The WastelandWord格式文档下载.docx

The WastelandWord格式文档下载.docx

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/[He]willshowyoufearinahandfulofdust”（EvelynWaughtookthetitleforoneofhisbest-knownnovelsfromtheselines）.Thealmostthreateningprophetictoneismixedwithchildhoodreminiscencesabouta“hyacinthgirl”andanihilisticepiphanythespeakerhasafteranencounterwithher.TheserecollectionsarefilteredthroughquotationsfromWagner’soperaticversionofTristanundIsolde,anArthuriantaleofadulteryandloss.Thethirdepisodeinthis

sectiondescribesanimaginativetarotreading,inwhichsomeofthecardsEliotincludesinthereadingarenotpartofanactualtarotdeck.Thefinalepisodeofthesectionisthemostsurreal.ThespeakerwalksthroughaLondonpopulatedbyghostsofthedead.HeconfrontsafigurewithwhomheoncefoughtinabattlethatseemstoconflatetheclashesofWorldWarIwiththePunicWarsbetweenRomeandCarthage（bothfutileandexcessivelydestructivewars）.Thespeakeraskstheghostlyfigure,Stetson,aboutthefateofacorpseplantedinhisgarden.TheepisodeconcludeswithafamouslinefromtheprefacetoBaudelaire’sFleursduMal（animportantcollectionof

　　Symbolistpoetry）,accusingthereaderofsharinginthepoet’ssins.

　Form

Like“Prufrock,”thissectionofTheWasteLandcanbeseenasamodifieddramatic

monologue.Thefourspeakersinthissectionarefranticintheirneedtospeak,tofindanaudience,buttheyfindthemselvessurroundedbydeadpeopleandthwartedbyoutsidecircumstances,likewars.Becausethesectionsaresoshortandthesituationssoconfusing,theeffectisnotoneofanoverwhelmingimpressionofasinglecharacter;

instead,thereaderisleftwiththefeelingofbeing

　　trappedinacrowd,unabletofindafamiliarface.

Alsolike“Prufrock,”TheWasteLandemploysonlypartialrhymeschemesandshortburstsof

structure.Thesearemeanttoreference—butalsorework—theliterarypast,achievingsimultaneouslyastabilizingandadefamiliarizingeffect.TheworldofTheWasteLandhassome

parallelstoanearliertime,butitcannotbeapproachedinthesameway.TheinclusionoffragmentsinlanguagesotherthanEnglishfurthercomplicatesmatters.Thereaderisnotexpectedtobeabletotranslatetheseimmediately;

rather,theyareremindersofthecosmopolitannatureoftwentieth-centuryEuropeandofmankind’sfateaftertheTowerofBabel:

Wewillneverbeableto

　perfectlycomprehendoneanother.

　1

　Commentary

NotonlyisTheWasteLandEliot’sgreatestwork,butitmaybe—alongwithJoyce’sUlysses—the

greatestworkofallmodernistliterature.Mostofthepoemwaswrittenin1921,anditfirstappearedinprintin1922.Asthepoem’sdedicationindicates,EliotreceivedagreatdealofguidancefromEzraPound,whoencouragedhimtocutlargesectionsoftheplannedworkandtobreakuptherhymescheme.RecentscholarshipsuggeststhatEliot’swife,Vivien,alsohadasignificantroleinthepoem’sfinalform.Alongworkdividedintofivesections,TheWasteLand

takesonthedegradedmessthatEliotconsideredmodernculturetoconstitute,particularlyafterthefirstWorldWarhadravagedEurope.AsignofthepessimismwithwhichEliotapproacheshissubjectisthepoem’sepigraph,takenfromtheSatyricon,inwhichtheSibyl（awomanwith

propheticpowerswhoagesbutneverdies）looksatthefutureandproclaimsthatsheonlywantstodie.TheSibyl’spredicamentmirrorswhatEliotseesashisown:

Helivesinaculturethathasdecayedandwitheredbutwillnotexpire,andheisforcedtolivewithremindersofitsformerglory.Thus,theunderlyingplotofTheWasteLand,inasmuchasitcanbesaidtohaveone,

revolvesaroundEliot’sreadingoftwoextraordinarilyinfluentialcontemporarycultural/anthropologicaltexts,JessieWeston’sFromRitualtoRomanceandSirJamesFrazier’s

TheGoldenBough.Bothoftheseworksfocusonthepersistenceofancientfertilityritualsinmodernthoughtandreligion;

ofparticularinteresttobothauthorsisthestoryoftheFisherKing,whohasbeenwoundedinthegenitalsandwhoselackofpotencyisthecauseofhiscountrybecomingadesiccated“wasteland.”HealtheFisherKing,thelegendsays,andthelandwillregainitsfertility.AccordingtoWestonandFrazier,healingtheFisherKinghasbeenthesubjectofmythictalesfromancientEgypttoArthurianEngland.EliotpicksuponthefigureoftheFisherKinglegend’swastelandasanappropriatedescriptionofthestateofmodernsociety.Theimportantdifference,ofcourse,isthatinEliot’sworldthereisnowaytohealtheFisherKing;

perhapsthereisnoFisherKingatall.Thelegend’simperfectintegrationintoamodernmeditationhighlightsthelackofaunifyingnarrative（likereligionormythology）inthemodernworld.

Eliot’spoem,liketheanthropologicaltextsthatinspiredit,drawsonavastrangeofsources.EliotprovidedcopiousfootnoteswiththepublicationofTheWasteLandinbookform;

thesearean

excellentsourcefortrackingdowntheoriginsofareference.ManyofthereferencesarefromtheBible:

atthetimeofthepoem’swritingEliotwasjustbeginningtodevelopaninterestinChristianitythatwouldreachitsapexintheFourQuartets.TheoverallrangeofallusionsinThe

WasteLand,though,suggestsnooverarchingparadigmbutratheragrabbagofbrokenfragmentsthatmustsomehowbepiecedtogethertoformacoherentwhole.WhileEliotemploysadeliberatelydifficultstyleandseemsoftentofindthemostobscurereferencepossible,hemeanstodomorethanjustfrustratehisreaderanddisplayhisownintelligence:

Heintendstoprovidea

　mimeticaccountoflifeintheconfusingworldofthetwentiethcentury.

TheWasteLandopenswithareferencetoChaucer’sCanterburyTales.Inthiscase,though,April

isnotthehappymonthofpilgrimagesandstorytelling.Itisinsteadthetimewhenthelandshouldberegeneratingafteralongwinter.Regeneration,though,ispainful,foritbringsbackremindersofamorefertileandhappierpast.Inthemodernworld,winter,thetimeofforgetfulnessandnumbness,isindeedpreferable.Marie’schildhoodrecollectionsarealsopainful:

thesimpleworldofcousins,sledding,andcoffeeintheparkhasbeenreplacedbyacomplexsetofemotionaland　2

politicalconsequencesresultingfromthewar.Thetopicofmemory,particularlywhenitinvolvesrememberingthedead,isofcriticalimportanceinTheWasteLand.Memorycreatesa

confrontationofthepastwiththepresent,ajuxtapositionthatpointsoutjusthowbadlythingshavedecayed.Mariereadsformostofthenight:

ostracizedbypolitics,sheisunabletodomuch

　else.Toreadisalsotorememberabetterpast,whichcouldproduceacoherentliteraryculture.

Thesecondepisodecontainsatroubledreligiousproposition.Thespeakerdescribesatruewastelandof“stonyrubbish”;

init,hesays,mancanrecognizeonly“[a]heapofbrokenimages.”Yetthesceneseemstooffersalvation:

shadeandavisionofsomethingnewanddifferent.Thevisionconsistsonlyofnothingness—ahandfulofdust—whichissoprofoundastobefrightening;

yettruthalsoresideshere:

NolongerareligiousphenomenonachievedthroughChrist,truthisrepresentedbyamerevoid.Thespeakerremembersafemalefigurefromhispast,withwhomhehasapparentlyhadsomesortofromanticinvolvement.Incontrasttothepresentsettinginthedesert,hismemoriesarelush,fullofwaterandbloomingflowers.Thevibrancyoftheearlierscene,though,leadsthespeakertoarevelationofthenothingnesshenowofferstoshowthereader.Againmemoryservestocontrastthepastwiththepresent,buthereitalsoservestoexplodetheideaofcoherenceineitherplace.Intheepisodefromthepast,the“nothingness”ismoreclearlyasexualfailure,amomentofimpotence.Despitetheoverallfecundityandjoyofthemoment,noreconciliation,and,therefore,noaction,ispossible.Thisinturnleadsdirectlytothedesertwasteofthepresent.Inthefinallineoftheepisodeattentionturnsfromthedeserttothesea.Here,theseaisnotalocusforthefearofnothingness,andneitherisitthelocusforaphilosophicalinterpretationofnothingness;

rather,itisthesiteoftrue,essentialnothingnessitself.ThelinecomesfromasectionofTristanundIsoldewhereTristanwaitsforIsoldetocomeheal

him.Sheissupposedlycomingbyshipbutfailstoarrive.Theoceanistrulyempty,devoidofthe

　　possibilityofhealingorrevelation.

ThethirdepisodeexploresEliot’sfascinationwithtransformation.ThetarotreaderMadameSosostrisconductsthemostoutrageousformof“reading”possible,transformingaseriesofvaguesymbolsintopredictions,manyofwhichwillcometrueinsucceedingsectionsofthepoem.Eliottransformsthetraditionaltarot