Modernism and “THE IMAGE”

Directions: For this week, though you have to do all the readings, you only have one post to do, with no follow-ups. Majority if not all of the readings are linked in the course outline. If clicking the link does not work, try copying and pasting the text. If that does not work, you should be successful by googling the title of the texts. If you find you are still having trouble do not hesitate to send me an email. 

This week’s poetry marks a shift from 19th-century Realist prose to 20th-century Modernist poetry. According to Ezra Pound’s manifesto (first reading this week), Modernism is marked by the image, or “the thing,” being the central crux of a Modernist poem. According to him, there should be no unnecessary, “superfluous” words, only precise, unadorned language. Review one of the four poems this week – Eliot’s “The Waste Land,” Lowell’s “The Taxi” or “Madonna of the Evening Flowers,” or Stevens’ “Sunday Morning” – and detail how some of the imagery works in the poem and to what effect. Is the imagery chosen consistent in the poem? Quote from some lines of the poem in the process, and analyze the meaning of the words the author chooses, both denotative (explicit meaning) and connotative (implied meaning).

This response should be about 500 words long.  Don’t use any outside sources – just your own ideas.