Abstract

In The Waste Land, one of the most important poems by T.S. Eliot, the poet depicts a Waste Land where there exists no vividness at all, which implicitly refers to the European society after World War I. The poem fully uncovers the overwhelming lust, the collapse of morality, and the ugliness of the Western world, indicating the hatred and disappointment the Westerners had towards the world. It presents the spiritual crisis of a generation, and therefore negates the Western civilization from deep inside. Following Weston, Eliot uses a number of mythological and religious symbols and materials, both Western and Eastern, to paint a symbolic picture of the modern Waste Land and its need for regeneration. Eliot vividly presents the horror of the desiccated life, including loneliness, emptiness, and misuse of sexuality, etc. And yet he paradoxically ends the poem with benediction. This combination of Western and Eastern religions gives this poem its extraordinary status. This thesis therefore analyzes the poem from this way of parallel of Christianity and Buddhism.
The whole thesis consists of four chapters. The first part gives a brief introduction to T.S Eliot’s life and his religious commitment, along with the creation background and the content of The Waste Land. The second part analyzes the poem from the perspective of Christianity, uncovering Eliot’s commitment towards Christianity and how this commitment is demonstrated in the composition of this poem. The third part, accordingly, analyzes the poem from the perspective of Buddhism, using the same method to analyze how Buddhism influences T.S. Eliot and the composition of The Waste Land. The fourth part, from the angle of composition technique and asceticism tradition of Western and Eastern religions, analyzes the parallel of Christianity and Buddhism in this poem so that readers can have a more comprehensive view.

Key words: The Waste Land; religion; Christianity; Buddhism; parallel

摘  要

《荒原》是艾略特最为著名的诗作之一。诗人在其中描绘了一个毫无生机的“荒原”:第一次世界大战之后的欧洲社会。该诗深刻地表现了人欲横渡、精神堕落、道德沦丧、生活卑劣猥琐、丑恶黑暗的西方社会的本来面貌，传达出第一次世界大战后西方人对世界、对现实的厌恶、普遍的失望情绪和幻灭感。该诗表现了一代人的精神病态和精神危机，从而否定了现代西方文明。同时，艾略特跟随维斯顿的脚步，在诗中大量使用了东西方的神话以及宗教元素，希望以此来描绘一个现代荒原的象征性景象以及其亟待重生的需要。他生动地展现了枯竭的生活所带来的恐惧感，包括孤独、空虚以及对性欲的滥用等，但是他却矛盾性地用了一种祝福的方式结束全诗。这样一种东西方宗教结合的架构让这首诗成为传世名篇。本文即以这种佛教、基督教平行架构的角度出发分析全诗。
      本文由四个部分组成。第一部分对艾略特的生平做出简要介绍并适当分析其宗教思想、《荒原》的创作背景及主要内容。第二部分主要从基督教的角度切入，分析艾略特的基督教情愫及其在《荒原》诗歌中的体现，并从基督教视角提炼出整首诗的中心情节线。第三部分则是从佛教的角度切入，以同样的方法分析佛教对艾略特及整个诗作的影响。第四部分则从该诗作的人类学创作背景以及东西方禁欲主义的角度入手，集中分析佛教和基督教两大宗教在整首诗中的平行架构，从而让读者能够以更全面的视角理解整首诗歌。
 
关键词：《荒原》；宗教；基督教；佛教；并行