Journey Of The Magi Allusion

Poetry can be read and comprehended in many different ways. The extreme subtlety in the form of writing that a poem brings requires a great understanding of the elements contained within a poem. “Journey of the Magi” written by T.S. Eliot is about the Three Wise Men who embark on an unfulfilling journey to witness the birth of Christ. This poem is the monologue of a man in the quest of the Magi for the child who is Christ. The author brings into play imagery, allusion, and irony to reflect on this long and harsh journey. Even though the mentioning of temperature wears out by the end of the “Journey of the Magi”, weather seems to be the focal point in the first part of the story. In this poem, Eliot delivers imagery in the beginning

The “three trees” are an allusion and directly correspond with the three crosses on Golgotha “where they crucified Him, and two others with Him, one on either side, and Jesus in the center” (John 19:18, NKJV). The Magus, at the time, could not have known about the future; however, Eliot knew and used this in the Magus’ monologue. Equally important is line 25 that talks about the white horse in the meadow. What is the allusion of the “old white horse”? In the Revelation of Jesus Christ, there are a few references about the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse and Christ on a white horse. In particular, Revelation 19:11-16 states Jesus is on a white horse, who “was called Faithful and True” (NKJV). While these are two lines in the poem that have subtle symbols of allusion, they are not the only allusions contained within the

The description of the fires going out and lack of shelters (line 13) coupled with the unfriendly and hostilities in the cities (line 14) show the unrelenting journey that the Magi faced. The irony here presents the obstacles and struggles en route to Bethlehem and the reason why the Magi chose to travel at night. Another key point in irony can be found in lines 37-39. The interesting words to point out are “Birth” (line 38) and “Death” (line 39). Eliot has these words capitalized to indicate the birth and death of Jesus Christ. Eliot implies that the witnessing of the Birth was a “hard and bitter agony” for the Magi, comparing it to Death. Another interesting irony to point out here is that the Magi “thought they were different” (line 38), referring to birth and death. It is as if the Magi, at one time, thought the two were different but after witnessing the birth of Jesus Christ, changed their view of birth and death completely. Perhaps saying that they are one in the same. The irony contained in the villages and the birth of Christ are clear; the journey was