Had T.S Eliot been a banker, he would have spared April and called March the cruellest month, says Manu, a friend and a banker himself. Apparently in the UK, where Eliot lived, the fiscal year ends on April 5 every year unlike March 31 in India. This revelation certainly would make my friend feel better, who is done with his March woes and celebrating the happiness April brings in.
However, with mercury on the rise, April's ignominy isn't entirely questionable. Temperature has already crossed 40° Celcius in most parts of India. Also with the general election campaigns in full swing, it's great deal of pressure on our politicians to come up with new promises so charged with magic. For a good majority, April is indeed cruel if not cruellest.
However, with mercury on the rise, April's ignominy isn't entirely questionable. Temperature has already crossed 40° Celcius in most parts of India. Also with the general election campaigns in full swing, it's great deal of pressure on our politicians to come up with new promises so charged with magic. For a good majority, April is indeed cruel if not cruellest.
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2 comments:
To begin with, I unconditionally and unilaterally take back my comment that “If Elliot was a banker he would have written that March is the cruellest month”… Not because financial year in England ends on April 5, but because Elliot WAS a banker!!!!!! I was just going through his biography and found that he worked in Lloyds Bank. (So maybe the inspiration for the poem was more than meteorological). Interestingly, it was on a vacation from the bank for a treatment on “Nervous Disorder” (it must be the excess heat) that he worked on the “The Wasteland”. Wikipedia says that Elliot sent the original manuscript, which contained the complete version of the poem, to his friend John Quinn and the manuscripts were found and published only after the death of the poet by his widow. Probably Elliot himself did not get much critical acclaim during his lifetime for his most popular and most discussed poem. (Some other sources says that the poem was indeed published by Elliot in the 1920s and by the 1930s has become the most discussed and controversial works of the poet & playwright). And finally, I was also under the misconception that the poem was a reflection on the rising temperatures that summer brings in. Being a quizzer, my knowledge of Waste Land was limited to answering mundane questions like “Which poem begins with the lines April is the cruellest month” and “Which English poem ends with the words Shanthi, Shanthi, Shanthi. Now with the rekindled interests in the poem (thanks to our exchanges that stemmed out of an out-of-the-context comment from my end), I did some reading on the poem and its various interpretations. It is considered one of the most complex poems of the 20th century and one read of the 400 odd line poem will drive you bonkers. And for every 10 critics there seems to be 11 interpretations. So why not read the poem in depth and give us your interpretation on “Waste Land” through your beta world?
Wow! Now that is a comment. Let me tell you Manu! Ditch the bank and take up literature and quizzing. You won't regret.
You are being over ambitious asking me to give my interpretation of 'The Wasteland'. I don't think I can even go past 'the Burial of the dead' with out having to meet an undertaker. Shantih shantih shantih!
But sure you have triggered an interest. Let's see!
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