View source for Archival Evidence

The Waste Land was published for the first time simultaneously in ''The Criterion'' in London and in ''The Dial'' in New York in October 1922. Let's take a look at the content surrounding the poem in both magazines and elsewhere.

==Structure of the Poem==
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Page Structure:
In the Criterion, there are obvious stanza breaks that indicate pauses intended by Eliot, whereas in the Dial pauses correspond more with page breaks that may or may not have been stanza breaks.
Indentation is used in the Criterion and right-side alignment is used in the Dial for the same phrases. Perhaps the editor of the Dial wanted to communicate a more dramatic structural difference.
In the Dial, the section headings (ie. A Game of Chess) are not enumerated (I, II, III, IV, V).
"HURRY UP PLEASE IT'S TIME" actually appears in a different font from the rest of the poem (it's not only capitalized) in the Dial.

A close side by side reading of "The Waste Land" as it appears in the 1922 October issue of the Criterion and 1922 November issue of The Dial beg inquiries as to the organicism of the texts--is either edition more inherently Eliot?  Do the slightly different versions of the poem reveal editorial constructs or bias in keeping with "American" or "British" literary doctrines?  It is difficult to conceive, and perhaps impossible to finger any specific text as more canonical than the other.  In fact, the Norton Critical Edition's editor, Michael North, posits that the Boni and Liveright edition (which was released in December of the same year) "should have priority" (Norton XII).

Nevertheless, an analysis of both of the original publications reveals an additional layer of complexity to a scholarly investigation of Eliot's most famous poem.  Despite minor inconsistencies, a more holistic understanding of Eliot's work emerges--the unifying principle enveloping "The Waste Land" is that truth, though affected by and altogether vulnerable to external circumstance or will, is canonized by  contextual integrity.

==Globalization==
The Waste Land is accompanied by several contributions from around the world in both magazines. This is a concrete example of the globalization that began as a result of WWI. Soldiers have traveled overseas, have seen places for themselves.
There is an increased aesthetic interest in global commodities. There is an ad in the Criterion, the only commercial (non bookshop/book/publishing company) ad we found, for oriental rugs. "Antique & Modern Rugs from the Orient." "Largest Assortment in the World."

International Collaboration:
Both the USA and Britain had been collaborating as Allies at the end of the war, but now there is further international collaboration evident in these magazines. For example, in the Dial, there are multiple German contributors, including Schnitzler, whose novel ''Doctor Graesler'' was translated from German into English for this publication.
Additional contributors: Constantin Brancusi- scultper, born in Romania, living in Paris Robert Delaunay - born in Paris in 1887, influenced by Russeau Elie Faure - author of The History of Art, reviewed by Thomas Craven in Feb 1922 issue of The Dial. In this issue, Faure replies to Craven's criticism. Duncan Grant - born in Scottish highlands. Adolph Dehn - living in Germany and Austria Sebastien Cauiflower - American.

In both The Dial and The Criterion, evidence of globalization and cross-cultural receptivity abounds.  This is more evident in The Dial than any other place, especially upon inspection of its advertisements.  Though the collaborators were surprised not to find any ads juxtaposed alongside text, The Dial instead allocated primary and secondary sections--at the front and back of the periodical respectively--for commercial bulletins.  In the first section of advertisements that precedes the literary text, the editor installed ads for literary publishers of modernist books and a magazine.  It is clear that The Dial specifically targeted a bibliophile audience, as the majority of all the periodical's ads cater to an intellectual readership.

The Dial's advertisements also reveal multicultural intrigue, though from a safe distance.  In the supplementary section of advertisements there is evidence of a great deal of upper-class marketing.  Solicitors invite readers to Oriental rug wholesalers, Jewelry dealers, Russian tea rooms, Spanish themed vacations, patronage to The Plaza hotel in New York and Boston, and to purchase multi-volume literary collections from such venerated authors as Mark Twain and Joseph Conrad.  Though the advertisements do suggest a post-war fascination with the exotic, they also implicate intellectual and societal elitism.  One may inquire whether the "worldly" audience could have included the minorities it so fancifully publicizes.

==Surprising Content==
We are surprised to have found some of the things that are in the Dial in an American publication in in 1922. To name a few:
Adolf Dehn's "Drinkers" - a painting of alcoholic beverages and their consumption. In 1922, Prohibition was still in effect in the United States. We were surprised that a literary magazine that is geared toward intellectuals would contain content that depicts something illegal.