19 pages • 38 minutes read
T. S. EliotThe Song of the Jellicles
Fiction | Poem | Middle Grade | Published in 1939A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Literary Devices
Anthropomorphism
The most prevalent literary device in “The Song of the Jellicles” and Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats is anthropomorphism. Eliot writes these poems about cats, but the cats live and act like humans. In children’s literature, anthropomorphism is common; it is popular in children’s literature because it allows authors to discuss heavy topics in a more light-hearted way. This is why many Disney movies use animals or give life to inanimate objects. The anthropomorphism allows artists the ability to keep the tone light while still exploring (sometimes dark or heavy) human themes.
The Jellicles behave like humans; specifically, they behave like rich socialites common in Europe around the 19th and 20th centuries. They dance and sing and frolic in organized parties, but Eliot merges both the human activities with other actions people associate with cats. When the Jellicles wash themselves, they do it like cats do. When they are physically described, Eliot notes their color, size, and eyes. They’re physically described in animal terms even though they act like humans.
Anthropomorphism has a long literary and cultural history. It is a central concept in many mythologies, including Greek mythology. Sometimes authors use it for the purposes just described, and sometimes authors use it to show the connection between the natural and human worlds. Eliot uses it to give life to his cats and to allow him to explore mature human themes while maintaining an innocent tone.
Allusion Through Names
Eliot was an exceptionally well-read and educated man and in all of his poems, his vast knowledge of historical, social, religious, and contemporary names, facts, and stories is apparent. And while “The Song of the Jellicles” does not contain much in the way of these references, the rest of the poems in Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats do.
Specifically, Eliot makes great use of literary, religious, and historical allusion in the naming of his cats. In her 2013 article “Imperial Names for ‘Practical Cats’: Establishing a Distinctly British Pride in Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats,” Dorothy Dodge Robbins meticulously analyzes the names of the cats in Eliot’s world (Robbins, Dorothy Dodge. “Imperial Names for ‘Practical Cats’: Establishing a Distinctly British Pride in Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats.” Names, vol. 61, no. 1, March 2013, pp. 21-32).
While the number of cats and allusions is too great to be covered here, some of the more notable names are “Jellicle,” which reads like “angelical”; “Old Deuteronomy,” who is the oldest and wisest cat, and who is named after a book in the Bible; and “Mr. Mistoffelees,” a conjurer, which is a play on words of a demon in a classic story as well as a play on words of “mist" fades off with ease,” which echoes the cat’s ability to disappear (Robbins, Dorothy Dodge. “Imperial Names for ‘Practical Cats’: Establishing a Distinctly British Pride in Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats.” Names, vol. 61, no. 1, March 2013, p. 23).
Form and Meter
Because “The Song of the Jellicles” is a children’s poem, one of its main concerns is its rhythm and rhyme. The poem contains five stanzas. The first stanza is only four lines and acts as a sort of prologue to the main poem. The rest of the stanzas have eight lines with the rhyme scheme ABABCDCD. The ballad-like rhymes allow for an easy singsong pattern similar to other children's poems.
While the rhyme scheme is consistent and straightforward, the rhythm is more complex. To start, most of the lines begin with a trochee/iamb foot combination: Jel-lic-le Cats. Eliot usually follows this with some iambic feet to enhance the singsong rhythm:
Jellicle Cats are black and white.
Jellicle Cats are rather small.
Jellicle Cats are merry and bright.
And pleasant to hear when they caterwaul (Lines 5-8).
Notice how that last line uses a combination of anapests and iambs to continue the rhythm established by the previous lines. This kind of patterning repeats throughout most of the poem, including variations like in this line: “They make their toilette and take their repose” (Line 18). The repetition of anapest and iamb creates a strong rhythm, which is consistent throughout most of the poem.
Related Titles
By T. S. Eliot
