05.05 Assignment

   Since this poem was written during the World War, there were events of the 20th century that greatly influenced T.S Eliot to write his poem, Rhapsody on a Windy Night. The poem has great and powerful meaning due to the time period it was written in. Along with the world war going on, you had disease and poverty to comfort it. You can see he talks about this in his poem. For example, you can see this on stanza six, line eight. It says:

 

“A washed-out smallpox cracks her face” 

 

   Even though there was a decline of smallpox in the late nineteenth century, during the early twentieth century, smallpox was at an all-time high. Due to more trade networks as well as immigration was on a rise and vacationing time was starting to be allowed. This caused smallpox to be spread easily and rapidly.

 

  Another big event that occurred in the 20th century was the Great Depression. The Great Depression caused poverty, hunger, homelessness, and money problems. There were around two million homeless people during this time. The number of people living in and sleeping on the streets was increasing every day. Even many children lived in terrible, gruesome poverty circumstances. In addition, with the rise of the immigration, this caused families and children from all over the world to America. For example, you can see this in stanza four, lines six, seven, and eight:

 

“So the hand of a child, automatic,

Slipped out and pocketed a toy that was running along the quay.

I could see nothing behind that child's eye.”

 

  It’s two in the morning, the man sees a child near the harbor picking up a toy and putting it into his pocket. You might think, “What is a child doing out on the streets at 2AM?” Well, because the streets are his home. They did not have any toys to play with, so any object or old toy they could find, they would play. Even during of poverty, children still loved to play and have fun just like the children today do.

 

  Lastly, during the twentieth century, there was a rise of prostitution. Men and women needed money. Women were mainly prostitutes back then. You can see an example of this in the stanza two:

 

“Half-past one,

The street lamp sputtered,

The street lamp muttered,

The street lamp said, "Regard that woman

Who hesitates towards you in the light of the door

Which opens on her like a grin.

You see the border of her dressIs torn and stained with sand,

And you see the corner of her eye

Twists like a crooked pin."

 

  The man sees a woman approaching a house at 1:30AM and her dress is dirty and torn. It seems like she is a prostitute and is going to a ‘clients’ house. He was expecting her. You can see this because he opens the door with a grin on his face as it says on line six.