What does The Wasteland mean (Lol)?
OK, well, let's unpack that:
1. How has it been interpreted? Use citations.
2. What are some of its key features?
3. In what ways has it been influential??
PoMo
1. What common qualities do the "Beats" share? Why were they so-named?
2. On what grounds was Ginsberg's HOWL accused of being obscene, and on what grounds was it defended?
3. In what ways are Beat poetry and rap linked?
4. How was Bob Dylan's song Master of War involved in controversy during the Bush administration?
Modernism
ReplyDeleteThere are many voices inside the poetry and it is difficult to distinguish them. According to Levenson (1984), the lines from the poem ‘Winter kept us warm…’ and ‘Summer surprised us…’ we want to identify the “us” where we know that someone is actually referencing to a specific person and the time. There are lines with only German ‘Bin gar keine Russin…” and it is showing a new voice with a new subject matter speaking in another language. Eliot includes such clues of the speaker and also adds the personal pronoun as the speaker. The structure of the poem is easy to see by the linked used of present participles and the personal pronouns Eliot used. For example, “April is the cruellest month, breeding” and “Earth in forgetful snow, feeding”. The personal pronouns are written as “winter kept us warm, covering” and “I read, much of the night, and go south in the winter”. However following on Levenson (1984), there are no single common features connecting all the lines. The poem ends with a rapid series of literary fragment and 7 out of the 8 lines are all quotations. Eliot used fragmentation in his poetry to show the chaotic state of modern existence and to connect literary texts against one another. Inside the poetry Eliot shows his view of the humans damaged psyche from the World War I.
Eliot, T.S. (1922) The Wasteland. London: Faber & Faber
Levenson, M. (1984). A genealogy of modernism: A study of English literary doctrine. Cambridge University Press
The poetry by Elliot (1922) The wasteland is known as on one of the most important poems of the 20th century. There are five parts of The Waste Land “The burial of the dead”, “The game of chess”, The fire sermon, Death by water and ‘What the thunder said’. The poem is structured with many metaphors and allusions and it wasn’t easy for me to fully understand the poem. The poem also preceded by Latin and Greek epigraph and the example is “I saw with my own eyes the Sibyl of Cumae hanging in a jar…” the wasteland opens with a reference to Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales where it refers to the month of April. “April is not the happy month” telling the readers that it was not the perfect month of pilgrimages and storytelling. It was instead the time when the land should be regenerating after a long winter. In the modern world, winter was the time of forgetfulness and numbness and looking at Marie’s childhood were also painful. The normal childhood of Marie was replaced by difficult emotions and also the political consequences resulting from the war. The Waste Land is surrounded with the topics of memory when it involves remembering the dead is one of the important parts to the poetry. The second section of the poetry “A Game of Chess” is focused on two opposing scenes. There are two women in the poem representing the two sides of modern sexuality. It was difficult for me to understand the full poem but it is definitely an important poetry drawing the specific period of time of the 20th century.
ReplyDeleteEliot, T.S. (1922) The Wasteland. London: Faber & Faber
Levenson, M. (1984). A genealogy of modernism: A study of English literary doctrine. Cambridge University Press
In what ways are Beat poetry and rap linked?
ReplyDeleteThe beat generation started when the post war economic book was taking hold and students in universities were questioning their rampant materialism of their society. Beat poetry and rap can be seen as a similar way showing their personal thoughts and criticizing the world in their own way. The publication of Allen Ginsberg’s Howl in 1956 was a turning point in the history of Beat literature. According to Bradley (2009), the long-form of the poem is to be read loud, almost chanted and Ginsberg takes the reader/listener to see the underside of America The drug-addicts, prostitutes and drifters. Some of the examples are “when will you take off your clothes?”, “America stop pushing I know what Im doing”, “I haven’t read the newspapers for months, everyday somebody goes on trial for murder” Its similar with rap because it uses foul language and slang.
Bradley, A. (2009). Book of rhymes: The poetics of hiphop. New York: BasicCivitas
In what ways are Beat poetry and rap linked?
DeleteI agree with you but inadditionalbeat poetry and rap are linked in many ways; they are both categorised as poems. A poem can be defined as “a verbal composition designed to convey experiences, ideas, or emotions in a vivid and imaginative way, characterized by the use of language chosen for its sound and suggestive power and by the use of literary techniques such as meter, metaphor, and rhyme” (Farlex, n.d.a, no page).
Beat poetry was conceived in California in the 1950s, and is an informal poem formed against the poetic. It is formed under the spontaneity of feeling and thought in order to express their emotional feelings. Sources of beat poetry include the rejection of social conventions and it is “exemplified through experimental phrasing and diction” (Farlex, n.d.b, no page). Beat Poetry has since become a trend in English literature, with major writers of the beat generation in the early 1900s, including Ginsberg, Kerouac and Lawrence through works such as Howl, On the Road, and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. These writers changed the long-form poem “into read aloud, almost chatty, or oral communicative literature with rhythm beats”; it is the art of the lexicologist, with context able to be expressed “differently through every pause, every sound, and every pronunciation on the word” (Rahn, 2011, no page);
On the other hand Rap was based on the same dimensions, but with accompanying music rhythm. Rap poetry has many similarities to Beat poetry. The only different is that Rap is created and established along with a music background. The place of Rap music has increased significantly since the 1970s, with well-known artists including the Black Eyed Peas and Jay J., among many others. Their work is a beauty of language composition in verse.
Overall, the purpose of Beat poetry and Rap are similar; they both contrast with professional literature, breaking it down to reality. They were also both formed within, by, and are used by, everyday working class people.
References
Farlex (n.d.a). The Free Dictionary: Poem. Retrieved from http://www.thefreedictionary.com/poem
Farlex (n.d.b).The Free Dictionary: Beat poets. Retrieved fromhttp://dictionary.reference.com/browse/beat+poets
Rahn, J. (2011). The Literature Network:The beat generation. Retrieved from http://www.online-literature.com/periods/beat.php
yea, that's true because rap is combined with music many people especially the young generation loves it and also has the contemporary theme. There are so many messages inside the beat poetry and also inside the rap , it influences a lot of people where I think the beat poetry was shown to portray a message in that period of time.According to Bradley (2009), rap is everything from words to rhythm and the medley that gets peoples attention. I think in nowadays there are so many hiphop artists that don't really know what they are rapping about. It should really convey a message rather than talking about how their life is wonderful drinking and partying everyday. In addition we can see that beat poetry and rap is linked because rap has been influenced by the beat poetry and has been upgraded to the generation we live in
DeleteBradley, A. (2009). Book of rhymes: The poetics of hiphop. New York: BasicCivitas
What are some of its key features?
ReplyDeleteThe poem was originally twice as long and it was known to be difficult for understanding for first time readers. The poem constantly shifts between different speakers without warning and it’s full of references t o classic literature from cultures all over the world. There were raises of questions on hwy would Eliot want his poem to be so hard to read and like many of the Western writers, he felt that Western culture was getting dumber and dumber. For example in the poem it says “Hey, if you don’t understand what I’m talking about in this poem, go to a library!” there are different themes inside the poetry and they have been influential for Religion, the memory and the past and also the isolation. According to (shmoop, 2013) many critics have criticized Eliot for being ‘nostalgic’ where he is fantasizing about a glorious past that probably never existed.
Shmoop, (2013). The wasteland: by T.S. Eliot. Retrieved from 14, June, 2013
Your point can also refer to Question two. This is another reason that beat poetry and Rap are the trend, but not Poem. Those futures of the poems are no longer important to the young generations.
DeleteYes, like I have mentioned it before the young generations are more into the rap music than the beat poetry and it is funny how the rap we listen to these days does not really have a real message to the world.
DeleteModernism - 1. How has it been interpreted? Use citations?
ReplyDelete“The Burial of the Dead”, “A Game of Chess”, “The Fire Sermon”, “Death by Water” and “What the Thunder Said”.are known as one of the most important poems in 20th century by T. S. Eliot in 1992 in The Waste Land. For me it was difficult to understand the real meaning inside the poem, there was criticized social reflection and what the author’s intention. There were many metaphors and allusion. Simpson (2007) stated that the poem has complex implied meaning. Also Menand (1987) stated that if the reader does not know the authors intention it would be difficult to understand. He also defined the poem presented a contemporary reading of the Western tradition. According to Simpson (2007) the poem can be interpreted in three ways that are the interpretation about person means that something to seek from Eliot’s emotions in the poem. Secondly, from the social viewpoint, critics explore “the meaning of the poem” in connection with the society that the poem was written. Lastly, the human level is the expansion of the social level that include “all human societies: past, present, and future”
References
Eliot, T.S. (1922) The Wasteland. London: Faber & Faber
Menand, L (1987). Discovering mordernism: T.S Eliot and his context. Oxford University Press. P87-91.
Simpson, A, G. (2007). Analysis of T.S. Eliot's The Waste Land. Retrieved June 11, 2013.
Modernism - 2. What are some of its key features?
ReplyDeleteThis long poem was 434 lines when it was published in 1922 with the key features of the text is that it is a "text followed by an explanation" with a "reproduction of pattern (...) reinterpreted" which means that "none of its stylistic feature is continuous" (Menand, 1987, p.20). Lewis (2007) also stated that the poem was identified as a modernist poetics, formal techniques that earlier modernists had only begun to start.
Lewis, P. (2007). The Waste Land. Retrieved June 10, 2013, from http://modernism.research.yale.edu/wiki/index.php/The_Waste_Land
Menand, L (1987). Discovering mordernism: T.S Eliot and his context. Oxford University Press. P20.
Post Modernism - 1. What common qualities do the "Beats" share? Why were they so-named?
ReplyDeleteIn 1950’s after the World War 2, when the economic was boomed, a group of writers who had similar interests and perspectives were gathered and are called as ‘the beats’. According to Rahn(2011), “the Beats were all well-educated and generally from middle class backgrounds.” The intellectual group beat shared common ideas that “runaway capitalism as destructive to the human spirit and antithetical to social equality” (Rahn, 2011). At that time some words related to alcohol, drugs and sex were socially reluctant, however the beat talked about them and approached freely. Jazz the lively performances bring back memories and people in the beat.
References:
Rahn, J. (2011). The Beat Generation. Retrieved June 11, 2013, from http://www.online-literature.com/periods/beat.php
Post Modernism - 3. In what ways are Beat poetry and rap linked?
ReplyDeleteRhythm, rhyme and having message inside are commonly exist in poetry and rap. rhyme is that repeating the same or similar words which produce the similar sounds. in regard to message, poetry and rap are not just a bunch of statements. there are a lot of contractions and implications to convey a message. as mentioned earlier comments that some words to be avoided such as sex, drugs are spoken by Ginsberg's Howl Vickers (2005) stated that “With its emphasis on beat, language, life, and the theatrical nature of the spoken word, the Beats, including Ginsberg, are cited as predecessors for modern-day rap”. In addition, both literature have exaggeration. and rap was introduced as a tool for protest to a society in America especially from African American. According to Ginserberg(1995), rap was prohibited in America like beat poems which had many censorship issues.
References
Vickers, C. (2005). Allen Ginsberg: Poet Whose Work Led to Rap Music. Retrieved June 11, 2013, from http://voices.yahoo.com/allen-ginsberg-poet-whose-work-led-rap-music-2212.html
Ginserberg, A. (1995). On rap. US: Hibbet Radio.
Question 1
ReplyDeleteHow has it been interpreted? Use citations.
The Wasteland is one of Eliot's most famous poem ever written. It still has a major role in today's study of literature, and is used as examples in the study of literature in many well known universities around the world still to this day. It was published near the beginning of 1922. It's one of the more representative works of literary Modernism. According to Simpson (2007), Eliot was the most influential poet in the 20th century, and he wrote “The waste Land” that was used as a critical poem in modern society and culture. Simpson (2007), states, The Waste Land is an “allusive and complex poem...it is subject to a variety of interpretations.” However Endnotes(n.d), states The Waste Land is a “reflection of Eliot’s disillusionment with the moral decay of post-World War I Europe”.
Simpson, A. (2007). Analysis of T.S. Eliot’s The Waste Land. Retrieved 10 June 2013 from http://voices.yahoo.com/analysis-ts-eliots-waste-land-594548.html
Question 2
ReplyDeleteWhat are some of its key features?
According to Lewis (2010), the one of key features that Eliot liked to use can be collage of poetic fragments in “The Waste land”. This can be defined as what one situation is overlapped with another situation. It is explained in Wikipedia that in Eliot’s The Waste Land, he used various allusions and quotations from Shakespeare, Homer, Chaucer, and Dante etc. Also, he used many scriptural books such as Hindu, Buddha, and Bible extensively. In detail, he used over 56 works from over 36 old writers as his quotation or allusion, and he adopted his work into 6 languages except English.
Lewis, P. (2010). The Waste Land. Retrieved from http://modernism.research.yale.edu/wiki/index.php/The_Waste_Land
Wikipedia. (2013). The Waste Land. Retrieved from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Waste_Land#Structure
PoMo Question 1
ReplyDeleteWhat common qualities do the "Beats" share? Why were they so-named?
According to Rahn(2011), “the Beats were all well-educated and generally from middle class backgrounds.” The intellectual group beat shared common ideas that “runaway capitalism as destrucative to the human spirit and antithetical to social equality”. They shared common elements of beat cultures such as other shapes of sexuality and experimentation with drugs, and also shared the opposition of materialism, Eastern religion, and the unexpurgated means of being and expression.
Reference
Parkins, K. (2005). The Beat Generation. Retrieved from http://home.clara.net/heureka/art/beat-generation.htm
Rahn, J. (2011). The Beat Generation. Retrieved June 11, 2013, from http://www.online-literature.com/periods/beat.php
PoMo Question 3
ReplyDeleteIn what ways are Beat poetry and rap linked?
According to Ginserberg, poets brought the rap tradition to encourage the African -Americans to reclaim their heritage.
(Ginserberg, 1995). Ginserberg (1995), states that rap and poetry are have similar characteristics and purposes, they are both "intentionally hyperbolic and exaggerated, and with boasting, humour of rhyme". Now looking at the content of beat poetry and the lyrics of rap music, they are mostly about controversial topics; political, social issues etc. Rap is considered to be 'musical poetics' (Krims, 2003).
Reference
Ginserberg,A. (1995). On rap. US: Hibbet Radio
Krims, A., (2003). Rap Music and the poetics of identity. New perspectives in music history and criticism. Retrieved from http://books.google.co.nz