The Letters of T. S. Eliot: Volume 5: 1930-1931 (Volume 5)

This fifth volume of the collected letters of poet, playwright, essayist, and literary critic Thomas Stearns Eliot covers the years 1930 through 1931. It was during this period that the acclaimed American-born writer earnestly embraced his newly avowed Anglo-Catholic faith, a decision that earned him the antagonism of friends like Virginia Woolf and Herbert Read. Also evidenced in these correspondences is Eliot’s growing estrangement from his wife Vivien, with the writer’s newfound dedication to the Anglican Church exacerbating the unhappiness of an already tormented union. Yet despite his personal trials, this period was one of great literary activity for Eliot. In 1930 he composed the poems __Ash-Wednesday__ and __Marina,__ and published __Coriolan__ and a translation of Saint-John Perse’s __Anabase__ the following year. As director at the British publishing house Faber & Faber and editor of __The Criterion____,__ he encouraged W. H. Auden, Stephen Spender, Louis MacNeice, and Ralph Hogdson, published James Joyce’s __Haveth Childers Everywhere____,__ and turned down a book proposal from Eric Blair, better known by his pen name, George Orwell. Through Eliot’s correspondences from this time the reader gets a full-bodied view of a great artist at a personal, professional, and spiritual crossroads. This fifth volume of the collected letters of poet, playwright, essayist, and literary critic Thomas Stearns Eliot covers the years 1930 through 1931. It was during this period that the acclaimed American-born writer earnestly embraced his newly avowed Anglo-Catholic faith, a decision that earned him the antagonism of friends like Virginia Woolf and Herbert Read. Also evidenced in these correspondences is Eliot's growing estrangement from his wife Vivien, with the writer's newfound dedication to the Anglican Church exacerbating the unhappiness of an already tormented union.  Yet despite his personal trials, this period was one of great literary activity for Eliot. In 1930 he composed the poems Ash-Wednesday and Marina, and published Coriolan and a translation of Saint-John Perse's Anabase the following year. As director at the British publishing house Faber & Faber and editor of The Criterion, he encouraged W. H. Auden, Stephen Spender, Louis MacNeice, and Ralph Hogdson, published James Joyce's Haveth Childers Everywhere, and turned down a book proposal from Eric Blair, better known by his pen name, George Orwell. Through Eliot's correspondences from this time the reader gets a full-bodied view of a great artist at a personal, professional, and spiritual crossroads. The First Volume Of Eliot's Correspondence Covers His Childhood In St. Louis, Missouri, Through 1922, When He Married And Settled In England. Volume Two Covers The Time Period Of Eliot's Publication Of The Hallow Men And His Developing Ideas About Poetry In Volume Three He Undertakes A New Career As Publisher While Continuing To Write. V. 1. 1898-1922. Rev. Ed. -- V. 2. 1923-1925. -- V. 3. 1926-1927 / Edited By Valerie Eliot And John Haffenden -- V. 4. 1928-1929 -- V. 5. 1930-1931 -- V. 6. 1932-1933 / Edited By Valerie Eliot And John Haffenden. Edited By Valerie Eliot And Hugh Haughton ; General Editor, John Haffenden. Volume 1 Includes More Than 200 Newly Discovered Letters Not Included In The First Publication Of This Volume In 1988 By Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. Includes Bibliographical References And Indexes. "Volume One: 1898-1922 presents some 1,400 letters encompassing the years of Eliot's childhood in St. Louis, Missouri, through 1922, by which time the poet had settled in England, married his first wife, and published The Waste Land. Since the first publication of this volume in 1988, many new materials from British and American sources have come to light. More than two hundred of these newly discovered letters are now included, filling crucial gaps in the record and shedding new light on Eliot's activities in London during and after the First World War Volume Two: 1923-1925 covers the early years of Eliot's editorship of The Criterion, publication of The Hollow Men, and his developing thought about poetry and poetics. The volume offers 1,400 letters, charting Eliot's journey toward conversion to the Anglican faith, as well as his transformation from banker to publisher and his appointment as director of the new publishing house Faber & Gwyer. The prolific and various correspondence of this volume testifies to Eliot's growing influence as cultural commentator and editor."--Pub. desc The first volume of Eliot's correspondence covers his childhood in St. Louis, Missouri, through 1922, when he married, settled in England and published The Waste Land. The contents have been assembled by his widow, Valerie, from collections, libraries, and private sources worldwide. Published on the centenary of Eliot's birth