Never Dead Never Yourself Analysis

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Never Dead, Never Yourself: Perpetuity and Disengagement In the 14 years of my ongoing education, I always encountered educators who have, at the very least, mentioned and included the concept of tradition in their lessons. I was conditioned that it is something sacred, inviolable and permanent. I’ve even heard people using the term when they’re being strict, or when they want a certain event to take place specifically inclined to the rules of their choosing. Most often than not, the immediate idea that comes into my mind when I hear ‘tradition’ are the principles of the buried centuries, of the deeply-soiled past which are, and should remain, unbent. This influence also includes the literary sense where I was indoctrinated that in literature, …show more content…

Eliot has yet again prompted me to ponder on another thinking that has been etched in me ever since I was young. With his theory of the impersonality of poetry and his concept of depersonalization, I have been enlightened that a mature poet must become like a scientist – passive and objective to his work. For a long time now, I have this mentality that the degree of the eminence of the emotions a poem has is directly what the poet has felt when he was writing it. But according to Eliot, the poet and the poem are and should be separated, and there should exist no relation between them. The feelings and the emotions given out by the poem should be different to that of the poet’s, because his personality is distinct to his work of art. This also applies in criticism where he clarified that “honest criticism and sensitive appreciation is directed not upon the poet but upon the poetry”. Moreover, he added that the poet’s personality is a mere catalyst, a receptacle, waiting to find the proper moment to weave all his loosely hanging emotions and feelings into a cohesive work. The more independent the poem is from his creator, the more mature the poet is and the more perfected his poetic structure will be. This approach acquainted me with how heavy a poet’s responsibilities are. I came to see that poetry is not just haphazardly scribbling words on paper only because you’ve felt a surge of emotions or you’re having a tough moment in life. As the essay specified, the poet’s works should not mirror his personal emotions, because for Eliot, poetry is escapism from your own personality, and your own emotions. This then, now signifies that the greatness and perfection of a creative piece is not measured by the intensity of the emotions and feelings that were written, but by the intensity of how these emotions and feelings were mixed and meshed, while still in accordance to

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