According to Eliot, How are the past and present interrelated in the making and judging a poem?

Answer

Show, according to Eliot, the interrelation between past and present in the making and judging a poem. [2021]

Or, How, according to Eliot, are the past and present interrelated in the making and judging a poem? [2019, 2017] ✪✪✪

T. S. Eliot (1888–1965) was one of the greatest poets and critics of the modern age. In his essay “Tradition and the Individual Talent” (1919), he explains how the past and the present are connected in the creation and judgment of poetry. He believes that no poet can write in isolation. The poet should fit into the long tradition of past writers and add something new to the ongoing tradition. For Eliot, both the past and the present work together to keep literature alive.

Respect for the Past: In his essay, Eliot says that the first duty of a poet is to respect the past. A poet must have a “historical sense.” It means a poet should feel that the past is not gone but still lives in the present. According to Eliot, the great poets like Homer, Dante, and Shakespeare form a “living whole.” When a new poet writes, his work joins that living order. He writes:

“The historical sense involves a perception, not only of the pastness of the past, but of its presence.”

This means that when a poet writes, he must be aware of all that has been written before him. His new poem should not destroy the past but should fit into that old order and add something new to it. Without the knowledge of the past (literary tradition), a poet cannot truly create something great.

The Role of the Present: Eliot also believes that the present has its own importance. Every new poem brings a fresh change to the world of literature. When a poet writes something new, his poem becomes part of the living tradition. This new work also slightly changes how we understand old works. For example, when a modern poet writes about