The Elder Statesman: Analysis of Setting
"The Elder Statesman: Analysis of Setting" explores the significant role of various locations in shaping the narrative and character development within the story. The primary setting is Lord Claverton's stately London home, which is marked by an air of emptiness following the death of his wife. Although it features a generous library and a drawing room, the isolation felt by Lord Claverton is palpable, with only his daughter, Monica, providing brief companionship as she cares for him. This domestic space becomes a haunting reminder of his past, especially as figures from his history, like Señor Gomez, intrude upon his solitude, forcing him to confront his moral failings and corrupting influences from his younger days at Oxford.
Another key location is Badgley Court, a convalescent home that is designed to evoke a positive attitude in its wealthy patients. Here, Claverton faces a trial of sorts, as he is confronted by those from his past, including his first lover and his son, Michael. The setting underscores the themes of accountability and redemption, as Claverton grapples with his legacy and the impact of his past choices. Ultimately, Badgley Court serves as a crucible for Claverton, allowing him to confess his sins and seek a path toward acceptance and transformation, aided by the support of his daughter and her fiancé. Through these settings, the narrative explores deep themes of memory, guilt, and the possibility of renewal.
The Elder Statesman: Analysis of Setting
First published: 1959
First produced: 1958
Type of work: Drama
Type of plot: Allegory
Time of work: Mid-twentieth century
Places Discussed
Claverton town house
Claverton town house. Stately London home with a generous library, drawing room, and at least one servant, Mr. Lambert. This house is strangely empty since Lord Claverton’s wife has died some time ago and this retired elder statesman has few visitors. His daughter, Monica Claverton-Ferry, acts as his nurse and spends only a few hours at a time with her fiancé, Charles Hemington. For all of their care, they cannot keep away the ghosts of Lord Claverton’s past, as Señor Gomez demonstrates when he pushes his way into this private home and reminds his host of his past failings and tendency to corrupt others at Oxford.
Badgley Court
Badgley Court. Convalescent home near London that is designed to look like a hotel to give its patients a positive attitude about their treatment center. Only the rich can afford to stay here, and they must be curable. When Claverton is sent here, his doctors do not expect him to live long, so his promised privacy is quickly lost. Mrs. John Carghill, his first lover, confronts him with his moral lapses and insensitivity in the distant past. Then his son, Michael, shows up with numerous problems, followed closely by Gomez, who seizes the opportunity to corrupt Lord Claverton’s son as Claverton had supposedly done to Fred Culverwell during their Oxford days together. These ghosts function like vultures preying on Lord Claverton’s flagging sense of self worth. In the end, he confesses his sins to Monica and Charles and faces his accusers. In a sense, Claverton finally dies to his pretended self once he has learned not to fear life. Badgley Court thus serves as a place of trial where Lord Claverton pleads guilty, gives up his son, and finally moves beyond his past mistakes with the help of Monica and her fiancé, who is a lawyer.
Bibliography
Chiari, Joseph. T. S. Eliot: Poet and Dramatist. New York: Barnes & Noble Books, 1972. Sees The Elder Statesman as a fitting culmination of Eliot’s verse dramas and offers a positive interpretation of its accomplishments.
Hinchliffe, Arnold P., ed. T. S. Eliot, Plays: “Sweeney Agonistes,” “The Rock,” “Murder in the Cathedral,” “The Family Reunion,” “The Cocktail Party,” “The Confidential Clerk,” “The Elder Statesman”: A Casebook. New York: Macmillan, 1985. A concise selection of critical reviews by prominent critics. Many insights.
Jones, David E. The Plays of T. S. Eliot. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1960. Chapter 7 concludes that in this play Eliot has complemented the motifs in The Family Reunion (1939) and resolved his dramas into a naturalistic surface. Discusses the Greek model for this play.
Kari, Daven Michael. T. S. Eliot’s Dramatic Pilgrimage: A Progress in Craft as an Expression of Christian Perspective. Studies in Art and Religious Interpretation 13. Lewiston, N.Y.: Edwin Mellen Press, 1990. Finds the play a fitting completion of Eliot’s Christian and artistic ideals. Addresses the criticism that Eliot’s poetic skills waned in this work, and instead finds the play a model for future religious verse dramas.
Smith, Carol H. T. S. Eliot’s Dramatic Theory and Practice: From “Sweeney Agonistes” to “The Elder Statesman.” Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1963. Chapter 7 provides a useful summary of the play’s main characteristics and concludes that the play succeeds as a theatrical fable designed to project religious insights.