T.S. Eliot is viewed as one of the leading authors of the 1900s and his poetry was heavily impacted by Dante Alighieri. Eliot encountered Dante while he was a Harvard student studying philosophy. Eliot was a prolific reader of Dante’s works and might have wanted to “apprentice” the master (Sloane). Dante’s influences were evident in Eliot’s writings through direct quotations. Similar images are also used and thematic components. Direct quotations in Italian are easy to find, but lines from Dante’s works have been slightly translated to fit Eliot’s poetry. Eliot’s works also include Dante’s illustrations. Dante’s visions of Hell and the cold world influenced Eliot’s views of the world. Similar themes are evident in Eliot’s writings. Eliot often draws inspiration from Dante to express his inner feelings. These three elements are evident in almost all of Eliot’s work, making it clear that Dante had an influence on Eliot. Thematic elements as well as direct quotations are part of Dante’s influence in “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock”. Prufrock appears to be talking about a possible lover in “Prufrock”. Prufrock is too aware of his feelings to approach the woman. He can hear others mocking him and taunting. Prufrock is extremely shy about sharing his feelings. We, the reader, are only able to hear him speak out because he knows that others will not judge him. Prufrock is explaining to us why he cannot love the woman he loves. Dante’s influence is first mentioned in “Prufrock” as an direct quote from The Divine Comedy. The first epigraph reads: S’io Credesse che mia posta fosse A Persona che Mai tornasse Al mondo, Questa Fiamma Staria senza Piu scosse. Ma perciocche giammai di questo fondo Non torno vivo alcun, s’i’odo il vero, Senza tema d’infamia ti rispondo. (1-6). This epigraph literally translates to “If this were my reply to anyone who could ever live again, this flame wouldn’t shake anymore; but, if what you hear is true, no one ever lived to tell the tale from this depth,” (“The love song of J. Alfred Prufrock” T.S. Eliot). This sets the tone of the rest. Prufrock is able to speak his shame because he believes that no one will judge him for his cowardice. Prufrock seems to fear humiliation; Dante’s idea that individuals have their own Hell is a theme influence. The Divine Comedy, Dante’s literary work, is a compilation different versions Hell. Prufrock’s frustration at not being able to express his love for his woman admiration is evident in “Prufrock” (Bloom 17). Eliot’s frustration shows when he is unable to decide whether to speak with the woman. (37-41) Prufrock seems frustrated. He even considers his bald spot as he contemplates whether or no to tell the woman who he loves how he’s feeling. Prufrock becomes so preoccupied with his appearance that he cannot stop thinking about the opinions of others. Prufrock says that Prufrock’s inability not to worry about the opinions of others is what makes him miserable. Dante’s influence continues to be evident in Eliot’s “The Wasteland” through imagery and themes. The Wasteland’s opening section describes an apocalyptic, prophetic journey into a desert land. The narrator wanders through London streets populated with the ghosts and the dead near the end. The ghost is asked by the narrator about the fate of the dead bodies. The first part ends with the famous line “You!” from Baudelaire’s Fleurs du Mal preface: Hypocrite lecteur!-mon Semblable,-mon FrA?re!” (76). This quote accuses the reader of being a hypocrite (Martin). In the second part of the first section, Eliot describes the similarities between the crowds in Hell and the flow into Hell by Dante’s Inferno. In the winter fog, a crowd rushed over London Bridge. I didn’t know death could do so many. The men looked at each other with short, but infrequent, sighs. (61-65) These city dwellers lack values and are condemned for eternity to Hell. London’s “Unreal City”, as Eliot describes it, suggests that the city’s corruption is beyond imagination and appears like Hell (Bloom 42). The quote from Fleurs du Mal by Baudelaire is near the end. It implies that both the poet as well as the reader have committed sins and are condemned to Hell. This is Dante’s central theme, that every person has sinned. They will all go to Hell. The influence of Dante becomes evident in part five, “The Wasteland”, as Eliot uses a Dante-inspired image. The section’s first half builds up to an apocalyptic finale, when suffering people are “hooded hoardings swarming” and “unreal” cities like Jerusalem, Athens Alexandria, Vienna, Vienna, and London are destroyed and rebuilt. The poem concludes with fragments of children’s songs, Dante works, and Elizabethan drama. Part five of Dante’s influence demonstrates the negative effects isolation can have on the mind. The following excerpt is directly taken from Dante’s Inferno. Ugolino is condemned in Hell’s lowest circle for his treachery. I heard the key. Each one of us thinks of the key. Dante’s descriptive imagery is used in “The Hollow Men” once again to influence Eliot. “The Hollow Men” describes how the hollow men were unable to choose their fate. This is in contrast to Guy Fawkes, whom Eliot refers earlier. Fawkes tried to blow-up the House of Commons of England 1605 but was stopped by police before he could ignite the gunpowder. Fawkes died, but he decided his fate. This was in contrast to hollow men, which seem to have no control on their destination. Eliot often speaks of different kingdoms in which souls are kept. These kingdoms bear striking similarities to Dante’s visions about the afterlife, as described by The Divine Comedy. The similarities in the Kingdoms mentioned by Eliot and Dante’s visions are striking. Death’s other Kingdom is directly related to Dante’s Inferno, the place where violent souls go. Eliot’s Death’s Dream Kingdom, which is home to those who are on the path of redemption, is extremely similar to Dante’s Purgatorio. The river, which is the one that divides Purgatorio/Inferno, is analogous to Dante when the hollow men are waiting for the “tumid” river to pass. The Kingdom of God can be compared to Dante’s Paradiso, Southam 99. Similar to Dante’s Ante-Hell of Neutrals, the hollow men also look like Dante. They were not shamed, but they weren’t praised. The Ante-Hell of Neutrals is a similar idea to Catholics’ belief in babies not being baptized not going to Hell for not having committed any sins. However, they cannot go to Heaven because they haven’t been forgiven of their original sin. These souls end up in purgatory. These souls are not worthy to be considered “violent souls”, like the Hollow Men. They have done nothing wrong. Because they don’t have sufficient reasons to go in Inferno and Paradiso, the hollow men “Gathered” on the beach of a tumid stream (60). These beings were neither good nor bad (Bloom 61). T.S. was influenced by Dante Alighieri. Eliot’s poetry shows Eliot’s ability to express his emotions through poetry. Although Eliot was accused of copying many Dante’s ideas from Dante, they are well integrated into Eliot’s poetry. Dante clearly influenced Eliot through direct quotations and similar imagery as well as thematic elements. Works Cited Bloom Harold, Ed. T.S. Eliot. The 1999 book by Chelsea House Publishers. Drew, Elizabeth, ed. Notable British literary figures. Harcourt, Brace & World Inc. was the publisher in 1959. Martin, Melissa. SparkNote about Eliot’s poetry. 19 Mar. 2006
. Sloane, Patricia. Notes and observations about T.S. Eliot’s early works of poetry. 19 Mar. 2006
. Southam, B.C. The Student’s Guide To T.S. Eliot. 5th ed. Faber & Faber, 1990. The Ballad of J. Alfred Prufrock
Let us go then, you and I,
To a place of streets and winding roads;
Let us take a break and ponder why
In the midst of life we’re so abode.
In the room the women come and go
Talking of Michelangelo.
I hear them mention of things I know,
But I don’t care to understand or show.
And I have seen the evening, spread out against the sky,
Like a patient etherized upon a table;
I have seen the smoke of city streets
Rise up like a morning mist.
So how should I begin?
Should I start with the mermaids, singing in the sea?
Or should I start with the time I saw the faces in the crowd?
Or should I start with the time I heard the voices in the wind?
I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each.
I do not think that they will sing to me.
I have seen the eternal Footman hold my coat and snicker,
And in short I am no prophet—and here’s no great matter;
I have seen the moment of my greatness flicker,
And I have seen the eternal Footman hold my coat and snicker.
And in short, I am not Prince Hamlet, nor was meant to be;
Am an attendant lord, one that will do
To swell a progress, start a scene or two,
Advance an plot, and hasten the action of the play.
But I have seen the moment of my greatness flicker,
And I have seen the moments of my life pass away.
And all I have to show, is my weary and worn face.
And all I have to show, is my weary and worn face. Eliot. 20 Mar. 2006
Willard, Jeff. Literary Allusions in “The Hollow Men” 15 Mar. 2006
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