T.S. Eliot
poet, playwright, editor, literary critic (1888-1965)
Major Accomplishments
- most famous poem: "The Wasteland" (1922)
- most famous play: Murder in the Cathedral (1935)
- won the Nobel Prize for Literature (1948)
- considered one of the most influential poets of the 20th century
Life in Paris
- originally from St. Louis, MO, but became a British citizen in 1927
- arrived in Paris in fall of 1910 and lived there for one year
- became friends with Jean Verdenal (to whom he dedicated his first published book of poetry: Prufrock and Other Observations)
- studied philosophy at the Sorbonne (University of Paris)
- active in the intellectual life of Paris; interacted with Pablo Picasso, Henri Bergson, Paul Janet, Remy de Gourmont and others