Poems (1920) - Sweeney Erect Summary

This poem alludes to the harshness inherent in life as shown by the desolate shoreline and the waves and gales that bombard the shore. It deals with volatile male and female relationships. It portrays how people are often hurt emotionally and physically in their dealings with one another.

Poems (1920) - Sweeney Erect Analysis

The theme of this poem is humankind's attempts to act civilized and subdue its brutal tendencies. It shows how we often let moral degradation creep into society without our even knowing it has done so. Eliot shows the reader that moral degradation is often blatant and horrific, and at other times, subtle and barely intrusive in our daily lives. Yet, it is there and has a cumulative effect, and we sometimes do not realize the depths to which society has sunk. This is evident...