T.S. Eliot’s poem, “The Hollow Men,” reveals the loss of faith in God by veterans after enduring WWI. Eliot suggests that the modern loss of religion creates a desolate and faithless society. Following WWI, the veterans that returned home were faced with the reality that dulce et decorum est pro patria mori, which translates to “it is sweet and honorable to die for one’s country” was not their truth. After witnessing the horrors that took place in the war, the veterans realized that falling for one’s country was not a glamorous gesture. Instead, it left the veterans in a helpless and agnostic state. No longer having God to turn to in their hours of need the veterans “whisper together” although it is “quiet and meaningless”. Here, Eliot conveys
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With nothing left to lose, the veterans make a point to try and repeat The Lord’s Prayer. However, their prayer is incomplete as it comes out as more of a stammer: “For Thine is / Life is / For Thine is the” (94-96). Eliot applies a liturgical stutter in his poem to maintain the idea behind a faithless society. The Lord’s Prayer is not only well-known within the church but it also is one of the first objectives a church goer learns while becoming a member of the church. The stumbling over the words only further goes to prove the veterans are so wanting to believe they can be saved from their sins but ultimately cannot get themselves to believe in a God that would save them from these sins. Eliot also maintains the idea behind a faithless society with this liturgical stutter because while the veterans are trying to remember the prayer they do not allow themselves to say “kingdom” (93) which is the word that comes after “For Thine is the”. This only further demonstrates a faithless society because the veterans do not even know what they want after death. Their hope is it is just a better place than the one they are currently living on Earth. Eliot proposes with the liturgical stutter that society does not see the world ending with a “bang,” but rather with a “whimper” (100). Their whole lives
With nothing left to lose, the veterans make a point to try and repeat The Lord’s Prayer. However, their prayer is incomplete as it comes out as more of a stammer: “For Thine is / Life is / For Thine is the” (94-96). Eliot applies a liturgical stutter in his poem to maintain the idea behind a faithless society. The Lord’s Prayer is not only well-known within the church but it also is one of the first objectives a church goer learns while becoming a member of the church. The stumbling over the words only further goes to prove the veterans are so wanting to believe they can be saved from their sins but ultimately cannot get themselves to believe in a God that would save them from these sins. Eliot also maintains the idea behind a faithless society with this liturgical stutter because while the veterans are trying to remember the prayer they do not allow themselves to say “kingdom” (93) which is the word that comes after “For Thine is the”. This only further demonstrates a faithless society because the veterans do not even know what they want after death. Their hope is it is just a better place than the one they are currently living on Earth. Eliot proposes with the liturgical stutter that society does not see the world ending with a “bang,” but rather with a “whimper” (100). Their whole lives