T.S. Eliot
...comparative religions and the medieval mystics. His thinking was greatly influenced by the philosopher Bertrand Russell and the poet Ezra Pound. Eliot's experimentation with forms of poetry were a kind of literary journey which may have reflected something of his spiritual journey. Termed one of the major Christian poets of the 20th Century'(1), Eliot's work on spiritual matters greatly appeals to me. I take pleasure from his ability with words and I am interested in the subject matter. The poem, The Hollow Men (1925) and two poems from The Ariel Poems collection (written and published 1927-30) are examined for evidence of Eliot's pilgrimage towards a Christian faith and his membership of the Anglican Church. The earlier poem, The Hollow Men, was published when Eliot was experiencing extreme personal difficulty in his work and with his first wife's poor health. Writing himself about an even earlier work, The Waste Land (1922), Eliot concluded that some forms of illness are extremely favourable to religious illumination'. I have not had personal experience of this but I am aware that serious illness and death can often make people focus sharply on the meaning of life. This could be said of the circumstances surrounding the writing of The Hollow Men, even if the illumination' simply highlighted a very dark time in Eliot's life. The overriding image of humankind as hollow men' is powerful and depressing. In the context of a spiritual journey I would liken it to a wilderness experience'. Like the children of Israel who came out of Egypt, Eliot seems to be without direction or hope. While the hollow men' are not totally empty, even their stuffing is dead grass: Headpiece filled with straw. Alas!' and they are lifeless: Shape without form, shade without colour, paralysed force, gesture without motion.' Life is meaningless and Death seems to be the master of both...
View Full Essay
