Explain with reference to the context 11.60 - 65 (MEG 102) (T.S. ELIOT: THE WASTE LAND (II)

The lines 60-65 in Part I of T.S. Eliot's "The Waste Land" are part of a section titled "A Game of Chess," in which two characters, a man and a woman, engage in a conversation that is filled with tension and unspoken emotions. In this particular section, the woman is describing a dream that she had, in which she saw "a hyacinth girl" who reminded her of her own youth and beauty. The context of the lines is important to understanding their significance within the poem as a whole.

The reference to the "hyacinth girl" in line 60 is significant because it evokes the image of the Greek myth of Hyacinthus, a youth who was beloved by the god Apollo and who died tragically. This reference is reinforced by the use of the word "Hyacinth," which suggests the flower that was said to have sprung up from Hyacinthus's blood after he was killed. This mythological allusion serves to underscore the theme of death and decay that pervades the poem as a whole.

The woman's description of the "hyacinth girl" also highlights the theme of lost youth and beauty, as she compares the girl's youthful vitality to her own fading beauty. The phrase "dead in the dead of winter" (line 65) further emphasizes this sense of decay and decline, suggesting that the woman's own beauty is like a flower that has withered and died.

The use of imagery and allusion in these lines helps to reinforce the central themes of the poem, including the idea of death and decay, the loss of youthful vitality, and the sense of spiritual emptiness that characterizes modern life. Through the character of the woman, Eliot captures the sense of disillusionment and despair that many people felt in the aftermath of World War I, as they struggled to come to terms with the destruction and loss that had ravaged the world.