Department of English

National University of Modern Languages,

Islamabad

Subject: Modern Poetry

Topic of assignment no 01: T.S. Eliot's The Hollow Men
Submitted to: Zenab Jehangir
Submitted By: M. Danyal Khan
Department: English UGS (Evening)
Semester: 6th
Section: “C”
Roll no: E18-416

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Question: Critically appreciate Eliot's The Hollow Men.

Thomas Sterns Eliot (1888-1965) was an American-British modern poet, essayist, playwriter and
literary critic. He has been considered as one of the vanguards of the modern age literature. Most
importantly, he is one of the few critics who got Noble Prize in Literature in 1948 for his
devotional and illustrious contribution to the modern poetry. Apart from his eminent plays, T.S.
Eliot is famous for his worldly acknowledged poems such as The Waste Land and The Hollow
Men. His poetry is highly famous for depicting the Modern humanity by realizing their problems
as well as finding solutions for them. He made the modern man conscious of his age and the
dangers inherent in the modern civilization.

As the subject matter, The Hollow Men is one of the paragons of the modern age poetry. For
illustration, The Hollow Men is a free verse poem which was first published on 23 November
1925, in Eliot's Poems: 1909–1925. Furthermore, it is divided into five parts. The whole poem is
comprised of 100 lines; including the initial two epigraphs. Nevertheless, the poem is a free
verse poem which follows no rhyming pattern.

For illustration, The Hollow Men embodies the theme of cultural decay, the loss of spiritual faith
and alienation. The Hollow Men depicts the real image of the modern corrupted man; whose
mind is empty and is devoid of any moral and ethical values. In addition to, T.S. Eliot portrays
the modern man who lack wisdom, courage, and power of decision. The inhabitants of the waste
land are concave because of their separation from the religion: which would consecrate their
lives.

For illustration, the poem starts with two epigraphs. The very first epigram is taken from Joseph
Conrad’s novella, The Heart of Darkness. In which the protagonist Kurtz of the novella was an
ivory trader, a hollow man, in a sense that he sacrificed his humanity for the wealth. In addition
to, the second epigram is taken from “a penny for the old guy” which alludes to Guy Fawkes,
who, in 1605, tried to blow up the Parliament buildings in London, as a protest against King
James for his anti-Catholic legislation. The British people celebrate his downfall on November
5th by burning his likeness in effigy and lighting fireworks on Guy Fawkes Day. Moreover, the
poem is narrated by one of the hollow men.

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The very first section of the poem starts with the depiction of a group of people whose minds are
hollow and empty. T.S Eliot shows them singing in a group bending together and their heads are
full of straw- like scarecrows. They are scary and are fed up with supporting each other.
Furthermore, they are sad about their pitiful condition. Moreover, they are all whispering with
each other talking nonsense. T.S. Eliot compares the modern man to sewer creature by using
similes twice. He is comparing their voices to the wind running through dry grass, and rats’ feet,
pitter-pattering over pieces of broken glass. In addition to, the repetition of words dries and dried
depicts the hollow men having no blood and not even veins. T.S. Eliot uses paradox as he says
that the hollow men have shape, shade and gesture with no form and color. They are paralyzed
and motionless as if they are alive but also experiencing death (paradox). In addition to, the
repetition of the words hollow and stuffed depicts that the hollow men have already departed
from this life and it is of no surprise that the direct eyes of death’s other kingdom might not
remember them; as they are useless pathetic souls who are stuck between heaven and hell or life
and death.

The second section portrays the reprehensible condition of the hollow men. They are ashamed
and frightened of their condition that they are not even able to make an eye -contact with each
other. Furthermore, T.S. Eliot uses metaphors such as: he symbolizes “Eyes” for God’s
perspicacity. Moreover, the “broken column” might be used as a symbol of decay for the western
culture. Furthermore, it might be said that the "sunlight" maybe used as a metaphor for the God’s
judgement in the underworld, where the hollow men dwell. Which is why, God, as “sunlight” on
the “broken column,” might shed light for the declination of the western culture. In addition to,
being afraid of the truth revealing eyes, the hollow men do not want to go near the death’s dream
kingdom rather to guise themselves with rat’s coat, crow skin or crossed staves.

The third section depicts a sheer image of the surrounding of the poem which is no more than a
dead land. Which is an allusion to his famous modern epic poem “The Waste Land.” T.S. Eliot
further elaborates the surrounding of the barren land, which is surrounded by Cacti plants, the
place where the modern corrupt man dwell. He also shows the pitiful condition of the modern
empty men whose little array of hope is fading away and because of their corrupt nature even
their very existence is in trouble. Moreover, because of the spiritual loss they would kiss –love-
inanimate, earthly items like prayers or stones but in vain.

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The fourth section of the poem sheds light on the fading away of hope and the disappearance of
the eyesight of the hollow men. Moreover, they are having a gathering on the bank of a river
under the hopeless dying star, where they are stuck between religion and despair. Nevertheless,
T.S. Eliot uses metaphor when he says that the hollow men’s sight might return as a “multifoliate
rose.” For illustration, the rose is a traditional symbol for the Virgin Mary. Which is why, it
might mean that their sight will be cured by the Virgin Mary herself. However, the T.S. Eliot
calls it as the only hope for the modern men.

The fifth and final section opens with a nursery rhyme, which alludes to the cactus land, and the
hollow men go round it at five o clock in the morning. Nevertheless, in the holy scripture it is
considered as the time of resurrection. However, here the poet might be making satire of the
hollow men because a children song cannot welcome the sunlight rather scare it away and bring
obscurity again. Moreover, the hollow men are shown as reciting a prayer. They are shown as
such creatures who possess ideas in their mind without any reality, they can move but perform
no action. As something is going to happen the shadow interrupts the whole natural process
which creates difficulty for the hollow men. The shadow might be used as the symbol of fear or
death. Nevertheless, at the end of the poem the hollow men sing that how the world is going to
end, and it is not going to end with a bang but a whimper.

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