Monday, May 24, 2010

Critical Analysis of Eliot’s Preludes



"Preludes" further ratifies a distinct symbolic worth of woman in the poetry of Eliot. "Preludes" I & II were written in October 1910 and III was written in July 1911 in Paris and IV in November 1911 at Harvard. In "Preludes" there is no direct involvement of a woman character, but, the second person pronoun often reminds us of the presence of a woman around the speaker.
"Preludes" are conspicuous for harmony of mood and tone. "Preludes" put–forth a world of sufferings, a hysteria and neurosis defined around the woman who is also a listener . Urban images occur again with implications of waste and wild, and the woman serves to define an urban hell around herself. The opening lines of Preludes II ratify the idea of urban hell. The morning comes to consciousness,
Of faint stale smell of beer
From the saw–dust trampled street
Will all its muddy feet that press
To early coffee stands.
With the other masquerades
          (14–19)
The opening of Preludes III immediately alarms us about the presence of a woman dressed in dross and waste:
You tossed a blanket from the bed.
You lay upon your back and waited :
You dozed, and watched the night revealing.
The thousand sordid images
Of which your soul was constituted.
                                                                     (24–29)  
The images of suffering, loneliness and isolation become more transparent in Preludes IV.
        Wipe your hand across your mouth and laugh :
The  worlds  revolve  like ancient women gathering
                      fuel in the vacant lot (52-54)
F.R. Leavis rightly points out that Eliot "notes the nervous tension and suppressed hysteria of this world of frustrated  rudderless cultured well to do people" (Lewis Pursuit, 69). The views of F.R. Leavis sum up the real picture of Europe in the first two decades of this century. 
Works Cited
Lewis, F.R. The Common Pursuit. London : Chatto and Windus, 1959.