Unit V

T.S.
ELIOT : TRADITION AND INDIVIDUAL TALENT- ESSAY

Introduction
Eliot’s 1919 critical essay “Tradition and the Individual Talent” appeared in London’s
literary periodical The Egoist. It appeared in The Sacred Wood (1920) with nineteen other
Eliot articles. After helping start the New Criticism movement, Eliot’s early article “Tradition
and the Individual Talent” is still famous and important. Close reading and aesthetic and
stylistic elements of poetry are emphasised in New Criticism, not ideological or biographical
ones. In “Tradition and the Individual Talent,” Eliot separates art from artist and argues that
tradition is more about knowing and enriching the intellectual and literary framework in
which one writes than imitating. The article has three sections: Eliot’s definition of tradition,
poetry and the poet, and a brief conclusion.
In part 1, Eliot defines literary tradition. He claims that great poetry typically engages
with past poetry. He believes that being “traditional” means knowing the “whole of the
literature of Europe.” Innovation and creativity are crucial, but great poets grasp how their
works relate to the past and present. Eliot argues that poetry is not a vacuum and that its
contents do not define its meaning. Instead, all work is in dialogue with itself, with each
generation’s contributions growing and changing the literary canon. As experienced poets
must give themselves over to tradition, which is continually evolving, “continual self-
sacrifice, a continual extinction of personality.”
In part 2, Eliot builds on his notion that poetry depersonalises. He claims that mature
poets write because their style allows them to express feeling more clearly. In the presence of
oxygen and sulphur dioxide, platinum serves as a catalyst to make sulphurous acid but
remains unaltered. This remark compares the poet to platinum: art creates fresh work, but the
poet remains unchanging.
Based on his view of the poet as an impersonal medium, Eliot claims that great art is
an act of aesthetic distillation, not subjective expression. Instead of expressing new or intense
emotions, the poet must synthesise conventional “feelings, phrases, [and] images” into a
“new compound.” Instead of the intensity of its components, the poet’s “artistic process”
makes this new composite great. The outcome should transcend personal emotions and
feelings. Thus, the poem develops a self-contained artistic sense that engages with past,
current, and future works.
Part 3 concludes briefly and calls for focusing on poetry rather than poets. Eliot
repeats that “the emotion of art is impersonal.” He believed that poets should transmit the
collective thoughts, feelings, and emotions of the living “mind of Europe” rather than their
personal “sincere emotion.”
C.G.JUNG : ON THE RELATION OF ANALYTICAL PSYCHOLOGY TO POETRY
C. Jung’s article “On the Relation of Analytical Psychology to Poetry” examines the
principles of psychology as a science, their connections to creative work, and the process of
its development. He acknowledges that despite their apparent disparities, these two domains
are intricately interconnected. According to the psychoanalyst, the connection between genre,
gender, and psychology in a work is superficial rather than substantial, as all works,
regardless of their characteristics, have a psychological aspect and are created by individuals.
Jung believed that psychology is a science, while artistic endeavour is not. It can only be
observed from an aesthetic standpoint, not from psychological principles.
Jung thinks that art and science are inherently distinct from each other, each
possessing unique characteristics that can only be understood within their respective domain.
Therefore, when discussing the connection between psychology and art, we will focus solely
on the aspects of art that may be analysed through psychology. The conclusions drawn by
psychology from the investigation will be limited to the mental process of artistic creation
and will not pertain to the core essence of art.
When examining Freud’s psychoanalytic concepts, he observes that creative works

were previously interpreted by analysing basic psychological components, including
attempting to understand the art through the poet’s relationship with their parents. Such
knowledge will not provide us with a profound comprehension of the work. This method
allows for the analysis of labour alongside various life events, such as mental diseases like
neurosis and psychosis, habits, beliefs, character traits, specific interests, and more.
According to Freud’s theory, these are manifestations of the repressed unconscious mind,
linked to the child’s bond with their parents. Nevertheless, the different phenomena stated
should not be attributed to the same cause. If we see a work of art as a neurosis, then either
the work of art is a neurosis or a neurosis is a work of art. It is hard to equate a work of art
with neurosis.
All individuals possess parental influences, have either a father or mother complex,
possess knowledge of sexuality, and hence display common and typical human distinctions.
Jung provides an example where one poet is impacted by their relationship with their father,
another by their connection to their mother, and a third by sexual maturity or experience.
Upon closer examination, it becomes evident that all these traits are characteristic of ordinary
individuals.
Z. Freud’s school of medical psychology provided literary historians with fresh
opportunities to link and compare works of art with personal, private feelings.
Jung viewed Freud’s theory as a tool to gain profound insight into the artistic concerns
of poets, particularly those rooted in early childhood experiences. Jung does not wholly
dismiss his teacher’s teachings; he believed they could be utilised effectively without being
taken to extremes.
The psychoanalysis of art does not reveal the subtleties of the work, as seen in literary
and psychological analysis. The artist’s childhood and relationship with his parents, no matter
how intriguing, are not the determining factors in understanding his works.
Freud utilised his psychoanalytic theory to delve into the secondary level of human
psychology, known as the subconscious. Nevertheless, all of his approaches were more
medically oriented. He thoroughly examined each incident, utilising connections and other
techniques to uncover the repressed unconscious or subconscious, which likely contained a
sexual connotation. Not all aspects of a work of art are related to the sexual drive, known as
libido.
In his article “On the Relation of Analytical Psychology to Poetry,” Jung emphasises
the need for analytical psychology to eliminate medical bias when approaching works of art,
as art should not be treated as a disease.
When a botanist studies a plant, the plant can reveal information about its species, but
this is not comprehensive of all plant life. Psychology and psychoanalysis do as well.
Artistic works can be intentionally created to address any phenomenon. In this

scenario, the writer focuses his thoughts on the latter, which is not related to libido.
The writer’s intentions may be to write in a certain manner, but the work itself
ultimately determines its context, forms, and means. In this scenario, the writer is positioned
one level below the work, serving as a conduit between spoken words and written text. Jung
emphasises the need of prioritising the creative effort and the final artistic product over the
writer’s identity. He believes that the artist is subordinate to the work, which dictates to the
writer rather than the other way around. Jung believed that the idea of the artist being in
charge of their work is an illusion. He suggested that individuals may think they are guiding
the creative process, but in reality, they are being influenced and directed by external forces.
The originator of analytical psychology’s theories provide literary and other critics
with extensive options to analyse artistic works. Long-established works can be reinterpreted
to reveal entirely new perspectives and ideas. When new aspects are observed in art, they are
not mere creations of the artist’s imagination. These elements must truly exist for individuals
to perceive them. Therefore, everything has been present from the start, but concealed by
symbols and archetypes. Symbolic literature does not require explicit explanation of its
symbols, as Jung believed it inherently conveys that what is expressed is not literal but holds
a concealed significance.
Do art and artistic work have meaning? Art may lack inherent meaning, with
individuals attributing significance by drawing inferences and expressing opinions. Jung
believes that everything has significance and purpose, and anything that appears meaningless
should be analysed through psychoanalysis and archetypes. The psychoanalyst suggests that
everything is rooted in the unconscious mind and its archetypes.
Upon examining C. Jung’s article “On the Relation of Analytical Psychology to

Poetry” and the principles of psychoanalytic and archetypal schools, we determined that there
is a strong link between an individual and artistic creation. This connection is frequently
revealed through psychoanalysis, which dissects the unconscious mind and reveals the
archetypes present. The latter contribute to the creation and understanding of the artistic
work’s nuances.

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T.S.

ELIOT : TRADITION AND INDIVIDUAL TALENT- ESSAY

When examining Freud’s psychoanalytic concepts, he observes that creative works

Artistic works can be intentionally created to address any phenomenon. In this

Upon examining C. Jung’s article “On the Relation of Analytical Psychology to

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