Ezra Pound & Imagism

Contributions to Modernist Poetry More than any other writer, he was responsible for dramatic changes occurring with poetry. Urged writers to “make it new” Influenced other writers to discard traditional forms, techniques, and ideas Experimented with new approaches His movement was called IMAGISM

Pound’s Work His poetry reflects a deep interest in the past, particularly of ancient cultures Chinese, Japanese, and Provencal French Poems are filled with literary and historical allusions His poems are difficult to understand because they are void of explanations and generalizations Wrote The Cantos, long poetic sequence where he expressed his beliefs (eventually totaling 116 cantos)

The Controversial Pound During WW2, Pound lived in Italy and was a supporter of the dictator, Benito Mussolini Pound believed a country ruled by a dictator was the best environment for the creation of art---INTERESTING????

In 1945, Pound was charged by the American government for treason A year later he was arrested by American troops and imprisoned He was flown back to US and found to be psychologically unfit to stand trial and was confined to a hospital for the criminally insane

Remained in the hospital until 1958, when he was released Returned to Italy until death

Imagism Poetry written that evokes pictures or images for the reader Direct presentation of images, or word pictures Word choice is specific Adjectives are used to enhance the specificity of word choice, BUT they are not over-used. Attempt to freeze a single moment in time and capture the emotions of that moment Imagist poetry often reflect influences of haiku or tanka

Aims of Imagism Hard, clear, direct, succinct, “free,” and yet concentrated images evoked from the poetry As a group of 3, read the Imagist poems on pg. 758 and discuss how the aims of Imagism apply to each of these poems Answer on pg 759 3 b and c, 4 a and b, 6 a and b (explain the metaphor created by 6a

William Carlos Williams The Red Wheelbarrow

Dramatic lyric Lyric narrowly meant a poem meant to be sung (Shakespearian time) Rhythmical; stanza; etc In general it means poem that expresses personal emotions or thoughts Dramatic lyric Personal feelings are attributed to an imagined character, not to the poet

The River-Merchant’s Wife: A Letter Illustrates influence of Chinese culture on Pound’s writing Feelings evoked from arranged marriages Some Chinese believe leaving important matter of choosing a mate to a young person is unwise and reckless Love, they feel, comes after marriage not before Use of understatement appropriate for the type of character and society (modest and formal)