The Complete Poems of Stephen Crane [Paperback]

Stephen Crane (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 1972 | ISBN-10: 0801491304 | ISBN-13: 978-0801491306

Though he is best known for The Red Badge of Courage, Stephen Crane was also a remarkable poet whose poetry is full of irony and paradox, yet is often gentle and compassionate. This is the definitive edition of his poetry, including all 135 poems, published and unpublished during his lifetime, as well as a substantial introduction by Joseph Katz.

Product Details

• Paperback: 154 pages
• Publisher: Cornell University Press (June 1, 1972)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0801491304
• ISBN-13: 978-0801491306
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #556,348 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Poetry with a timeless vision, November 12, 2000

By 

Michael J. Mazza - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Complete Poems of Stephen Crane (Paperback)

Although Stephen Crane has earned his place in the American literary canon largely on the basis of his novel "The Red Badge of Courage" and his psychologically compelling short fiction, he was also a master of the art of poetry. "The Complete Poems" is a superb tribute to that poetic genius. In addition to collecting all 135 of Crane's known surviving poems, editor Joseph Katz has written a substantial introduction which places Crane's poetic achievement in context.

Most of Crane's poems are written in a free verse using simple, yet quietly powerful language. His words are full of irony and paradox; his vision is sometimes sarcastic and often dark, yet frequently surprises with gentleness and compassion. Reading Crane, I get the sense of meeting an ancient sage on a barren, wind-swept plain. His poems often have an oddly scriptural flavor to them; these are verses that invite return and reflection.

Stephen Crane writes, "I have a thousand tongues / And nine and ninety-nine lie." Nonetheless, in "The Complete Poems of Stephen Crane" the attentive reader will discover a reservoir of disturbing truth.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars for lovers of poetry, old or modern, November 20, 2003

By 

spacedog "spacedog7" (boston, ma United States) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Complete Poems of Stephen Crane (Paperback)

this collection of crane's complete poetry is divided into four sections. the two most important sections are the two volumes of poetry crane published, which were -the black riders and other lines- and -war is kind-. the third section consists of "uncollected poems", i.e. poems that were published in magazines but did not appear in the two collections, and posthumously published poems.

as the other reviewers have stated, crane was not and is not known for his poetry, but it is quite magnificent. in general his poetry is surprisingly modern. they tend to be more prose-oriented although he often uses literal or loosely repeated sections (i.e. refrains) to good effect. his poetry also tends to be didactic (often taking the form of a parable with such "characters" as mountains, angels, and philosophers), morbid, and direct. which is certainly not to say that they aren't also emotional, masterful, and engaging.

-the black riders- as a whole is more straightforward than the poems in -war is kind-. in general the poems in -black riders- center around the metaphysical, with themes such as religion, ethics, and philosphy appearing often. although -war is kind- contains many of the same themes, it also includes more concrete themes, such as war, the many facets of a man's relationship with a woman, and specific occurrences and objects such as the printing of newspapers. the uncollected and posthumous poetry is varied, but just as excellent if not better than the poems in the two collections.

this edition is quite attractive, a nice size with a mostly competent introductory essay that sheds light on the background of the publishing of crane's two collections. the print itself is generally clean and attractive, although occasionally there are some notable flaws in the printing where a line is too dark or too light. all in all, though, this collection is highly recommended as it is complete and crane's poetry is well worth reading and timelessly relevant.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's between Frost and Crane, March 23, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Complete Poems of Stephen Crane (Paperback)

The other reviews say it well. Crane is compact and wonderful. HOWEVER, I cannot emphasize Crane's importance to poetry enough. Although Frost is likely the most important american poet in terms of popularity, Crane set up a dynamic for non-metered poetry which was unprecedented. This is the first example (to my best knowledge) of a conscious effort to move poetry towards it's current incarnation of compact/truncated prose. Adherents to meter dismiss rap, etc... as non-poetic forms....but, I believe they are wrong. These are not prose poems. They are poems. Very concise. Very lucid. Unlike my review....