Major Paper III Goals:
- to develop your own argument about a literary text out of close reading (surprise!)
- to develop that argument in relation to two literary critics’ perspectives on The Waste Land
- to develop an argument that is notably informed by literary critical approaches (Option 1) or/and historical context (Option 2)
Ruth Nevo asserts that The Waste Land perfectly demonstrates the disunity deconsructionist critics locate in literary texts, while Jo Ellen Green Kaiser explores how the extensive notes have enabled readers to perceive the text as a unified, even “orderly” poem (86). How do you understand the poem in relation to these claims?
Readings required: “The Waste Land” by Elliot
“The Waste Land: Ur-Text of Deconstruction” by Ruth Nevo
” Disciplining The Waste Land, or How to Lead Critics into Temptation” by Jo Ellen Green Kaiser