26 pages • 52 minutes read
T. S. EliotA modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
The colors that occur in the poem have some symbolic value. White is a symbol of purity, thus the “white leopards” who metaphorically devour the speaker’s body in Part II (Line 1) are actually a positive symbol, since they devour the outer form of the individual, not his inner essence—which, in the speaker’s view, is exactly what he needs in a symbolic sense. In the same section, the Lady is presented as “withdrawn / In a white gown, to contemplation, in a white gown” (Lines 16-17). She has withdrawn into the purity of the deepest aspect of her being, and the “whiteness of bones” in the following line is again a positive symbol, since they “atone to forgetfulness” (of the troublesome personal self, that is, that seems to act as an obstacle to communion with God [Line 18]).
White is also identified along with blue in Part IV as a symbol of the Lady and also of the Virgin Mary. Of the two, blue seems to be the more significant color because it is mentioned more often. The Lady/Virgin “Made cool the dry rock and made firm the sand / In blue of larkspur, blue of Mary’s colour” (Lines 9-10). Images of Mary in Catholic and Anglo-Catholic churches (such as those that Eliot might have attended) show the Virgin attired in blue.
By T. S. Eliot
East Coker
East Coker
T. S. Eliot
Four Quartets
Four Quartets
T. S. Eliot
Journey of the Magi
Journey of the Magi
T. S. Eliot
Little Gidding
Little Gidding
T. S. Eliot
Mr. Mistoffelees
Mr. Mistoffelees
T. S. Eliot
Murder in the Cathedral
Murder in the Cathedral
T. S. Eliot
Portrait of a Lady
Portrait of a Lady
T. S. Eliot
Preludes
Preludes
T. S. Eliot
Rhapsody On A Windy Night
Rhapsody On A Windy Night
T. S. Eliot
The Cocktail Party
The Cocktail Party
T. S. Eliot
The Hollow Men
The Hollow Men
T. S. Eliot
The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock
The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock
T. S. Eliot
The Song of the Jellicles
The Song of the Jellicles
T. S. Eliot
The Waste Land
The Waste Land
T. S. Eliot
Tradition and the Individual Talent
Tradition and the Individual Talent
T. S. Eliot