The Waste Land and Other Poems (1922)

No me ha llamado nada, regular, nada especial. ( )

What can I say, Eliot had an incredible command of language. Not all of the poems hit me as hard as others, but many of them got my brain churning with ideas. Even in the poems that didn't leave an impact were artistically brilliant and super fun to read. ( )

In the upcoming book The World Broke in Two by Bill Goldstein, Virginia Woolf is pleased by hearing "The Wasteland" read by Eliot. Several times she mentions that she has not read the poem but only listened to it. I did the same with the Audible edition. There is something to gain in listening. ( )

I have measured out my life with coffee spoons

I first heard of The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufock while listening to a podcast of Entitled Opinions (thanks Tom) last winter. That podcast concerned Dante, however I found Eliot's images both vivid and modern. I then mentally shelved such for a future read. This present week appeared apt. While sorting through Marx and, then, Derrida on Marx and Shakespeare I found the prevailing winds favorable. Diving into such, I didn't care for the titular poem in the collection. The Waste Land and especially Eliot's notes for such strikes me as mere wanking. Oh well, verse isn't my métier, especially those alluding to the Grail. I did like Marina and Two Choruses from 'The Rock'

I journeyed to London, to the timekept City
Where the River flows, with foreign flotations.
There I was told: we have too many churches.
( )

I don't really know what to say about this except "read it." How do I review The Waste Land without writing a lengthy academic paper (which, btw, I have done)? It's a gorgeous poem, full of imagery and symbolism. Read it, then read it again. ( )