Imagism Ezra Pound
Imagism and Ezra Pound
Ezra Pound was one of the greatest poets of the modern era, creating a literary movement known as “imagism.” Pound coined the term in 1912 to assist Hilda Doolittle (H.D.) in the marketing of some of her poems. Doolittle was an unknown author, and Pound decided that her work would be accepted more easily if she were identified with a group of poets (Dettmar/Watt), such as Richard Aldington and F.S. Flint (“Imagists”). Imagists focused mainly on the “clarity of expression through the use of precise visual images” (“Imagism”). T.E. Hulme’s critical views inspired the movement, as imagists were revolting against the “careless thinking and Romantic optimism” Hulme generally saw (“Imagists”). Imagism also drew on Chinese and Japanese influences (“Ezra Pound,” Andover).
Another important “imagist,” if you will, was Amy Lowell. When she read Doolittle’s poems in publication, Lowell believed that her “identity as a poet had been defined.” As an aspiring poet, she now had to “define” herself in relation to the new movement (Dettmar/Watt).
Besides inventing an intriguing name for the movement, Pound used two additional strategies in the marketing and advertising of the movement. Lowell was fascinated that the name of the movement was actually French, Imagisme. Pound’s goal was to distinguish imagists from symbolists, but most believed the name insinuated a relationship with French poets like Baudelaire and Mallarme. The second attempt at differentiating the imagist movement from others was the suggestion that the movement had some kind of “mysterious ingredient or quality that only the user of the product can appreciate” (Dettmar/Watt). In Pound’s own words “an image is an intellectual and emotional complex in an instant of time.” Thus the meaning is tied to “a feeling” as a consequence of an event (Terrell, 18). The following are six rules from an Imagist manifesto:
1. To use the language of common speech, but to employ the exact
Ezra Pound was one of the greatest poets of the modern era, creating a literary movement known as “imagism.” Pound coined the term in 1912 to assist Hilda Doolittle (H.D.) in the marketing of some of her poems. Doolittle was an unknown author, and Pound decided that her work would be accepted more easily if she were identified with a group of poets (Dettmar/Watt), such as Richard Aldington and F.S. Flint (“Imagists”). Imagists focused mainly on the “clarity of expression through the use of precise visual images” (“Imagism”). T.E. Hulme’s critical views inspired the movement, as imagists were revolting against the “careless thinking and Romantic optimism” Hulme generally saw (“Imagists”). Imagism also drew on Chinese and Japanese influences (“Ezra Pound,” Andover).
Another important “imagist,” if you will, was Amy Lowell. When she read Doolittle’s poems in publication, Lowell believed that her “identity as a poet had been defined.” As an aspiring poet, she now had to “define” herself in relation to the new movement (Dettmar/Watt).
Besides inventing an intriguing name for the movement, Pound used two additional strategies in the marketing and advertising of the movement. Lowell was fascinated that the name of the movement was actually French, Imagisme. Pound’s goal was to distinguish imagists from symbolists, but most believed the name insinuated a relationship with French poets like Baudelaire and Mallarme. The second attempt at differentiating the imagist movement from others was the suggestion that the movement had some kind of “mysterious ingredient or quality that only the user of the product can appreciate” (Dettmar/Watt). In Pound’s own words “an image is an intellectual and emotional complex in an instant of time.” Thus the meaning is tied to “a feeling” as a consequence of an event (Terrell, 18). The following are six rules from an Imagist manifesto:
1. To use the language of common speech, but to employ the exact