20th Century Literary Criticism with Special Reference -T.S. ELIOT, Arthur Symons

Twentieth century literary criticism has a wide variety. It is the result of the great  variety and complexity of the century itself-in all walks of life. The arm of the century inherited subjective and impressionistic criticism from Waller patter and Swinburne. The impressionistic criticism is based on the individual response to a literary work. Symons and Spingram are the well known impressionistic. Then, there is a psychological school of criticism, and a sociological school of critics. Then, there is a psychological school of criticism, and a sociological school of criticism. There psychological school of criticism regards all literary creation as the mar formation of the artist’s psychological abnegation. 

The sociological school of criticism lays stress on the importance of mid-line in reference to the making of an artist. Modern criticism has discarded some of the bold canons of crisis and commendable work in evaluating some of the Elizabethan and Noe-classical writers, and has revived interest in the Metaphysical school of poets, particularly Donne. T.S. Eliot combines in himself both the tendencies of modern criticism.

T.S. ELIOT

T.S. ELIOT: (1888-1965) T.S. ELIOT occupies an important place in the history of literary critics. He belongs to Dryden, Dr Johnson’ Wordsworth, Coleridge, and MATTHEW Arnold were poets as well as critics, so not only a critic of literature but also a critic of social and cultural aspects oflate. Apart from his private poetry his great contribution is to the English literary criticism. Eliot was a great scholar besides being a poet and a critic. Besides being a keen student of English literature he had also studied Sanskrit, Pali and Indian philosophy in addition to the classical literatures of Greece and Rome. In Arnold’s conception of critic was a combined quality to be a critic as well as a great poet.

• Theory of Impersonality in Arts: T.S. Eliot’s theory of Impersonality of Art writers the subject of serious discussion among the writers of the modern age. In his Tradition and Individual Talent, Eliot writers, “the poet has a personality to express but a particular medium, which is only a medium and not a personality…..

• Theory of Objective co-relative:  According to him, the poet should transfer his emotions to a set of objects in other words; he should objectify his emotions in a set of objects, a situation, and a chain of events. A good poet, in his view, does this.

• His view of Critic and critic:  Eliot does not except any dies sanction between Creation and criticism. Therefore, he does not make any distinction between a creative artist and a critic. In his opinion, the author himself can be the best critic of his work Eliot also recommends fourth qualifications for a critic. He should be sensitive and erudite, should have a sense of his tony and facts, should possess general sing power.

• His limitations: Eliot acts as a judge yet sometimes he ceases to be impersonal while passing judgments. His critical options about Million, Shelley and Lawrence are not fully judicious, they appears to be tinged with personal biased.

• Symons, Arthur (1865-1945): He is the other poet, critic and the leading light movement. His friends included Earnest Dowson, Lioncel Johnstown and osier wiled, with whom he socialized at Rhyme club. He introduced French Symbolism to English reader in his influential study.   The Symbolist Movement in Literature and also tars lasted Baudelaire’s Les Fliers Dr Mal and Zola’s L’Assommoir. His other critical studies include An Introduction To The study of Robert Browning and Studies in Elizabethan Drama etc. He particularly influenced the work of W.B. Yeats.

T.S. Eliot and Arthur Symons: Pioneers of 20th Century Literary Criticism: Key Points:

1. T.S. Eliot and Arthur Symons were two of the most important literary critics of the 20th century.
2. They both helped to shape the way we think about literature by introducing new ideas and methods of criticism.
3. Eliot was particularly interested in the relationship between literature and society, while Symons was more interested in the psychology of the artist.
4. Both Eliot and Symons were influenced by the work of the Symbolists, and they helped to introduce Symbolist ideas to the English-speaking world.
5. Eliot's criticism was characterized by its use of close reading and its focus on the text itself. He was interested in the way that literary works use language to create meaning.
6. Symons' criticism was more impressionistic and subjective. He was interested in the emotional response that literature evokes in the reader.
7. Both Eliot and Symons were influential in the development of New Criticism, which was a major school of literary criticism in the mid-20th century.
8. The work of Eliot and Symons continues to be influential in 21st century literary criticism. Their ideas have helped to shape the way we think about literature and its role in society.

Ardhendu De

Ref: 

The Waste Land And Other Poems By T. S. Eliot : T. S. Eliot : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive. (n.d.). Internet Archive. https://archive.org/details/lp_the-waste-land-and-other-poems-by-t-s-elio_t-s-eliot

T. S. Eliot: a collection of criticism : Wagner-Martin, Linda, comp : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive. (n.d.). Internet Archive. https://archive.org/details/tseliotcollectio0000wagn

After strange gods : a primer of modern heresy : Eliot, T. S. (Thomas Stearns), 1888-1965 : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive. (n.d.). Internet Archive. https://archive.org/details/afterstrangegods0000elio