What does the word Gerontion mean?
little old man
Alfred Prufrock’ and ‘Portrait of a Lady’ from Eliot’s previous volume, ‘Gerontion’ is a dramatic monologue, spoken by an old man (‘Gerontion’ means ‘little old man’, and should be pronounced with a hard ‘G’) who, in a decaying rented house, sits and waits for rain.
Is Gerontion a blind person?
In lines 59–60, the speaker explains that he has lost his physical senses due to his age: I have lost my sight, smell, hearing, taste and touch: How should I use them for your closer contact?
What is the theme of Gerontion?
The theme of Gerontion is the breakdown of culture, religion and civilization. The poem meditates on history through the consciousness of an old man. It deals with the absence of heroic action in the modern world and its loss of faith and inability to learn from history.
Do you think TS Eliot created Gerontion as an older version of Prufrock?
Structure of Gerontion The text is a dramatic monologue and comes from the perspective of an old man, Gerontion, who is located in an old house. Some scholars believe that he is an older version of Eliot’s most famous creation, J. Alfred Prufrock.
What is forgiveness after such knowledge?
After such knowledge, what forgiveness? Think now History has many cunning passages, contrived corridors And issues, deceives with whispering ambitions, Guides us by vanities. Think now She gives when our attention is distracted And what she gives, gives with such supple confusions That the giving famishes the craving.
How old was Elliot when he wrote Prufrock?
But Eliot began to write the poem when he was just 21 years old, in February 1910, and worked on it sporadically over the next few years before he finally got it into print. Much of it was written by around 1911.
What she gives gives with such supple confusion that the giving Famishes the craving gives too late?
Think now She gives when our attention is distracted And what she gives, gives with such supple confusions That the giving famishes the craving. Gives too late What’s not believed in, or if still believed, In memory only, reconsidered passion.
What is the tragedy of Prufrock?
Prufrock is a tragic figure. His tragedy is that of a man who is unable to commit himself to any faith that would sustain him. His tragedy is a dual one: Prufrock is in love, and just as ethically he cannot bring himself to propose to his lady. He is conscious of his own growing age, his bald head, and his impotence.
Why is Prufrock a love song?
Although he feels an attraction to the lady, he is aware of their worthlessness. In this sense too, the poem is no praising song of love. Thus the title of “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” neatly undermines the romantic associations of ‘Love Song’ by the ridiculous name “PrufroCk”.
How is Prufrock an internal dialogue?
Elliot is a conversation between a character named J. Alfred Prufrock and his self-doubt, which is manifested as an internal dialogue journeying through hell. The narrator, J. Alfred Prufrock, is concerned about his legacy and experiences the fear of not being remembered or celebrated for his work.
What Prufrock means?
Alfred Prufrock is a symbolic poem which gives the mood of the modern city-dweller. It expresses the barrenness, the mental tension, the frustration and the irresolution of the modern man.
How is Prufrock an example of stream of consciousness?
Eliot uses stream of consciousness technique and presents the character of Prufrock in the poem. The character is presented as compulsive, neurotic, and anxious. The thoughts that fog up his mind and in a way he tries to escape his own thoughts.
What makes ‘Gerontion’ a unique poem?
‘Gerontion’ is notable for being the only English poem in T. S. Eliot’s second volume of poetry (the collection also contained some French poems) which does not adopt the regular quatrain form found in ‘ A Cooking Egg ’, ‘ Sweeney Erect ’, ‘ The Hippopotamus ’, ‘ Sweeney among the Nightingales ’, and ‘ Mr. Eliot’s Sunday Morning Service ’.
What is the theme of the poem Gerontion by TS Eliot?
Gerontion by T.S. Eliot Within ‘Gerontion’ a reader will have to consider war as a major theme as well as religion and political upheaval. This poem was written in the same year and season as the Treaty of Versailles was signed (1919). It was an important turning point in the twentieth century.
What is the rhyme scheme of the poem Gerontion?
‘ Gerontion’ by T.S. Eliot is an eight stanza poem that’s divided into uneven sets of lines. There is no single rhyme scheme or metrical pattern, meaning that the poem is written in free verse. The text is a dramatic monologue and comes from the perspective of an old man, Gerontion, who is located in an old house.
What is the point of view of the poem Gerontion?
The text is a dramatic monologue and comes from the perspective of an old man, Gerontion, who is located in an old house. Some scholars believe that he is an older version of Eliot’s most famous creation, J. Alfred Prufrock. A reader should also take note of the epigraph that appears at the beginning of the poem.