Question

Modernist poetry explored the problems that arose from rapid urbanization and industrialization in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Which lines in this excerpt from "Anecdote of the Jar" by Wallace Stevens reflect the themes of barrenness and emptiness in modern life?
1.The wilderness rose up to it,
And sprawled around, no longer wild.
2.The jar was round upon the ground
And tall and of a port in air.

3.It took dominion everywhere.
4.The jar was gray and bare.
5.It did not give of bird or bush,
Like nothing else in Tennessee.

Answer 1

Answer:

4.The jar was gray and bare.

5.It did not give of bird or bush,

Explanation:

Impersonality and objectivity seem to be crucial in modernist culture.  The idea of emptiness can be clearly seen on those two lines since being "gray and bare" means something is boring and forgettable. The idea of barrenness can be seen in not giving bird or bush. The ground had nothing on it or for it.