[William A. Baurle]

Originally Posted by Tony Barnstone

I agree with John. Ezra Pound is an important poet who never ravishes me with his poems. Gertrude Stein, ditto. They are merely interesting. Weldon Kees is a minor poet who regularly "wows" me with his poems. I believe in the dictatorship of taste. Democracy in all other things, but when it comes to poetry it's all about the "wow" factor.

Wow. Ezra Pound, in my opinion, wrote some of the most wow-inspiring poems in English. The Seafarer, Envoi from Hugh Selwyn Mauberly, the sonnet A Virginal, and many, many more. Plus, many of his translations from the Chinese are now standard fare, with good reason.

I agree, his politics, particularly his anti-semitism, were atrocious, and his personality, well, I doubt I would have wanted to hang out with him. And, sure, the Cantos are very hard to read, once you get past the first dozen or so. But the early lyrical pieces were some of the best ever. In my opinion.