I was referring to your main argument.
What a lot of fuss about so very little. Even if you were right, how
much does it matter to Cris Cheek, Peter Riley, Peter Manson, Maggie
O'Sullivan, Tom Leonard, or Lee Harwood whether Britain participated
as fully as some other places in a brief moment in poetry?
Mark
At 06:37 PM 8/25/2009, you wrote:
>I didn't say the Poe thing was my main point, that was a concession. I
>could probably find lots of evidence that Poe influenced the symbolists
>but it would be a distraction to my argument, which is that British
>poets had little to do with the development High Modernism.
>
>
>On Tue, 25 Aug 2009 17:41:35 -0400, Mark Weiss
><[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
> >That din't appear to be your main argument. It's also highly
> >debateable. You might want to look at the first volume of Rothenberg
> >and Joris' Poems for the Millennium for a more ecumenical perspective.
> >
> >Mark
> >
> >At 05:35 PM 8/25/2009, you wrote:
> >>I concede to you on this particular point. Poe wasn't influenced by
>the
> >>French--they were influenced by him! Symbolist poetry was reliant on
> >>his 'Philosophy of Composition'. They also were influenced by his
> >>imagery and poetic ideas which led to a conception of a "pure
>poetry".
> >>
> >>Still, my main argument stands: High Modernism was largely a US
> >>development.
> >>
> >>
> >>On Tue, 25 Aug 2009 14:02:27 -0400, Mark Weiss
> >><[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> >>
> >> >This may be ignorance on my part. What French poets' value did
>Poe
> >> >recognize? Les Fleurs du Mal wasn't published until a decade after
> >> >Poe's death. Most of Hugo's poetry also postdates Poe. How
>available
> >> >in the US was what had been published by 1849?
> >> >
> >> >Baudelaire's translations of Poe's stories, by the way, are
>wonderful.
> >> >
> >> >Mark
> >> >
> >> >At 01:49 PM 8/25/2009, you wrote:
> >> >>I don't know if Whitman's admiring Tennyson necessarily supports
> >>the
> >> >>idea that in some way Whitman's poetry, is Tennysonian, and,
> >> >>therefore, particularly British influenced. To me it does not
>appear to
> >> >>be. It seems to be more akin to folk-song and rural story-telling
> >> >>traditions.
> >> >>
> >> >>Poe's poems may be better in French but his acuity in recognizing
> >> >>French poetry's value is more important in terms of the American
> >> >>development of what we call High Modernism.
> >> >>
> >> >>And Yeat's, of course, was influenced, also, by the French
>Symbolists.
> >> >>
> >> >>
> >> >>
> >> >>On Tue, 25 Aug 2009 09:11:12 -0700, David Latane
> >> >><[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> >> >>
> >> >> >I think the reports of British poetry's demise have been greatly
> >> >>exaggerated; there's a reason Whitman referred to Tennyson
>as "The
> >> >>Boss." Poe is notoriously better in French translation; to place
>him
> >> >>above Yeats strikes me as ridiculous.
> >> >> >I've encountered various manifestations of the "westering"
>motif--
> >>we
> >> >>Americans love it of course, but there's something abject in it
> >>appearing
> >> >>so frequently among the British, when the poetic achievement of
>so
> >> >>many 20th and 21st-century British poets is so high.
> >> >> >
> >> >> >
> >> >> >
> >> >> >David Latane
> >> >> > http://www.standmagazine.org (Stand Magazine, Leeds)
> >> >> >
> >> >> >--- On Tue, 8/25/09, Jeffrey Side <[log in to unmask]>
>wrote:
> >> >> >
> >> >> >From: Jeffrey Side <[log in to unmask]>
> >> >> >Subject: "Has British Poetry had any significance since
> >>Wordsworth?"
> >> >> >To: [log in to unmask]
> >> >> >Date: Tuesday, August 25, 2009, 6:30 AM
> >> >> >
> >> >> >New blog post:
> >> >>
> >> >>
> >> >>"Has British Poetry had any significance since Wordsworth?"
> >> >>
> >> >>This may seem an outlandish question, but I think it has some
>force
> >> >>behind it. Of course, the influence of Wordsworth on
>contemporary
> >> >>British mainstream poetry need hardly be stressed, and I have
> >>written
> >> >>extensively about this elsewhere. It is because of this influence
>that
> >> >>most of the celebrated British poetry of the Twentieth Century
> >>tended
> >> >>towards mediocrity when compared to American poetry of the
>same
> >> >>period.....
> >> >>
> >> >>
> >> >>http://jeffrey-side.blogspot.com/
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