SKU: 33413845379

ELIOT, T.S. After Strange Gods.

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ELIOT, T.S. After Strange Gods.The Degradation of the Modern World ELIOT, T. S. After Strange Gods. London: Faber and Faber. 1934. 8vo. Original black cloth lettered in gilt to spine, in the dust jacket priced 3s. 6d. net to the front flap; pp. 68; spine tips rubbed, cloth a little faded to upper and lower edges, small white mark to upper edge of rear panel, rear panel of wrapper detached (discreetly repaired), significant loss to spine, corners, upper edges, various nicks, closed

The Degradation of the Modern World

ELIOT, T.S. After Strange Gods. London: Faber and Faber. 1934.

8vo. Original black cloth lettered in gilt to spine, in the dust-jacket priced 3s. 6d. net to the front flap; pp. 68; spine tips rubbed, cloth a little faded to upper and lower edges, small white mark to upper edge of rear panel, rear panel of wrapper detached (discreetly repaired), significant loss to spine, corners, upper edges, various nicks, closed tears and creasing; a very good copy, in a fragmentary but bright wrapper; signed and dated by Eliot (22 May 1947)to title-page.

A scarce signed first printing of Eliot’s troubled and troubling 1933 Page-Barbour Lectures, a volume withdrawn by the author after a single reprint the same year.

After Strange Gods collects the series of three Page-Barbour Lectures delivered at the University of Virginia in 1933. The jacket text (most likely written by Eliot himself) states that the lectures develop, ‘after fifteen years’ interval, the implications of his essay ‘Tradition and the Individual Talent’. If that essay, printed in Eliot’s first volume of literary essays, The Sacred Wood (1920), offers a theory of literary tradition and innovation (familiar to generations of English Literature undergraduates to this day), the Virginia lectures ‘were not undertaken as exercises in literary criticism [and] not designed to set forth, even in the most summary form, my opinions of the work of contemporary writers’. Instead, ‘they are concerned with certain ideas in illustration of which I have drawn upon the work of some of the few modern writers whose work I know.’ Nonetheless, in seeking to illustrate his thesis that, as the jacket concisely has it, ‘the weakness of modern literature, indicative of the weakness of the modern world in general, is a religious weakness; […] that all our social problems, including those of literature and criticism, begin and end in the religious problem’, he looks closely at the writings of Hardy, Kipling, Lawrence, and others, in relation to ideas of orthodoxy, and ‘its opposite, heterodoxy, for which I shall also use the term heresy’. For Eliot, Hardy, an atheist (though the word is not used), represents ‘an interesting example of a powerful personality uncurbed by any institutional attachment or by submission to any objective beliefs […]’, while Lawrence ‘is for my purposes, an almost perfect example of the heretic.’

The book was withdrawn by Eliot after just one reprint, in the same year as the first printing, and never reissued. This was primarily owing to a passage on pp. 19-21 advocating ‘unity of religious background’ which is hard not to read as squarely antisemitic (though many have tried). In his short book on Eliot, Stephen Spender (who doesn’t) notes that the period of the lectures ‘was a time of extreme tension for [Eliot], when he was making up his mind to separate from his [first] wife’, and that ‘the unhappiness shows in the lectures.’ He also records Eliot’s assertion ‘that when he wrote After Strange Gods he was in a state of unhappiness which distorted his judgement.’

Owing to Eliot’s complex relationship with the book, and the relatively few copies in circulation, signed or inscribed copies have always been scarce.

Gallup A25a. See Spender, T. S. Eliot (1975); Ricks, T. S. Eliot and Prejudice (1988).

SKU: 2124307

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SKU: 33413845379

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Bambina
Massapequa, US
★★★★★ 4
Not so Cooling
Color: 01 - Grey, Size: Queen(20x30)
This pillowcase does not do too much to keep you cool. When not in use, it's cool too the touch but after laying on it for about a minute, it is no longer cool. Also, the color was supposed to be gray but it looks almost white and not gray. The material is comfortable, but overall, this is more like a regular pillowcase, not a cooling one, as advertised (which is the whole reason I bought it). Update: Seller reached out and refunded my order since I was unhappy with the purchase. Great customer service. Thank you!
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Reviewed in the United States on March 26, 2026
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Debbie Brucha
Birmingham, US
★★★★★ 3
Keeping, but they do make me hot.
Color: 02 - Blue, Size: Standard(20x26)
Very soft and cooling at first, but they do get hot during the night. So bad that my face sticks to the pillowcase.
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Reviewed in the United States on April 2, 2026
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SNO
Whiting, US
★★★★★ 5
LOVE THESE...have multiple sets!
Color: 02 - Blue, Size: Standard(20x26)
Must have for hot sleepers. Purchased for my cooling pillows and they are fantastic. Zipper keeps them on the slippery pillows and stretchy material will fit large, over-sized pillows. The soft, silky material feels great on my skin and has helped keeping my hair smooth. No more bed head! Easy to launder and I highly recommend.
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Reviewed in the United States on February 24, 2026
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Luke
West Palm Beach, US
★★★★★ 5
Lightweight material that helps stay cool
Color: 02 - Blue, Size: Standard(20x26)
Really like these, but dont see the sheets made from the same material available anymore and thats disappointing Thin polyester almost spandex material that is very light and breathable so it keeps you cool and its stretchy and soft as well so I think they are comfortable, would like to have an extra set or two so its easier to rotate/wash, but they wash/dry quickly, not sure how well they will hold up long term, but only use them in the summer so hopefully they will last awhile
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Reviewed in the United States on November 30, 2025
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FL Design
Bozeman, US
★★★★★ 5
Sleek shear soft cool zippered pillow cases
Color: 07 - Green, Size: Queen (20" X 30")
I'm a huge fan of bamboo fabric. It feels great to wear and so it also feels good to sleep on, especially during hot and or humid spells. Pillowcases came in a pack of 2 and were well packaged and arrived undamaged. Shipping was very fast. Cases appear to be well made. they are a lovely soft green which is perfect for a restful bedroom setup. As expected the fabric is soft and relaxing against the skin, it seems to retain a cooler feel than cotton.Bamboo tends to be a thinner fabric that is light and once damp, dries pretty quickly. Perfect for folks who run hot normally and need extra cooling during the summer or people who sweat at nigh. Cases are zippered and zippers worked well and appear nicely sewn in and decent quality. At night, slept very well. I think this is a good product and like the price point a lo. Will be looking to get another set very soon!
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Reviewed in the United States on August 7, 2025

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