I Bet You Didn’t Know: A Glimpse into the Life of T. S. Eliot

I always like that before we begin reading a work of literature, we read the author’s biography first. I thought I’d share some thought-provoking details of T.S. Eliot’s life with y’all before we start reading “The Waste Land.” (Hopefully some of these won’t come up in his biography in Norton.) I picked the most interesting ones for my blog post, but if you want more, click on the link!

1. He never wrote for more than three hours each day! This actually makes sense considering he held down a multitude of other jobs (banker, teacher, editor, publisher, etc.) throughout his life. He said, “The danger, as a rule, of having nothing else to do is that one might write too much rather than concentrating and perfecting smaller amounts.”

2. His 1939 book of poetry, Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats, was transformed into one of the longest-running Broadway shows of all time. I bet y’all have heard of Cats!?

3. Eliot’s colleague, poet Ezra Pound, helped raise money for Eliot so he could quit his banking job. Pound and others who respected Eliot thought he should put more time into his writing. Eliot had different ideas: he kept his job and didn’t accept the money. 

4. During a period of writer’s block, he found another outlet by writing in French (only for a short time). 

 
5. He wrote a poem called “The Triumph of Bulls**t.” “[...] The Oxford English Dictionary credits the poem with being the first time a curse word ever appeared in print.” Oooh! 

6. Eliot’s marriage was complicated by his wife’s addiction to ether and her frequent physician and mental issues. “Eliot [...] would later reveal that his state of despair during his first marriage was the catalyst and inspiration for "The Waste Land.”

Huh! Another poet with a bizarre life. What a surprise...

Source: http://mentalfloss.com/article/86011/12-things-you-might-not-know-about-ts-eliot