Eliot And Alienation
Modernism was the time period between 1865 and 1950 that consisted of a change in the perspectives of how Americans examined themselves and their role in society. Many things occurred during these eighty five years that accounted for a great social change. Among these things were World War I, the Civil Rights Movement, prohibition, women suffrage, and the Great Depression. Particularly after World War I and during women’s suffrage, society’s standpoint on certain issues changed dramatically. After World War I, people’s attitudes swung with high expectations for themselves but were soon lowered after the economy’s fall. During women’s suffrage, society’s focus on simple traditions shifted to concentrate on more of urban culture. The Great Depression also caused major stress and hopelessness for the nation resulting in a time of despair for much of the world. Meanwhile, many writers emerged, such as Ezra Pound, e.e. cummings, Langston Hughes, and Wallace Stevens. These writers found themselves in a generation of consecutive movements. While having to sustain their creativity, they had to go forward with the seasons at the same time. Their works are characterized as “breaking away from patterned responses and predictabl
In conclusion, Eliot’s poetry connects to society by providing a window into individual thoughts and behaviors of that time period. Eliot was engaged with what kind of society we claimed and where we was going from there. Eliot was deeply concerned with the culture’s moral emptiness and on ways to become more honest people. Unfortunately, by the time Eliot wrote on cultural issues, beginning in the 1930s, we had lost so much of our inheritance that we no longer recognized our condition (Keep). For in that case, Eliot had to find a way, through his writings, to explain the importance of having a culture. His poems “A Cooking Egg” and “Mr. Eliot’s Sunday Morning Service” are prime examples of his concern for the ethical values of society. The aftermath of the war and the depression of the 1930’s caused hardship for the nation’s people and resulted in violence and ailment. “Eliot stressed that morals and assurance was passed down through cultures and that culture cannot be separated from religion” (Keep). Eliot’s poetry informs the reader of certain human circumstances whether they are resplendent or disturbing. Many of his poems are associated with death and dreadful things. For example, his poem, “Whispers of Immortality,” which was written in 1920 gives an unpleasant glance at death and the interest behind it. During this time, the world was suffering from a turning point caused by World War I and many of the population’s young men were getting killed. On the contrary, other poems consisted of humor. In a way, Eliot used amusement to confront important social problems, such as his poem “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock.” It presents a ludicrous situation packed with pessimism that permits the reader to associate him or her self to the main character and ask questions. For many readers in the 1920s, the main character, Prufrock, seemed to summarize the frustration and insecurity of the modern individual. As Pearce stated: “[Prufrock] seemed to represent thwarted desires and modern disillusionment
Some topics in this essay:
World War,
Alfred Prufrock”,
TS Eliot,
Nancy Ellicott,
Reuben Eliot’s,
Talent Eliot,
Wallace Stevens,
Spender Eliot’s,
Morning Service”,
Symons Pearce,
world war,
eliot’s poetry,
ts eliot,
song alfred,
“cousin nancy”,
love song alfred,
love song,
women’s suffrage society’s,
suffrage society’s,
waste land,
women’s suffrage,
role tradition,
song alfred prufrock”,
“the love song,
miss nancy ellicott,
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Approximate Word count = 1383
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)
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