<p>Hi! Did anybody ever have to read The Waste Land in their english class? I was hoping that you can give me a summary or explanation perhaps. I'm suppose to analyze it but right now I don't know where to start. The poem is so confusing.</p>
<p>use sparknotes..it is amazingly confusing, and it would take much to long to analyze a 15 page poem here</p>
<p>It is confusing (so many allusions from so many sources!), and it's not one of my favorites (I like The Hollow Men better). Try doing a search for annotated copies, like this one.
<a href="http://world.std.com/%7Eraparker/exploring/thewasteland/explore.html%5B/url%5D">http://world.std.com/~raparker/exploring/thewasteland/explore.html</a></p>
<p>Any English teacher that would blindly assign an "analysis" of The Waste Land, one of the most important pieces of American poetry ever, is really, really dumb.</p>
<p>You could take a semester class and still not understand every allusion. It is a brilliant beast of a poem. No one should read it in one sitting and NO ONE should analyze the whole thing without studying it for days (at least).</p>
<p>Sorry I can't be of more help, but it's really a shameful assignment...</p>
<p>sorry if I caused the misunderstanding. Truthfully it's not really a full "analysis". I'm doing a research paper about T.S. Eliot and this particular poem The Waste Land. It should include a biography of author, a short analysis of the significant work, and how the author's work relates to the elements of modernism. I got the 1st and 3rd part but it's the 2nd part that's troubling me. dang, I should pick an easier topic.</p>