Mythology and intertextuality in T.S. Eliot’s The Wasteland.

Abstract

Literature is often viewed as made up or fabricated stories to give aesthetic pleasure to readers. The purpose of literature is entertainment, amusement and mostly it creates a way to escape from the real chaotic world for us. It is not always us who tells the story, sometimes stories tell us. Some characters have so much in them that single tale about them is not enough. They continue to occur within popular culture from centuries to centuries. This is why, throughout the ages, authors get inspired from ancient tales, epic, legends, myths. This thesis investigates why T.S.Eliot referred to several mythological characters in his poem The Wasteland. People like to know about the history. If there is any philosophical idea connected to mythology that can be applied to our modern society then, mythological stories from the historical past will naturally attract the new generation. Applying the concept of archetypes, this thesis will attempt to give some answers to why myths reappear in different form of literature over and over again. The primary material chosen for the work is Eliot’s masterpiece The Wasteland and several other works of art will be discussed to show the spectacular stories about the characters. The whole research will provide an insight into how the characters were not mere options for the poem but they were needed to give it a proper shape.