East Coker

Eliot published the first of the Four Quartets, “Burnt Norton,” in 1936. After that, he wrote a play, The Family Reunion, which opened in March 1939 in London but was not a success at the time. During the late 1930s, Eliot wondered whether he would ever write poetry again. He would sooner write another play, but the outbreak of World War II in September 1939 meant that there would be neither opportunity nor audience for a new play in the foreseeable future. With that in mind, he turned back to poetry and began “East Coker,” following the model and style he had adopted in “Burnt Norton.” He had visited East Coker, a village in Somerset, England, in 1936. His ancestors had lived there from the mid-15th century until Andrew Eliot and his family sailed for America in 1671.

During this time, Eliot was pessimistic about the state of Western society. He was dismayed by the Munich pact of September 1938, signed by Germany, Italy, Great Britain, and France. British prime minister Neville Chamberlain believed that the pact would avert war, but it turned out to be useless in curtailing Adolf Hitler’s aggressive designs. Eliot believed that Western civilization had become insincere and immoral, which is reflected in the fivefold repetition of the word “deceit” and its cognates in Section II of “East Coker” (Lines 76, 77, 78, 88, 89) in reference to the state of British society. In January 1940, Eliot was still depressed by the general political situation. In a letter to Leonard Woolf, Eliot bemoaned the rise of totalitarian figures like Hitler.

The sentiments that Eliot expressed around this time can also be found in his book The Idea of a Christian Society (1939), which was based on lectures he gave in March 1939. The book gives insight into the views that Eliot would soon express in “East Coker.” For example, Eliot advocates the establishment of a spiritual basis for society that is such a prominent part of the poem. Eliot also reiterates his comments from the previous year, emphasizing that the Munich pact brought him feelings of doubt about the direction and worth of modern civilization.

These are essentially the ideas that are presented in Sections II and III of “East Coker,” such as, “The only wisdom we can hope to acquire / Is the wisdom of humility: humility is endless” (Lines 98-99) and especially the notion that the financial leaders, in spite of their monetary expertise, produce little of value for society. These are the “merchant bankers” (Line 104) and “Industrial lords” (Line 107) along with their cherished publications, “the Stock Exchange Gazette” and “the Directory of Directors” (Line 109). They have nothing to offer other than their belief in the importance of material wealth, which, in Eliot’s view, is insubstantial compared to the deep spiritual renewal that society needs.