Eliot and His Age : T. S. Eliot's Moral Imagination in the Twentieth Century

Though much has been written about T. S. Eliot since it was first published, __Eliot and His Age__ remains the best introduction to the poet's life, ideas, and literary works. It is the essential starting place for anyone who would understand what Eliot was about. Russell Kirk's view of his older friend is sympathetic but not adulatory. His insights into Eliot's writings are informed by wide reading in the same authors who most influenced the poet, as well as by similar experiences and convictions. Kirk elaborates here a significant theory of literary meaning in general, showing how great literary works awaken our intuitive reason, giving us profound visions of truth that transcend logical processes. And he traces Eliot's political and cultural ideas to their true sources, showing the balance and subtlety of Eliot's views. __Eliot and His Age__ is a literary biography that will endure when much of the more recent writing on Eliot is gathering dust. Chapter 1 Eliot And The Follies Of The Time 1 -- Chapter 2 The Burial Of Matthew And Waldo 9 -- Chapter 3 Hell And Heartbreak House 43 -- Chapter 4 A Criterion In A Time Of Hollow Men 77 -- Chapter 5 Catholic, Royalist, Classicist 111 -- Chapter 6 The Poet, The Statesman, And The Rock 151 -- Chapter 7 Christians And Ideologues In Heartbreak House 191 -- Chapter 8 The Communication Of The Dead 231 -- Chapter 9 Culture And Cocktail Parties 267 -- Chapter 10 Illusions And Affirmations 299 -- Chapter 11 Age And Decrepitude Have No Terrors 333 -- Postcript: Pilgrims In The Waste Land 357. Russell Kirk ; [introduction By Benjamin G. Lockerd, Jr.] Republication Of The Rev. Ed. Issued By Sherwood Sugden & Co. In 1984. Includes Index. Though much has been written about T.S. Eliot since it was first published, Eliot and His Age remains the best introduction to the poet's life, ideas and literary works. It is the essential starting place for anyone who would understand what Eliot was about. Russell Kirk's insights into Eliot's writings are informed by wide reading in the same authors who most influenced the poet, as well as by similar experiences and convictions. Kirk traces Eliot's political and cultural ideas to their true sources, showing the balance and subtlety of Eliot's views. Eliot and His Age is a literary biography that will endure when much of the more recent writing on Eliot is gathering dust. (Publisher)