When it comes to taste, unsubstantiated opinionation remains of use and
interest as it is the most basic information about a person's judgement.
If I hadn't much time, I couldn't tell you why I like Stevie Smith. If I
had a lot of time, I probably still couldn't tell you (something
trenchant and steely in amongst the apparent whimsy, something hard and
true that won't give and doesn't give a fig for what anyone else thinks
- there's a start to it). I think Carol Ann Duffy is decidedly bogus,
and I haven't even stopped and thought about what kind of authenticity
I'm accusing her of not having, or whether it makes sense to frame an
argument about poetic worth and merit in those terms. But I could talk a
lot about poetics and not have told anyone what I think of either Stevie
Smith or Carol Ann Duffy, and in a certain sense some key information
would be lacking if I left that out. It made perfect sense to Pound to
start with a personal canon and take the conversation on from there.
This isn't the only way to go, but it's an option I value.
Dominic
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