Read The Waste Land and Other Poems Online
Authors: T. S. Eliot
The Waste Land and Other Poems (11 page)
‘COUSIN NANCY’
‘LA FIGLIA CHE PIANGE’
‘GERONTION’
BLElSTElN WITH A CIGAR’
1
(p. 27)
Matthew and Waldo:
Eliot perhaps intends Matthew Arnold (1822-1888) and Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) as competing British and American emblems of Victorian propriety.
‘MR.APOLLINAX’(p. 27)
Matthew and Waldo:
Eliot perhaps intends Matthew Arnold (1822-1888) and Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) as competing British and American emblems of Victorian propriety.
1
(p. 28) Ω Γnζ
Kαivóητoζ. ‘Hpakλεiζ
τnς
παρδoξoλo
eíαζ.
εvµnχανo
avθρωπ
o
ς...
LUCIAN:
From the second-century Greek historian’s ‘Zeuxis or Antiochus’: ‘What an ingenious fellow!’
(p. 28) Ω Γnζ
Kαivóητoζ. ‘Hpakλεiζ
τnς
παρδoξoλo
eíαζ.
εvµnχανo
avθρωπ
o
ς...
LUCIAN:
From the second-century Greek historian’s ‘Zeuxis or Antiochus’: ‘What an ingenious fellow!’
2
(p. 28)
Mr. Apollinax :
The poem’s title character is a caricature of Bertrand Russell (1872-1970), the Harvard philosopher and mathematician with whom Eliot studied.
(p. 28)
Mr. Apollinax :
The poem’s title character is a caricature of Bertrand Russell (1872-1970), the Harvard philosopher and mathematician with whom Eliot studied.
3
(p. 18)
Priapus:
This Roman fertility god was mainly known for his huge phallus. All the other characters named in this poem are Eliot’s inventions.
‘CONVERSATION GALANTE’(p. 18)
Priapus:
This Roman fertility god was mainly known for his huge phallus. All the other characters named in this poem are Eliot’s inventions.
‘LA FIGLIA CHE PIANGE’
1
(p. 32) La Figlia che Piange: The title is Italian for ‘The Weeping Girl.’
(p. 32) La Figlia che Piange: The title is Italian for ‘The Weeping Girl.’
2
(p. 32) O quam te memorem virgo ...: The epigraph is a quotation from Virgil’s
Aeneid
1.327: ‘0 maiden, by what name shall I know you?’ Eliot’s poem was inspired by a scene on a stele (a sculptured or inscribed stone slab used as a monument) that Eliot had been told to see on a trip to Italy but was unable to find.
Poems 1920(p. 32) O quam te memorem virgo ...: The epigraph is a quotation from Virgil’s
Aeneid
1.327: ‘0 maiden, by what name shall I know you?’ Eliot’s poem was inspired by a scene on a stele (a sculptured or inscribed stone slab used as a monument) that Eliot had been told to see on a trip to Italy but was unable to find.
‘GERONTION’
2
(p. 37)
Thou hast ... of both:
The lines are slightly misquoted from Shakespeare’s
Measure for Measure
(act 3, scene 1).
(p. 37)
Thou hast ... of both:
The lines are slightly misquoted from Shakespeare’s
Measure for Measure
(act 3, scene 1).
4
(p. 37) ‘We
would see a sign!’:
In the Bible (Matthew 12:38-39), the Pharisees called upon Christ to demonstrate his divinity by performing a miracle. Eliot’s source is a 1618 Nativity Sermon by Bishop Lancelot Andrewes.
(p. 37) ‘We
would see a sign!’:
In the Bible (Matthew 12:38-39), the Pharisees called upon Christ to demonstrate his divinity by performing a miracle. Eliot’s source is a 1618 Nativity Sermon by Bishop Lancelot Andrewes.
5
(p. 37) judas: This tree—named after Judas Iscariot, the apostle who betrayed Jesus—is reputed to be the type of tree from which he hanged himself.
(p. 37) judas: This tree—named after Judas Iscariot, the apostle who betrayed Jesus—is reputed to be the type of tree from which he hanged himself.
6
(p. 38) Limoges: This French city is renowned for its China.
(p. 38) Limoges: This French city is renowned for its China.
7
(p. 38)
Fräulein von Kulp
: This and the other proper names in this passage (excepting Titian, an Italian Renaissance painter, c.1485-1576) are characters Eliot invented; their names are meant to suggest dubious foreigners who are perhaps participating in some sort of seance.
(p. 38)
Fräulein von Kulp
: This and the other proper names in this passage (excepting Titian, an Italian Renaissance painter, c.1485-1576) are characters Eliot invented; their names are meant to suggest dubious foreigners who are perhaps participating in some sort of seance.
8
(p. 38)
contrived corridors:
Perhaps Eliot means to evoke the Polish Corridor, a piece of land taken from Germany and given to Poland under the Treaty of Versailles (1919) that followed the end of World War I. Eliot would probably concur with the judgment of many historians that the treaty carved up Europe in a way which was politically and culturally unstable, and that it effected only a temporary peace which led to the resumption of European conflict in World War II.
(p. 38)
contrived corridors:
Perhaps Eliot means to evoke the Polish Corridor, a piece of land taken from Germany and given to Poland under the Treaty of Versailles (1919) that followed the end of World War I. Eliot would probably concur with the judgment of many historians that the treaty carved up Europe in a way which was politically and culturally unstable, and that it effected only a temporary peace which led to the resumption of European conflict in World War II.
10
(p. 38)
the wrath-bearing tree:
Perhaps Eliot is referring to the tree of knowledge of good and evil in the Garden of Eden.
(p. 38)
the wrath-bearing tree:
Perhaps Eliot is referring to the tree of knowledge of good and evil in the Garden of Eden.
12
(p. 39) Bear: Eliot is referring to the constellation Ursa Major (also known as the Big Dipper).
(p. 39) Bear: Eliot is referring to the constellation Ursa Major (also known as the Big Dipper).
13
(p. 39)
the windy straits / Of Belle Isle:
The Strait of Belle Isle is a passage in eastern Canada, between Newfoundland and Labrador, that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Gulf of St. Lawrence; the cold Labrador Current flows through the strait.
(p. 39)
the windy straits / Of Belle Isle:
The Strait of Belle Isle is a passage in eastern Canada, between Newfoundland and Labrador, that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Gulf of St. Lawrence; the cold Labrador Current flows through the strait.
14
(p. 39) the Horn: Cape Horn is a rocky headland off the southern tip of South America.
‘BURBANK WITH ABAEDEKER:(p. 39) the Horn: Cape Horn is a rocky headland off the southern tip of South America.
BLElSTElN WITH A CIGAR’
1
(p. 40)
Burbank with a Baedeker: Bleistein with a Cigar:
A Baedeker is a tourist guidebook. Burbank and Bleistein are made-up American characters.
(p. 40)
Burbank with a Baedeker: Bleistein with a Cigar:
A Baedeker is a tourist guidebook. Burbank and Bleistein are made-up American characters.
2
(p. 40) Tra-la-la-la-la-la-laire ... and so departed: The epigraph contains fragments from six texts connected with Venice, by Théophile Gautier, Mantegna, Henry James
(The Aspern Papers),
Shakespeare
(Othello),
Robert Browning (‘A Toccata of Galuppi’s’), and John Marston.
(p. 40) Tra-la-la-la-la-la-laire ... and so departed: The epigraph contains fragments from six texts connected with Venice, by Théophile Gautier, Mantegna, Henry James
(The Aspern Papers),
Shakespeare
(Othello),
Robert Browning (‘A Toccata of Galuppi’s’), and John Marston.
3
(p. 40)
Princess Volupine:
Princess Volupine and, near the end of the poem, Sir Ferdinand Klein are Eliot’s inventions.
(p. 40)
Princess Volupine:
Princess Volupine and, near the end of the poem, Sir Ferdinand Klein are Eliot’s inventions.
4
(p. 40)
They were together, and he fell:
Echoes a line from ‘The Sisters,’ by Alfred Lord Tennyson (1809-1892).
(p. 40)
They were together, and he fell:
Echoes a line from ‘The Sisters,’ by Alfred Lord Tennyson (1809-1892).
5
(p. 40)
the God Hercules:
This mythical hero (Hercules to the Romans, Heracles to the Greeks) possessed fabulous strength; he performed twelve monumental tasks (‘the labors of Hercules’) that earned him immortality and the status of a god.
(p. 40)
the God Hercules:
This mythical hero (Hercules to the Romans, Heracles to the Greeks) possessed fabulous strength; he performed twelve monumental tasks (‘the labors of Hercules’) that earned him immortality and the status of a god.
6
(p. 40) Istria: City near Venice, in present-day Croatia.
(p. 40) Istria: City near Venice, in present-day Croatia.
7
(p. 40)
Canaletto:
Giovanni Antonio Canale (1697-1768), known by the nickname Canaletto, painted many views of the Venetian canals.
‘SWEENEY ERECT’(p. 40)
Canaletto:
Giovanni Antonio Canale (1697-1768), known by the nickname Canaletto, painted many views of the Venetian canals.
1
(p. 42) And the trees ... wenches!: The quotation is from
The Maides Tragedy
(c.1611; act 2, scene 2), by Francis Beaumont and John Fletcher.
(p. 42) And the trees ... wenches!: The quotation is from
The Maides Tragedy
(c.1611; act 2, scene 2), by Francis Beaumont and John Fletcher.
4
(p. 42)
Ariadne:
In Greek myth, daughter of King Minos of Crete; in love with the hero Theseus, she helped him find his way in and out of the labyrinth.
(p. 42)
Ariadne:
In Greek myth, daughter of King Minos of Crete; in love with the hero Theseus, she helped him find his way in and out of the labyrinth.
5
(p. 42)
Nausicaa:
In Greek myth, this king’s daughter discovered Odysseus when he was shipwrecked and cast up upon the shore.
(p. 42)
Nausicaa:
In Greek myth, this king’s daughter discovered Odysseus when he was shipwrecked and cast up upon the shore.
7
(p. 43)
Emerson:
Eliot paraphrases Ralph Waldo Emerson’s essay ‘Self-Reliance’ (1841): ‘an institution is the lengthened shadow of one man.
‘ACOOKING EGG’(p. 43)
Emerson:
Eliot paraphrases Ralph Waldo Emerson’s essay ‘Self-Reliance’ (1841): ‘an institution is the lengthened shadow of one man.
2
(p. 44) En l’an trentiesme ... j‘ay beues ... : The lines are by French lyric poet François Villon (1431-after 1463): ‘In my thirtieth year, when I drank up all my shame ...’
(p. 44) En l’an trentiesme ... j‘ay beues ... : The lines are by French lyric poet François Villon (1431-after 1463): ‘In my thirtieth year, when I drank up all my shame ...’
3
(p. 44) Invitation to the Dance: Sheet music for a nineteenth-century song.
(p. 44) Invitation to the Dance: Sheet music for a nineteenth-century song.
6
(p. 44)
Sir Alfred Mond:
Mond (1868-1930) was a wealthy British industrialist ; his Jewish heritage prompts a stereotypical slur here.
(p. 44)
Sir Alfred Mond:
Mond (1868-1930) was a wealthy British industrialist ; his Jewish heritage prompts a stereotypical slur here.
7
(p. 44)
Lucretia Borgia:
Borgia ( 1480-1519), duchess of Ferrara, was intimate with many noble Italian families.
(p. 44)
Lucretia Borgia:
Borgia ( 1480-1519), duchess of Ferrara, was intimate with many noble Italian families.
8
(p. 44)
Madame Blavatsky:
Russian-born Helena Petrovna Blavatsky (1831-1891) was a spiritualist who in 1875 organized the Theosophical Society.
(p. 44)
Madame Blavatsky:
Russian-born Helena Petrovna Blavatsky (1831-1891) was a spiritualist who in 1875 organized the Theosophical Society.
13
(p. 45) A.B.C.’s: The Aerated Bread Company, a chain of English tea shops.
‘LE DIRECTEUR’(p. 45) A.B.C.’s: The Aerated Bread Company, a chain of English tea shops.
1
(p. 46)
Le Directeur:
French for ‘The Director.’ English translation by Annie Sokolov-Uris and Robert G. Uris:
‘MELANGE ADULTÈRE DE TOUT’(p. 46)
Le Directeur:
French for ‘The Director.’ English translation by Annie Sokolov-Uris and Robert G. Uris:
Woe unto the woeful Thames
Which runs so close to the Spectator.
The director
Conservative
Of the Spectator
Infects the breeze.
The stockholders
Reactionaries
Of the Spectator
Conservative
Arm in arm
Playing tricks
With slinking steps.
In a gutter
A little girl
In rags
Grimly
Looks at
The director
Of the Spectator
Conservative
And dies of love.
Which runs so close to the Spectator.
The director
Conservative
Of the Spectator
Infects the breeze.
The stockholders
Reactionaries
Of the Spectator
Conservative
Arm in arm
Playing tricks
With slinking steps.
In a gutter
A little girl
In rags
Grimly
Looks at
The director
Of the Spectator
Conservative
And dies of love.
1
(p. 47)
Mélange adultère de tout:
French for ‘Adulterous Mixture of Everything.’ English translation by Annie Sokolov-Uris and Robert G. Uris:
‘LUNE DE MIEL’(p. 47)
Mélange adultère de tout:
French for ‘Adulterous Mixture of Everything.’ English translation by Annie Sokolov-Uris and Robert G. Uris:
In America, professor;
In England, journalist;
It is with big steps and in a sweat
That you barely follow my tracks.
In Yorkshire, lecturer;
In London, a little bit of a banker,
You will pay me well by the head.
It is in Paris that I get my hairdo
Black helmet of a carefree person.
In Germany, philosopher
Over-excited by Emporheben
With the grand air of Bergsteigleben;
I always wander from here to there
With some tra là là
From Damascus to Omaha.
I will celebrate my saint’s day
In an African oasis
Clothed in a giraffe’s skin.
In England, journalist;
It is with big steps and in a sweat
That you barely follow my tracks.
In Yorkshire, lecturer;
In London, a little bit of a banker,
You will pay me well by the head.
It is in Paris that I get my hairdo
Black helmet of a carefree person.
In Germany, philosopher
Over-excited by Emporheben
With the grand air of Bergsteigleben;
I always wander from here to there
With some tra là là
From Damascus to Omaha.
I will celebrate my saint’s day
In an African oasis
Clothed in a giraffe’s skin.
One will show my cenotaph
On the burning coast of Mozambique.
On the burning coast of Mozambique.
1
(p. 48)
Lune de miel:
French for ‘Honeymoon.’ English translation by Annie Sokolov-Uris and Robert G. Uris:
‘THE HIPPOPOTAMUS’(p. 48)
Lune de miel:
French for ‘Honeymoon.’ English translation by Annie Sokolov-Uris and Robert G. Uris:
They saw the Low Countries, they returned to Terre Haute;
But one summer night, here they are in Ravenna,
At ease between two sheets, in the home of two hundred
bedbugs.
The summer sweat, and a strong odor of bitch.
They stay on their backs their knees spread
From four flabby legs completely swollen from bites.
One lifts the sheet to scratch better.
Less than a league from here is Saint Apollinaire
In class, a basilica known by lovers
Of acanthus columns with winds swirling around.
But one summer night, here they are in Ravenna,
At ease between two sheets, in the home of two hundred
bedbugs.
The summer sweat, and a strong odor of bitch.
They stay on their backs their knees spread
From four flabby legs completely swollen from bites.
One lifts the sheet to scratch better.
Less than a league from here is Saint Apollinaire
In class, a basilica known by lovers
Of acanthus columns with winds swirling around.
They are going to take the eight o‘clock train
To prolong their misery from Padua to Milan
Where one finds The Last Supper, and a cheap restaurant.
He thinks about tips, and draws up his balance sheet.
They will have seen Switzerland and crossed France.
And Saint Apollinaire, stiff and ascetic,
Old deconsecrated factory, still holding
In its crumbling stones the precise form of Byzantium.
To prolong their misery from Padua to Milan
Where one finds The Last Supper, and a cheap restaurant.
He thinks about tips, and draws up his balance sheet.
They will have seen Switzerland and crossed France.
And Saint Apollinaire, stiff and ascetic,
Old deconsecrated factory, still holding
In its crumbling stones the precise form of Byzantium.
2
(p. 49) Similiter et omnes ... S.
IGNATII AD TRALLIANOS:
In like manner let all men respect the deacons as Jesus Christ, even as they should respect the bishop as being a type of the Father and the presbyters as the council of God and as the college of Apostles. Apart from these there is not even the name of a church. And I am persuaded that ye are so minded as touching these matters. Saint Ignatius to the Trallians.
(p. 49) Similiter et omnes ... S.
IGNATII AD TRALLIANOS:
In like manner let all men respect the deacons as Jesus Christ, even as they should respect the bishop as being a type of the Father and the presbyters as the council of God and as the college of Apostles. Apart from these there is not even the name of a church. And I am persuaded that ye are so minded as touching these matters. Saint Ignatius to the Trallians.
3
(p. 49) And when this epistle ... church of the Laodiceans: From the Bible, St. Paul’s epistle to the Colossians 4:16.
(p. 49) And when this epistle ... church of the Laodiceans: From the Bible, St. Paul’s epistle to the Colossians 4:16.
4
(p. 49)
based upon a rock:
In the Bible (Matthew 16:18), Christ says, ‘Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church’ (KJV).
‘DANS LE RESTAURANT’(p. 49)
based upon a rock:
In the Bible (Matthew 16:18), Christ says, ‘Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church’ (KJV).
1
(p. 51 )
Dans le Restaurant:
French for ‘In the Restaurant.’ English translation by Annie Sokolov-Uris and Robert G. Uris:
(p. 51 )
Dans le Restaurant:
French for ‘In the Restaurant.’ English translation by Annie Sokolov-Uris and Robert G. Uris:
The dilapidated waiter who has nothing to do
But to scratch his fingers and lean on my shoulder:
‘In my country the weather will be rainy,
Some wind, some strong sun and some rain;
It is what one calls the tramp’s laundry day.’
(Chatterbox, drooling, with a rounded rump,
I beg you, at least, don’t drool in the soup).
‘The wet willow, and some buds on the roots.
It is here, in a downpour, where you find shelter.
I was seven, she was younger.
She was all wet, I gave her some primroses.’
The spots on his vest summed to thirty-eight.
‘I would tickle her to make her laugh.
I felt a moment of power and delirium.’
But to scratch his fingers and lean on my shoulder:
‘In my country the weather will be rainy,
Some wind, some strong sun and some rain;
It is what one calls the tramp’s laundry day.’
(Chatterbox, drooling, with a rounded rump,
I beg you, at least, don’t drool in the soup).
‘The wet willow, and some buds on the roots.
It is here, in a downpour, where you find shelter.
I was seven, she was younger.
She was all wet, I gave her some primroses.’
The spots on his vest summed to thirty-eight.
‘I would tickle her to make her laugh.
I felt a moment of power and delirium.’
But then, lubricious old man, at your age ...
‘Sir, the fact is hard.
He came, to hug us, a big dog;
I was afraid, I left him halfway.
It’s a shame.’
But then you have your vulture!
Go and wipe the wrinkles off your face;
Here, my fork, scrape away the dirt from your skull.
By what right are you paying for experiences like me?
Hold on, here are ten sous, for the bathroom.
Phlebas, the Phoenician, a fortnight dead,
Forgot the cry of gulls and the wind’s howl of
Cornwall,
And the profit and loss, and the cargo ships of pewter:
An undertow took him far away,
Passing the stages of his former life.
Go figure, it was a hard fate;
Nevertheless, he was once a handsome man, of great
stature.
‘Sir, the fact is hard.
He came, to hug us, a big dog;
I was afraid, I left him halfway.
It’s a shame.’
But then you have your vulture!
Go and wipe the wrinkles off your face;
Here, my fork, scrape away the dirt from your skull.
By what right are you paying for experiences like me?
Hold on, here are ten sous, for the bathroom.
Phlebas, the Phoenician, a fortnight dead,
Forgot the cry of gulls and the wind’s howl of
Cornwall,
And the profit and loss, and the cargo ships of pewter:
An undertow took him far away,
Passing the stages of his former life.
Go figure, it was a hard fate;
Nevertheless, he was once a handsome man, of great
stature.
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