A Poem Review: "Hysteria" by T.S. Elliot
A short review of "Hysteria"
T.S. Elliot is one of the most well-known poets of modern literature. Even though he is known for his poems, he accomplished many other things in his work life. "Hysteria" is one of his poems and it's formed as a process meaning that there is no metrical structure and it is close to natural speech. As far as I am concerned, this poem is a satisfying example of prose. It gives perfectly the emotions in the center of the poem. When I read other poems formed as prose, I do not feel like I am reading a poem. Indeed, emotions can be reflected in other literary forms but not as much as in poems from my point of view. However, this poem can evoke the emotions of the reader directly which are mostly anxiousness and hysteric situations in the poem.
There is an artwork from Edward Munch's collection which seems to be very reflective of "Hysteria".
There is no line to separate the man and the woman in the painting. Even if there is, it can not be seen clearly. The figuration of melting toward each other reminds me of this line from Hysteria: "I was drawn in by short gasps, inhaled at each momentary recovery, lost finally in the dark caverns of her throat, bruise by the ripple of unseen muscles" (Elliot, 1909-1962).
I believe that Munch's portrait is a perfect reflection of Hysteria.
References:
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44211/hysteria
T. S. Eliot, "Hysteria" from Collected Poems: 1909-1962. Copyright © 2020 by T. S. Eliot.