The Wasteland

The Wasteland was, by far, the most confusing piece of poetry I have ever read. So many references to things and people. While reading through, I had a really hard time coming up with a center to the poem, a place where it started and where it was going to.

From what we have been talking about in class and about Modernists, modernism is very fragmented and broken up. It is almost like stream of consciousness, where new ideas come in and old ideas leave whenever the poet wants them to. Elliot is a prime example of a modernist poet, by this definition. He starts talking about the seasons, which I can follow, but continues to bring in new ideas, which is where I get lost. I read and re-read through this poem, but could not get a handle of what it was about. I think the best way to actually understand this poem would be to absolutely rip it apart and disect everything. But then again, it is hard to do. How do we know what Elliot was saying, or more so, how do we know what he was feeling?

By this poem, The Wasteland, it seems as though Elliot is a very dark character. So many words in this poem point to this. He is constantly using descriptive words that make me think he likes the color grey. He seems like that kind of man. Very plain on the outside, but his mind like a very complex machine, spirting out things all over the place.