Ezra Pound is a very influential writer from the Modernist period. Modernism is shown in all of his poems, including “Villanelle: The Psychological Hour”. Ezra Pound used his life experiences from his education in college as source of style in his writing. His works exhibit similar details to his other poems, as well as to other examples of writing form the same literary period. Modernism is important to literature because it gave new and improved looks at things.
Modernism contains many factors that can not completely be defined. But there are a few things that many writers during this period did. One thing that these writers did during this time was write in a stream of consciousness where there were times of futility (Gordon). Throughout the course of Ezra’s poem “Villanelle: The Psychological Hour”, there is little action happening. In lines 8-11, Pound writes, “So much barren regret, So many hours wasted! And now I watch, from the window, the rain, the wandering busses.” (Pound). This series of lines are filled with description, but there is little action happening in this section. There is nothing advancing the plot. There is another important factor that is represented by that excerpt, which is a style of writing. The adjectives used such as “wandering” are words of hopelessness. This sense of pessimistic feelings is a major factor of a Modernist work because the period took place during the time of the Great Depression (Gordon). The contributing factors make this poem part of the Modernist movement.
Pound’s life had made a lasting influence on his poetry. The main factor in Pound’s life was his education. He acquired his Master’s Degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 1906 (Davidson). In college he studied different languages as well as diverse cultures (Davidson). This applies to his poetry because of the multiple references that he makes to people who are different than he is (Gordon). The implications that Pound sends to his readers about other races has earned him, as well as other Modernist writers, some critical acclaim (Gordon). Pound’s knowledge of the different cultures has allowed him to formulate strong opinions about each religious background as well as a cultures policies. Ezra’s education also gave him a larger vocabulary than many people (Davidson). This allowed Pound to use sophisticated words in his poetry, making some of his poems difficult to understand (Bloom). Using words such as “ominous”: “diverse”: and “cosmos”, we see Pound developing strong support with meaningful words in the poem “Villanelle: The Psychological Hour” (Pound). Ezra Pound is a good example of a well educated man due to the evidence in his poetry.
“Villanelle: The Psychological Hour” is quite similar to other works by Ezra Pound because of the style. Obviously having the write author accounts for the similarity in style, but more specifically the lack of action. In many poems of his, there is little action happening. Take for instance in “An Immortality”, he writes, “Though I have been in many land, there is naught else in living.” (Pound). This short except has mostly describing words and little action happening. This seems to be a popular trait among Modernist writers. This is a similar attribute of the short story “Breakfast” by John Steinbeck, who write, “Beside the tent of orange fire seeping out of the cracks of an old rusty iron stove. Gray Smoke spurted up out of the stubby stovepipe, spurted up a long way before it spread out and dissipated”. (Steinbeck 868). This passage is simply describing how the setting of the camp looked and is not advancing the plot very much. The use of imagery is a large similarity between the two works, as well as between the two poems by Pound.
In conclusion, the poem “Villanelle: The Psychological Hour” is a Modernist poem because of the values that it represents. Education plays a huge role in the development of the poems by Ezra Pound, which means that other writers during this era could have benefited from their education as well. Other modernist works compare to this poem by Pound because of the use of imagery. The modernist time period includes many different writers with widely varying opinions, which is one reason why Ezra Pound was an important figure during the time.
Works Cited
Bloom, Harold. "Bloom on Ezra Pound." In Bloom, Harold, ed. Ezra Pound, Bloom's Modern Critical Views. New York: Chelsea House Publishing, 1987. (Updated 2006.) Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= MCV0006&SingleRecord=True (accessed May 2, 2010).
Davidson, Chad. "Pound, Ezra." In Kimmelman, Burt, and Temple Cone, eds. The Facts On File Companion to American Poetry, vol. 2. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2007. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= CAP365&SingleRecord=True (accessed May 2, 2010).
Gordon, Stephanie. "modernist poetry." The Facts On File Companion to American Poetry, vol. 2. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2007. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= CAP299&SingleRecord=True (accessed May 1, 2010).
Pound, Ezra. "291. An Immorality by Ezra Pound. Monroe, Harriet, Ed. 1917. The New Poetry: An Anthology." Bartleby.com: Great Books Online -- Quotes, Poems, Novels, Classics and Hundreds More. Web. 04 May 2010. <http://www.bartleby.com/265/291.html>.
Pound, Ezra. "294. Villanelle: The Psychological Hour by Ezra Pound. Monroe, Harriet, Ed. 1917. The New Poetry: An Anthology." Bartleby.com: Great Books Online -- Quotes, Poems, Novels, Classics and Hundreds More. 2010. Web. 01 May 2010. <http://www.bartleby.com/265/294.html>.
Steinbeck, John. "Breakfast." Literature American Literature. Columbus, OH: Glencoe, 2009. 866-70. Print.
Ezra Pound is a very influential writer from the Modernist period. Modernism is shown in all of his poems, including “Villanelle: The Psychological Hour”. Ezra Pound used his life experiences from his education in college as source of style in his writing. His works exhibit similar details to his other poems, as well as to other examples of writing form the same literary period. Modernism is important to literature because it gave new and improved looks at things.
Modernism contains many factors that can not completely be defined. But there are a few things that many writers during this period did. One thing that these writers did during this time was write in a stream of consciousness where there were times of futility (Gordon). Throughout the course of Ezra’s poem “Villanelle: The Psychological Hour”, there is little action happening. In lines 8-11, Pound writes, “So much barren regret, So many hours wasted! And now I watch, from the window, the rain, the wandering busses.” (Pound). This series of lines are filled with description, but there is little action happening in this section. There is nothing advancing the plot. There is another important factor that is represented by that excerpt, which is a style of writing. The adjectives used such as “wandering” are words of hopelessness. This sense of pessimistic feelings is a major factor of a Modernist work because the period took place during the time of the Great Depression (Gordon). The contributing factors make this poem part of the Modernist movement.
Pound’s life had made a lasting influence on his poetry. The main factor in Pound’s life was his education. He acquired his Master’s Degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 1906 (Davidson). In college he studied different languages as well as diverse cultures (Davidson). This applies to his poetry because of the multiple references that he makes to people who are different than he is (Gordon). The implications that Pound sends to his readers about other races has earned him, as well as other Modernist writers, some critical acclaim (Gordon). Pound’s knowledge of the different cultures has allowed him to formulate strong opinions about each religious background as well as a cultures policies. Ezra’s education also gave him a larger vocabulary than many people (Davidson). This allowed Pound to use sophisticated words in his poetry, making some of his poems difficult to understand (Bloom). Using words such as “ominous”: “diverse”: and “cosmos”, we see Pound developing strong support with meaningful words in the poem “Villanelle: The Psychological Hour” (Pound). Ezra Pound is a good example of a well educated man due to the evidence in his poetry.
“Villanelle: The Psychological Hour” is quite similar to other works by Ezra Pound because of the style. Obviously having the write author accounts for the similarity in style, but more specifically the lack of action. In many poems of his, there is little action happening. Take for instance in “An Immortality”, he writes, “Though I have been in many land, there is naught else in living.” (Pound). This short except has mostly describing words and little action happening. This seems to be a popular trait among Modernist writers. This is a similar attribute of the short story “Breakfast” by John Steinbeck, who write, “Beside the tent of orange fire seeping out of the cracks of an old rusty iron stove. Gray Smoke spurted up out of the stubby stovepipe, spurted up a long way before it spread out and dissipated”. (Steinbeck 868). This passage is simply describing how the setting of the camp looked and is not advancing the plot very much. The use of imagery is a large similarity between the two works, as well as between the two poems by Pound.
In conclusion, the poem “Villanelle: The Psychological Hour” is a Modernist poem because of the values that it represents. Education plays a huge role in the development of the poems by Ezra Pound, which means that other writers during this era could have benefited from their education as well. Other modernist works compare to this poem by Pound because of the use of imagery. The modernist time period includes many different writers with widely varying opinions, which is one reason why Ezra Pound was an important figure during the time.
Works Cited
Bloom, Harold. "Bloom on Ezra Pound." In Bloom, Harold, ed. Ezra Pound, Bloom's Modern Critical Views. New York: Chelsea House Publishing, 1987. (Updated 2006.) Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= MCV0006&SingleRecord=True (accessed May 2, 2010).
Davidson, Chad. "Pound, Ezra." In Kimmelman, Burt, and Temple Cone, eds. The Facts On File Companion to American Poetry, vol. 2. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2007. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= CAP365&SingleRecord=True (accessed May 2, 2010).
Gordon, Stephanie. "modernist poetry." The Facts On File Companion to American Poetry, vol. 2. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2007. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= CAP299&SingleRecord=True (accessed May 1, 2010).
Pound, Ezra. "291. An Immorality by Ezra Pound. Monroe, Harriet, Ed. 1917. The New Poetry: An Anthology." Bartleby.com: Great Books Online -- Quotes, Poems, Novels, Classics and Hundreds More. Web. 04 May 2010. <http://www.bartleby.com/265/291.html>.
Pound, Ezra. "294. Villanelle: The Psychological Hour by Ezra Pound. Monroe, Harriet, Ed. 1917. The New Poetry: An Anthology." Bartleby.com: Great Books Online -- Quotes, Poems, Novels, Classics and Hundreds More. 2010. Web. 01 May 2010. <http://www.bartleby.com/265/294.html>.
Steinbeck, John. "Breakfast." Literature American Literature. Columbus, OH: Glencoe, 2009. 866-70. Print.