I think Alison is right about Creeley's 'dynamic.' That 'onward' is
probably one of the most attractive things about his work, but it became
increasingly less so as Cr. aged. You can see it happen in the
collected poems. (This is also true with Emily Dickinson, b.t.w., as she
ages the breath-taking leaps diminish.) Cid felt an intense rivalry with
Creeley (don't know if Cr. felt the same way about Cid, but I doubt
it), and would go on about how Creeley's work was catchy in its
glitter, but not deep like his. In fact, towards the end, Cid felt that
somehow he was gaining ground on Creeley's popularity. On close
inspection one can see that Cid's work never had the 'speed' of
Creeley's work, even from the beginning--it is far more meditative, far
more static then the wild associations Creeley makes down the page. So
perhaps Cid was wrong about this as he was about Dante and
child-rearing. Speed's the thing.
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