T. S. Eliot was a poet first and a critic second. We remember Eliot the poet more often in our time because of the steady interest in his poetry. With the evolution of critical thinking, his criticism is studied for its historical importance rather than for its own sake. But we cannot conceive of the contemporary critical milieu without acknowledging his important early role in creating it. His critical writings were not limited to the study of literature or literary culture – he was also a social critic and commentator on politics and religion. Although we normally divide his work into two broad categories, poetry and prose, we ought to resist the temptation to make this division hard and fast. In fact, Eliot's poetry and prose are of a piece; one is really inconceivable without the other. An account of the leading themes in his work must therefore join the poetry and criticism together, while at the same time being sensitive to the differences that make them distinct.

Their differences originate in Eliot's two earliest intellectual passions, his personal interest in poetry and his academic interest in philosophy. Poetry and philosophy are quite obviously distinct modalities of thought and feeling, yet the two are not entirely disconnected. Both tackle the fundamental questions of existence, namely the nature and course of experience and knowledge.