r e s h o u l d n o t b e l i n e s ( a s t h e r e a r e ) d i v i s i b l e o n l y i n t o f e e t o f d i f f e r e n t t y p e s .

E l i o t ' s m e t r e d e m o n s t r a t e s t h e f u n c t i o n o f l i n e s o f v a r i o u s

t y p e s o f f e e t :

1 ) T o s a y : I a m L a z a r u s c o m e f r o m t h e d e a d ( L S P 9 3 ) i _ _ i i _

2 ) W h o a r e t h o s e h o o d e d h o r d e s s w a r m i n g ( T W L 3 6 9 ) i _ _ i _ _ i •

3 ) H e w h o w a s l i v i n g i s n o w d e a d ( T W L 3 2 8 )

H e l e n G a r d n e r , T h e A r t o f T . S . E l i o t ( N e w Y o r k : E . P . D u t t o n a n d C o . I n c . , 1 9 5 0 ) , p . 1 9 .

2 0 2 T . S . E l i o t , " R e f l e c t i o n s o n V e r s L i b r e " , T h e N e w S t a t e s m a n ,

I X , ( M a r c h 3 , 1 9 1 7 ) , p . 5 1 9 .

90

4) We who were l i v i n g a re now dying (TWL 329)

L i n e one i s composed of an iamb, a t r o c h e e , two d a c t y l s and an

incomplete t r o c h e e . L i n e two i s composed of a d a c t y l , a

trochee, and a spondee w i t h an added unaccented beat. L i n e

t h r e e i s composed o f two d a c t y l s and a spondee. L i n e f o u r i s

composed o f two d a c t y l s and a spondee w i t h an added unaccented

s y l l a b l e .

Thus E l i o t f o l l o w s h i s own p r i n c i p l e s , making every l i n e

v ary i n some way from the o t h e r l i n e s . He f e l t t h a t :

the most i n t e r e s t i n g v e r s e which has y e t been w r i t t e n i n our language has been done e i t h e r by t a k i n g a v e r y simple form, l i k e the iambic pentameter, c o n s t a n t l y withdrawing from i t , o r t a k i n g no form a t a l l , and c o n s t a n t l y approx­ima t i n g t o a ve r y simple one. I t i s t h i s c o n t r a s t between f i x i t y and f l u x , t h i s unper-c e i v e d e v a s i o n o f monotony which i s the ve r y l i f e o f v e r s e .

Much o f The Waste Land i s w r i t t e n i n blank v e r s e , E l i o t having

been i n f l u e n c e d by E l i z a b e t h a n d r a m a t i s t s and Shakespeare i n

p a r t i c u l a r . Yet E l i o t o f t e n d i s t o r t s even h i s blank v e r s e ,

b r e a k i n g from iambic rhythm, u s i n g from two to s i x , to t e n f e e t

per l i n e . He observed t h a t i t i s necessary f o r a poet

to have a f e e l i n g f o r the s y l l a b l e s and rhythm. T h i s must

be p r e s e n t , u n c o n s c i o u s l y g u i d i n g the words he chooses t o

i l l u s t r a t e h i s theme. Although h i s v e r s e i s never f o r m l e s s ,

E l i o t ' s l i n e a l p o e t i c s t r u c t u r e v a r i e s from s t r i c t t o i r r e g u l a r

metre, as has been observed. He juxtaposes iambic pentameter

" R e f l e c t i o n s on Vers L i b r e " , The New Statesman, p.518.

91

w i t h t h r e e f o o t l i n e s i n The Waste Land, f o r example, i n o r d e r

to u n d e r l i n e the u n c e r t a i n t y o f the modern world: "The ghost

of some simple metre should l u r k behind the a r r a s i n even the

' f r e e s t v e r s e ' " „ ^ 0 4

In o r d e r t o p r e s e r v e the f e e l i n g o f the h e r o i c c o u p l e t i t

was necessary f o r E l i o t t o use rhyme. But even i n h i s use o f

rhyme, E l i o t i s i n n o v a t i v e . The mock-epic e f f e c t o f P r u f r o c k ,

f o r example, i s s u s t a i n e d by the opening rhymed c o u p l e t and

i n t e r s p e r s i n g the poem w i t h unrhymed l i n e s to u n d e r l i n e the

presence of the rhyme:

Le t us go then, you and I_, When the evening i s spread out a g a i n s t the sky L i k e a p a t i e n t e t h e r i s e d upon a t a b l e ; L e t us go, through c e r t a i n h a l f - d e s e r t e d s t r e e t s , The m u t t e r i n g r e t r e a t s Of r e s t l e s s n i g h t s i n one-night cheap h o t e l s . 1

(LoP 1— b)

In The Waste Land, rhyme a l s o p l a y s an important r o l e i n s t r e s s i n g

the burlesque nature o f such scenes as the " t y p i s t home a t

teatim e " :

A s m a l l house agent's c l e r k w i t h one b o l d s t a r e , One o f the low on whom assurance s i t s As a s i l k hat on a B r a d f o r d m i l l i o n a i r e . The time i s now p r o p i t i o u s , as he guesses The meal i s ended, she i s bored and t i r e d , Endeavours t o engage her i n c a r e s s e s s Which s t i l l are unreproved, i f u n d e s i r e d ^ T W L 232-238)

A l t e r n a t e l i n e s rhyme w i t h each o t h e r w h i l e o c c a s i o n a l unrhymed

l i n e s a re i n t e r s p e r s e d t o u n d e r l i n e the rhyme and c o n t r a s t

the t r a d i t i o n a l n e o - c l a s s i c a l e f f e c t s w i t h modern i n n o v a t i o n s .

204 " R e f l e c t i o n s on Vers L i b r e " , The New Statesman, p.518.

E l i o t r a r e l y uses a formal tone, and although The Waste

Land speaks i n "the system o f s t r e s s e s and pauses... t h a t o f 205

po e t r y and not of prose", E l i o t makes dramatic use o f

the c o l l o q u i a l language drawn from the v e r n a c u l a r o f the

o r d i n a r y t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y man o r woman: The p o e t r y o f a people takes i t s l i f e from the people's speech and i n t u r n g i v e s l i f e t o i t ; and r e p r e s e n t s i t s h i g h e s t p o i n t of c o n s c i o u s n e s s , i t s g r e a t e s t power and i t s most d e l i c a t e s e n s i b i l i t y •

A lthough i t would be a mistake, he argued, " to assume t h a t a l l

p o e t r y ought to be melodious", because some p o e t r y " i s meant

to be sung; most p o e t r y , i n modern times, i s meant to be 207

spoken". However, E l i o t s t r e s s e d t h a t no p o e t r y , o f course, " i s ever e x a c t l y the same speech t h a t the poet t a l k s and

208

hea r s " . I n s t a n c e s o f E l i o t ' s c o n v e r s a t i o n a l p o e t i c

language are found i n a l l o f h i s p o e t r y , and the f o l l o w i n g i s

a most n o t i c e a b l e example: S h a l l I p a r t my h a i r behind? Do I dare t o eat a peach? I s h a l l wear white f l a n n e l t r o u s e r s , and walk upon the beach

(LSP 121-122)

Two t r i v i a l and v a i n q u e s t i o n s f o l l o w e d by an a b s u r d l y p o s i t i v e

d e c i s i o n . S i m i l a r l y , i n the speech of the e l e v a t e d l a d y of

205 T.S. E l i o t , " P r e f a c e " , A n a b a s i s : A Poem by S t . John

Perse (New York: Harcourt, Brace and Co., 1949), p.11. 206

T.S. E l i o t , " I n t r o d u c t i o n " , The Use of Po e t r y and the Use of C r i t i c i s m , p.15.

207 T.S. E l i o t , "The Music of Poe t r y " , On P o e t r y and Poets, p

208 T, ., I b i d . , p.23.

the "burnished throne" i n "A Game of Chess", t h e r e i s a

feminine q u a l i t y of nagging i n s i s t e n c e i n the language which

E l i o t has her use to her companion:

'My nerves are bad t o - n i g h t . Yes, bad. Stay w i t h me. 'Speak to me. Why do you never speak. Speak.

'What are you t h i n k i n g o f ? What t h i n k i n g ? What? 'I never know what you are t h i n k i n g . Think.' / m r T_ ... . . . N

2 a (TWL 111-114)

The language which the women i n the pub scene use has the

g a r r u l o u s a u t h e n t i c i t y o f r e a l l i f e , f r e e f l o w i n g and punctuated

o n l y by the woman's h a b i t u a l s e l f - i n t e r r u p t i o n s :

When L i l ' s husband got demobbed, I s a i d -I d i d n ' t mince my words, I s a i d to her myself, • • • Now A l b e r t ' s coming back, make y o u r s e l f a b i t smart. H e ' l l want to know what you done w i t h t h a t money

he gave you To g e t y o u r s e l f some t e e t h . He d i d , I was t h e r e . You have them a l l out, L i l , and get a n i c e s e t , He s a i d , I swear, I can't bear to look a t you. ,_„,. . o r i ,.^\

J (TWL 139-146) "The proper source of Jj:he e i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y p o e t ' s j

209

d i c t i o n was...the p o l i t e world of the c o u r t and c i t y . "

Yet w h i l e the language o f Pope's p o e t r y i s most o f t e n 'proper',

he too c o u l d use language w i t h c o l l o q u i a l v i v i d n e s s , as exempli­

f i e d i n the opening o f the E p i s t l e to Dr. Arbuthnot:

P. Shut the door, good John! f a t i g u e d I s a i d T i e up the knocker, say I'm s i c k , I'm dead. , o x

(.LDA 1 — £.)

S i m i l a r l y , i n The Rape o f the Lock, Pope i l l u s t r a t e s the use o f

common speech when he permits S i r Plume to l e t down h i s guard

and break out w i t h : "My L o r d , my what the d e v i l ? " (TRL IV 126)

N e v e r t h e l e s s i t was the formal a s p e c t of e i g h t e e n t h -

century n e o - c l a s s i c a l v e r s e which a t t r a c t e d both Pope and E l i o t .

Marks, p.19.

94

I t has been observed t h a t :

the c l o s e d c o u p l e t , w i t h i t s p o i n t e d rhyme, a c h i e v e s a very complex i n t e r n a l economy: the c o u p l e t s p l i t s i n t o l i n e s , the l i n e s o f t e n break i n t o caesuras or i n t e r n a l r e s t s . The p o s s i b i l i t y of balance and o p p o s i t i o n of phrases may be u n d e r l i n e d by resem­b l a n c e s of sound.

E l i o t chose the c o u p l e t form f o r t h i s economy i n o r d e r to

augment h i s m o d i f i e d blank v e r s e , f o r he o f t e n breaks from the

ten s y l l a b l e l i n e s of blank v e r s e . He s t a t e d i n h i s c a u t i o n about

f r e e form i n "The Music o f P o e t r y " , however, t h a t "no v e r s e i s

f r e e f o r a man who wants to do a good j o b " and "only a bad poet 211

c o u l d welcome f r e e v e r s e as a l i b e r a t i o n from form." The

steady rhythm o f the c o u p l e t i n P r u f r o c k and the a t t e n d a n t rhyme

p r o v i d e the - reader w i t h a f e e l i n g of the grandeur of t r a d i t i o n a l

p o e t r y which i s o f t e n echoed i n E l i o t " s v e r s e . But t h i s e f f e c t , l i k e so many o t h e r t r a d i t i o n a l p o e t i c techniques (the echoing o f p a s t l i t e r a t u r e , f o r example) was o f t e n used i r o n i c a l l y i n E l i o t ' s e a r l y work. T h i s exaggerated s i m p l i c i t y of the metre comments on the s i n i s t e r and v i o l e n t a c t i o n i n "Sweeney among the N i g h t i n g a l e s " , f o r i n s t a n c e , and adds, by i t s i n c o n g r u i t y , a f i n a l grotesque note to the poem. There i s an easy s t e a d i n e s s about the metre which a t f i r s t l u l l s the r e a d e r , then shocks him i n t o awareness of the r e a l nature of the s u b j e c t .

T h i s d e c e p t i v e l y l u l l i n g e f f e c t works e x c e l l e n t l y i n the

rough d r a f t of "The F i r e Sermon" i n which E l i o t pokes fun a t

2 1 ^ B r a d y and P r i c e , eds., p.xv. 211

"The Music o f P o e t r y " , On Poetry and Poets, p.37. 212

John C h a l k e r , "Aspects of Rhythm and Rhyme i n E l i o t ' s E a r l y Poems" E n g l i s h , Oxford U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , Volume XVI, (Autumn 1966), Number 93, p.105.

c l o s e t - v e r s e by having F r e s c a w r i t e p o e t r y :

She s c r i b b l e s v e r s e of such a gloomy tone That c a u t i o u s c r i t i c s say, her s t y l e i s q u i t e her own. Not q u i t e an a d u l t , and s t i l l l e s s a c h i l d , By f a t e misbred, by f l a t t e r i n g f r i e n d s b e g u i l e d , F r e s c a 1 s a r r i v e d (the Muses Nine d e c l a r e ) To be a s o r t o f can-can s a l o n n i e r e .

The rhythm and rhyme serve to l u l l the rea d e r , but a t the

same time i l l u s t r a t e the sing-song v e r s e t h a t F r e s c a would have

w r i t t e n . While the l i n e - "Not q u i t e an a d u l t and s t i l l l e s s

a c h i l d " - d e s c r i b e s the e f f e c t o f F r e s c a ' s v e r s e , i t a l s o

doubles as an apt d e s c r i p t i o n o f the young woman h e r s e l f .

T h i s e f f e c t i n which the v e r s e echoes the sense o f the p o e t r y

i s a c h i e v e d i n the f o l l o w i n g c o u p l e t from P r u f r o c k :

In the room the women come and go T a l k i n g o f M i c h e l a n g e l o . ^ L S p 1 3 - ^ 4 )

Here, as elsewhere, the c l a s s i c a l h e r o i c c o u p l e t s t a r t l e s

the reader w i t h i t s c o n t r a s t t o the e l e g a n t and s u p e r f i c i a l

p a t t e r o f the women.

E l i o t ' s and Pope's p o e t i c p r a c t i c e s t e s t i f y r e p e a t e d l y

to t h e i r shared n e o - c l a s s i c a l o u t l o o k . T h e i r homage to the

uniqueness o f the p a s t and a l s o t h e i r i n s p i r a t i o n through

i m i t a t i o n a r e an e x t e n s i o n o f t r a d i t i o n - what Robert F r o s t has 214

c a l l e d the " t r i b u t e o f the c u r r e n t t o the source". At

the same time, as has been argued throughout, both poets i n t r o ­

duce s u c c e s s f u l i n n o v a t i o n s which r e l a t e them as d i s t i n c t l y to

t h e i r own s o c i e t i e s as to the p a s t .

213 The Waste Land, F a c s i m i l e E d i t i o n , l i n e s 64-69.

214 Robert F r o s t , "West Running Brook", Robert F r o s t ' s

Poems (New York: Washington Square P r e s s , 1963), l i n e 75.

96

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