Modernism In Works of T.S. Elliot And James Joyce Essay

Introduction: Modernism is a word that is generally used to understand new and distinctive features in the subjects, forms, concepts and styles of literature and the other arts in the early decades of the present century, but especially after World War I. (Abrams 167) More often than not Modernism engages in deliberate and radical break (Abrams 167) with some of the more traditional foundation of art and culture. Peter Childs in his book Modernism remarks Modernism has almost universally been considered a literature of not just change but crisis (p. 14, Unit Reader p. 12). This essay will discuss and assess the value of this statement through the parts of the poem The Waste Land as well as The Love Song of J. Alfred†¦show more content†¦The Waste Land talks about the crisis equipped by modern culture especially after the First World War that had wreak havoc on Europe. The lines Ââ€" That corpse you planted last year in your garden, Has it begun to sprout? Will it bloom this year? Or has the sudden frost disturbed its bed? Gives the vive that the twentieth century England had a culture that changed (decayed and withered) but will not expire, and people were forced to live with reminders of all its glory and reparation. Eliot, in this poem, had used a rather difficult and confusing style which is there to provide the readers with more than just sheer frustration. He intended to draw a realistic portrait of life of the world of twentieth century which was very confusing but nonetheless moving and changing. The Waste Land Section II: A Game of Chess: The title of this section takes was taken from the two plays written by Thomas Middleton. This section focuses on showing the two opposite sides of the society, the higher class and the lower class. The form of the first part of this section is in unrhymed iambic pentameter lines, or blank verse. When going through the section farther, the lines become all the more irregular which gives out the impression of things falling apart which can be referred to as distress of in some cases, crisis. The second scene of this section reduces the prospect thatShow MoreRelatedDisillusion, Defiance, and Discontent (1914-1946)780 Words   |  4 Pagesthe cyclone to go around our barn but it didn’t hear us.† -Carl Sandburg from The People, Yes Carl Sandburg was an American writer, best known for his poetry during modernism. The quote means people like to think they are in control and then something like this happens, and they realize that they re not. The themes of the work is implied not stated Timeline The most significant ten year period is from 1920 to 1930 because the biggest cultural changes happened during this period because itRead MoreA Brief History of English Literature1782 Words   |  8 PagesGermanic epic and the longest Old English poem; other great works include The Wanderer, The Battle of Maldon, and The Dream of the Rood. Notable prose includes the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, a historical record begun about the time of King Alfred ´s reign (871-899) and continuing for more than three centuries. Authors: Caedmon (English poet), Cynewulf (English poet), Franciscus Junius, the Younger (European scholar) and John Gardner (American author) Works: Beowulf (Old English poem), Exeter Book (Old EnglishRead MoreThe Modernist Movement Of Literature2005 Words   |  9 Pagesinspiration from the real world and their own experiences. Every aspect of the world has its own influence from historical events to developments in psychological theory. The authors of the modernist era, such as William Faulkner, Virginia Woolf, T.S. Elliot, and James Joyce, experimented heavily with established laws of language and structure by modifying the narration of the story and breaking the plot into pieces for the reader to put together. In a way, the authors were rebelling against the old views of