The Suggestive Power of Allusions

When reading Wimsatt and Beardsley's "The Intentional Fallacy" I was most intrigued by their discussion of allusions in writing. I found it comforting that they were critical of those who focus on what/who has influenced the poet in question. While learning about a poet's life and influences has helped me feel more confident in assertions I have made in academic papers in college, something about it also sits uncomfortably with me. It seems that this style of interpretation favors academia, who have access to information about poets that is not readily available nor accessible to the everyday reader. Not everyone can use things like the Lily Library, unfortunately, and it seems a shame to me that in order to "understand" a poem one must do background research. Shouldn't the words on the page be enough?

In section V of "The Intentional Fallacy" Wimsatt and Beardsley discuss T.S. Eliot's use of allusions to other works in his poetry, which apparently happens a lot. They conclude that, "Eliot's allusions work when we know them--and to a great extent even when we do not know them, through their suggestive power," ( 817). I am not very familiar with T.S. Eliot and so I do not want to try and test their theory using his poetry. I have, however, read poetry and heard songs that resonated very deeply with me, and yet I had very little grasp of what was being referenced in the allusions.

For instance, one of the most heartbreaking songs I can think of is Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah," and yet I haven't the faintest idea of what most of the song is saying. I think this speaks to what F.O. Matthiessen says about Eliot:

"If one reads these lines with an attentive ear and is sensitive to their sudden shifts in movement,
the contrast between the actual Thames and the idealized vision of it during
an age before it flowed through a megalopolis is sharply conveyed by that movement itself,
whether or not one recognizes the refrain to be from Spenser,"
(Wimsatt and Beardsley 817).
Leonard Cohen uses imagery that may very well come from specific sources I am unfamiliar with, but regardless of that his mastery of form and style portray the texts being alluded to so well that my naivete becomes moot.

It is a great feeling to read a poem and recognize that another work is being referenced/alluded to, but that knowledge is not (or at least in my opinion and I think Wimsatt and Beardsley's as well) necessary in order to understand and enjoy a poem. I think the use of the allusion is most successful when prior knowledge is unnecessary, because as both an academic and lay-person reader I appreciate accessibility. I'm willing to put time in to understand a poem, but I want to know that the poet is working, too.