preludes (1917) Flashcards
what are the key concepts in preludes?
- the degradation of modern city, daily existence becoming monotonous and drudgery.
- modern city in a state of spiritual, emotional & intellectual winter and has lost its direction and vitality.
what is the critic/ influence of preludes?
critic sharpe, observes that young eliot lived in the area of an expanding city of St Louis that bordered on slums. This urban squalor influences the sordid imagery in preludes.
when was preludes written and what is the contextual concern Eliot voices?
preludes was written in 1917, post world war one, economic depression, artists, felt and critiqued that modern industrial civilisation had lost its sense of meaning & direction.
what are the main techniques used in preludes?
- olfactory imagery
- concrete imagery of winter/ dark visual imagery
- form of the poem
- religious allusion to christ
- modernists manifesto
- personification
what are the quotes you are going to use in preludes?
- “winter” “gusty shower” “withered leaves” “burnt out ends” “grimy scraps” “broken blinds”
- “the pressing of coffee stands, the raising of dingy stands”
- “the worlds revolve”
- “infinitely gentle, infinitely suffering”
- “the morning comes to consciousness to the faint stale smells of beer”
what are the quotes/ words that illustrate the decaying image of the urban life?
- winter
- gusty showers
- broken blinds
- withered leaves
- burnt-out ends
- grimy scraps
these concrete images of winter and dark visual imagery frames the world falling apart, frozen, and lacking growth and vitality.
what is a quote that represents the monotonous, drudgery of daily existence in urban life? what effect does this have on the contemporary audience
“the pressing of coffee stands, the raising of dingy shades” - the olfactory imagery of people performing monotonous routines and repetitive actions. confronting contemporary audiences of the monotonous routines we follow today, contributing to the enduring value of his work”
what is a quote that represents the true version of individuals in modern industrial civilization?
“infinitely gentle, infinitely struggling”
the religious allusion to christ, reveals the true nature of man beneath the hopeless modernity.
what is a quote that represents the modernists’ manifesto?
“the worlds revolve”
is a modernists manifesto that stimulates the meaninglessness and repetition of life.
what is a quote that represents the degradation of society
“the morning comes to consciousness of faint stale smells of beer”
the olfactory imagery expresses an idea of the depressing nature of society that is in need of stimulants to make it through the day. the personification of the morning conveys that the world around it is drowning in life’s sorrows.
what is the effect of olfactory imagery in preludes?
the olfactory imagery evokes the senses in the reader and audience, thus emerging them right into the images of the decay and pollution urban life as a result of modern industrial civilization.
