A Critical Reading of the Selected Poems of T.S. Eliot

T.S. Eliot’s poetry is well known for its allusiveness and reference to a wide range of historical and literary subjects. At the same time, the roots of explanations and critical readings necessary to elucidate and contextualize Eliot’s poetry have seldom been available. This book offers a carefully explanatory as well as critical reading of Eliot’s Selected Poems . It tackles each poem individually, offering comments and explanations that draw from secondary as well as archival and unpublished sources. In particular, there is an exhaustive section explaining and contextualizing the manifold difficulties encountered in The Waste Land . Jain’s use of various new critical approaches, alongside her use of primary data from Eliot holdings in the UK and the US, makes this an important source for comprehending Eliot’s “difficult” poetry.