New Beginnings

T. S. Eliot’s poem “Gerontion” is filled with negative imagery of death and decay beginning with the title. Gerontion, according to the book, translates to “little old man;” the word “little” representing frailty and decay of the old body and the word “old” alluding to the nearing of death. Already the reader is able to sense the bleak tone of the poem from the title. The speaker of the poem is depressed at growing old and this depression is distributed onto the world around him. The way he describes scenes is a reflection of the way he sees himself.

In the first stanza of the poem the speaker described his position in relation to others, emphasizing age, “Here I am, an old man in a dry month, / Being read to by a boy, waiting for rain” (lines1-2). In these lines the speaker indirectly compares himself to the boy reading to him. He describes the month he is in as dry because he is old and decaying, while the boy is waiting on rain, still a depressing image but associated with youth because the boy probably wants to play in the rain. Here the rain can also symbolize an ending, signifying a new beginning. In that sense the boy is waiting for the sunshine after the rain while the old man is in a dry month.

Further on, the speaker describes a women doing housework and again creates this gloomy image of himself in comparison, “I an old man, / A dull head among windy spaces” (15-16). The woman is described in action as she completes tasks in the previous lines of the poem, while the old man is still in his description, unmoving as those around him are in constant motion. This is symbolic of life and death: the woman being life and he, death.

There are constantly gloomy images as the speaker describes his life—or lack of—in a negative way. At one point there is hope, in stanza six the speaker says, “The tiger springs in the new year (49). This is a vibrant image of life and a new beginning; the tiger represents life and power while the new year is a new beginning. But the speaker quickly slips back into a desolate tone as he completes the line by saying, “Us he devours. Think at last… / (49). He immediately follows this image of life with an image of gruesome death. This reflects the speaker’s negative feeling towards death. Instead of seeing it as a new beginning he sees it as a final ending.  At the end of stanza six the speaker lists his loses:

                        I have lost my passion: why should I need to keep it

                        Since what is kept must be adulterated?

                        I have lost my sight, smell, hearing, taste, and touch:

                        How should I use them for your closer contact? (58-61)

The speaker addresses a lover in these lines as he mourns the lost of his youthful qualities. This idea of decay is emphasized when the speaker describes the absence of all five of his senses and his decaying passion. This entire poem focuses on loss, decay and death of the speaker. He describes him self and everything related to him in a deteriorating manner. The speaker sees death as a lost and this idea is emphasized throughout the poem.