FAQs
1. What are the features of a ‘dramatic monologue’?
The main feature of the Dramatic Monologue
is not the poet.
is that there is one speaker and he
The speaker of the poem is in agitation and speaks to the reader
directly. His revelations come from a critical moment of high emotional distress.
2. What is the objective correlative?
An Objective correlative is a combination of images and objects used to evoke an
appropriate emotion. It often brings together more than one emotion and creates a
three dimensional word picture of the idea the poet wishes to communicate.
3. Describe the journey as remembered by the Magus in the first lines of the
poem.
In the first lines of the poem
the Magus
describes the hardships they faced
due to the harsh weather, difficult terrain and unfriendly people they met. Little
did they know of the kind of hostile weather and the biting cold that they were
about to encounter before reaching Bethlehem. It was a long and tiring journey
draining every ounce of stamina and vitality required for a long mentally
tormenting journey. The path they undertook for the long journey was full of ‘ups
and downs’ and ‘sharps and bends’. It was in the middle of winter that Jesus
Christ was born, according to tradition, on 25th, December, and the Magi arrived
at his birth place, according to tradition, in Bethlehem, Judea (now Jordan), on 6th,
January.
4. Why was it unusual for the camels to lay down stubbornly in the snow?
It was unusual because camels are normally very docile animals.
5. What did the Magi miss?
The Magi missed the warm summer palaces, their terraces, the girls clad in silk
who offered them food and drink.
6. What do all the difficulties that the Magi faced, represent at a deeper level of
meaning?
At a deeper level of meaning, all the difficulties that the Magi faced represent the
hardships that one may have to encounter when going on a spiritual quest.
7. What does the break of dawn in line 20 suggest?
This marks a significant change that has taken place in the course of their journey.
It is emphasized by the break of dawn- dawn signifies a new day, a new
beginning, a new start.
8. How does the green valley contrast with what the landscape that the
Magi
had just travelled through?
They had just traversed the arduous and difficult terrain of the desert and crossed the
snow-bound mountains. Now, finally, after all their hardships, were the signs of lifegreenery and water.
Eliot draws a sharp contrast between what they had left behind
and what they were now entering into. Put together, it is symbolic of the new
abundant life in Christ.
and
9. What do the images of the running stream and the water mill beating at the
darkness speak of?
These images together speak of
eternal life, (running water) and the destruction
of darkness that the three Magi had come in search of.
10. Why is the mention of the three trees significant to the Magi?
The mention of the three trees is significant to the Magi because it is a fulfillment
of a prophecy made by Isaiah the prophet 700 years before the event took place.
He had predicted that Christ would be counted along with criminals.
11. What is the meaning of the sky seeming to be lower?
The meaning of the lowering of the sky suggests that after the crucifixion of
Christ, heaven would be within the reach of Mankind.
12. What does the old white horse represent?
The old white horse represents the return of Christ to the earth at the head of the
armies of heaven as a judge.