their people of accumulated sin. This speaker’s willing reduction to a soulless object pertains to Conrad’s theme. Part III presents a dreary image along with a familiar rhythm in the lines “This is the dead land / This is the cactus land” (line 39-40) along with the lifeless setting. The final line of the first stanza “…twinkle of a fading star” (line 28) has two functions (Crawford). First, because it is not “fading,” it implies the remoteness of the dead cactus land. Second, it suggests the nursery rhyme “Twinkle twinkle little star.” This alludes to the theme of childlike behavior and preludes the upcoming nursery rhyme. Part IV contains the familiar images of eyes, stars, and kingdoms. Within this section are the darkest most desolate images of the setting. These include “valley of dying stars…” and “…broken jaw of our lost kingdoms” (lines 54-55). Even the hollow men must “…grope together / And avoid speech” (58-59). There is a slight relief in the despondent ness of the poem. However in this section is no longer fading or dying but is “perpetual.” The “perpetual star,” an allusion to the Holy Virgin and the “Multifoliate rose” are symbols of religious hope (Smith). However, this hope is quickly dashed in the Part V. The fifth part of the poem is the anomaly. It develops reality, not the hope of the hollow men (Williamson, 159). It begins with a stunning adaptation of a familiar nursery rhyme replacing “mulberry bush” with “prickly pear.” The cactus instead of the rose and the nursery level make-believe makes fun of the men’s hope. This change causes ideas of childishness, linguistic degeneration and confusion to occur (Crawford). The next three stanzas are composed in a rhythmic formula. Almost like a boxing routine the phrases mak...
