I loved listening to this, but The Waste Land is better digested in writing (and with my college anthology of modern poetry). So I pulled out my anthology and refreshed my memory - it is so full of literary references that I think all but Harold Bloom would have to have the explanations. What surprised me was how beautiful the Four Quartets sounded when read aloud. It reminded me of Ecclesiastes, which is clearly a heavy influence on Eliot, and is one of the original works which sounds out man's dissolution. But back to Eliot, If you want to understand modern poetry, I really think these are among the most important works in the syllabus, and when read in conjunction with other WW I literature (or even other military books), they really come alive and exude the pain of those soldiers.

Eliot called The Waste Land a "rhythmical grumbling" and said: "To me it was only relief of a personal and wholly insignificant grouse against life. . . I wasn't even bothering whether I understood what I was saying."

But we understand, and even when we don't it doesn't matter because its such outrageously beautiful grousing.

"April is the cruelest month, breeding
Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing
Memory and desire, stirring
Dull roots with spring rain. . . ." ( )

I have a feeling I'm going to need to read this a dozen more times before I can fully understand it. There are some beautiful lines and many that sound familiar, but I still struggle with poetry and don't think I can evaluate it properly yet. ( )

No devotee or student of Eliot should be without Paul Scofield's superlative readings of these two landmark poems. Scofield's voice is remarkable, and perfect for Eliot.
The Waste Land is one of the most influential poems of the 20th. century. Erudite and allusive, it borrows from poets as diverse as Dante and Webster, and incorporates languages from German to Sanskrit. Its disillusioned tone and innovative, audocious style have made it a modern classic.
Four Quartets consists of four long poems linked by common themes: 'Burnt Norton', 'East Coker', 'The Dry Salvages' and 'Little Gidding'. Symbolising the cyclical nature of life and the connections between the past and the present, they have been called Eliot's crowning poetic achievement.
Paul Scofield's consummate renditions of the Waste Land and Four Quartets received huge acclaim when they were originally broadcast on BBC radio 3. ( )

Scofield Does an excellent job of reading these exquisite poems. ( )