Personae: The Shorter Poems of Ezra Pound [Hardcover]

Ezra Pound (Author), Lea Baechler (Author), A. Walton Litz (Contributor)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 1990

A new edition of Pound's groundbreaking shorter poems.

If the invention of literary modernism is usually attributed to James Joyce, T. S. Eliot and Ezra Pound, it was Pound alone who provided (in Hugh Kenner's words) "the synergetic presence") to convert individual experiment into an international movement. In 1926 Pound carefully sculpted his body of shorter poems into a definitive collection which would best show the concentration of force, the economy of means, and the habit of analysis that were, to him, the hallmarks of the new style.This collection, where Pound presented himself in a variety of characters or "masks," was called Personae. In 1926, Personae's publication gave solidity to a movement today the work stands as one of the classic texts of the twentieth century. Pound scholars Lea Baechler (of Columbia) and A. Walton Litz (Holmes Professor of English Literature at Princeton) have prepared a corrected text and supplied an informative "Note on the Text" explaining both Pound's original criteria for his selection and the volume's subsequent history.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Known for his delicate perception as well as his passionate opinions, Ezra Pound published this, his first collection of poetry, in 1926. Pound was as much a diviner as he was a poet, and his writing is as much observation and experience as it is prophecy. He was especially drawn to beauty and his writing extols the magnificence of profound emotion and the beguiling wonderment of intellect. From translations and reconstructions of pieces of ancient literature to his own postulations on art, love, and life, this is a worthy addition to any personal library.

Review

There is strength, virility, beauty, sensitiveness, intellectual ardor, and experimentation in this book. -- The New York Times Book Review, Herbert S. Gorman

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: New Directions Publishing Corporation; Revised edition (May 1, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811211207
• ISBN-13: 978-0811211208
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.7 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,957,252 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 An Excellent Collection, March 30, 2001

By 

Michael Tencer (NY, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Personae: The Shorter Poems (Revised Edition) (Paperback)

I don't know what the other reviewer is talking about, but the book is arranged just fine. In fact, one would think that with the addition of the Note on the Text it would be irrefutably clear how it was arranged & selected, but I guess at least one guy didn't think so. The majority of the book is roughly chronological in the way Ezra Pound chose. The poems are broken into groups: Poems of 1908-1911, Poems from Ripostes (1912), Poems from Blast (1914), Poems of Lustra (1913-1915), Cathay (1915), Poems of Lustra (1915-1916), & Poems of 1917-1920. There are then Appendixes added, the first consisting of Three Cantos (1917); the second, uncollected poems from 1912-1917; & the third, The Complete Poetical Works of T. E. Hulme, which was originally an appendix to the book Ripostes. & then there's the Note on the Text explaining this layout. They removed the post-1926 work, as this shall appear in a future revision of Pavannes and Divagations, and they left out a few previously appendixed poems since they are already printed in The Translations or in Collected Early Poems. & then they added a few extra poems in appendix, the two recently-published war poems of 1914-1915, the original version of "In a Station of the Metro," & the prose poem "Ikon." & that's all of it, as is clear from the table of contents & note on the text. Now then, all that aside, these are absolutely brilliant poems. They contain stunning beauty, humor, originality, depth, & unbelievable intelligence & imagination. Pound completely changed what poetry was capable of, paving the way for countless innovators since with his inimitable driving voice. It would be a terrible shame if folks passed over this book just because one guy gave it less than its deserved five stars. The editors certainly didn't lie about anything - just because Pound wrote three cantos in 1917 that weren't part of the famous Cantos doesn't mean you've been swindled. (If fact, the conclusion to the third early canto later became, with some modification, Canto I.) So, hopefully this clarifies things, so that more people will have the chance to read these terrific poems. I'd also suggest, if you like this book, getting the readings that Pound made of "Hugh Selwyn Mauberley," "Moeurs Contemporaines," & some other poems. The tape is still in print, & Ezra Pound is one of the best readers around, up there with John Cage, William Burroughs, James Joyce ... Enjoy.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Artist of the beautiful., October 5, 2005

By 

Duane Mulholland - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Personae: The Shorter Poems (Revised Edition) (Paperback)

This collection of Pound's earlier poems is the necessary companion of any modern poet. Especially noteworthy, and on display here, is the Pound Rhythm. Pound wrote poetry that embodied its own music. There is much to learn from Pound and in this volume he can be approached without the annotated index that is needed to tackle The Cantos.

6 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Pound is fantastic...but the editors?, June 6, 2000

By 

Andrew S Nicholson - See all my reviews

This review is from: Personae: The Shorter Poems (Revised Edition) (Paperback)

Personae is a work that Pound originally created himself with the intent that it would contain what he believed to be a good representation of his earlier work. Among many other things this means that we are forced to work our way through the muck of his early poems, which are obviously little more than an exercises that helped Pound be the fantastic poet that he is.

To further pain the reader, the editors of this edition of Personae have completely botched their job. One would think that being an editor of a book already set out by one of the greatest teachers of the 20th century (and one of the best ears for poetry) would be an easy enough job...they aparently worked at failing. I can't really say how well Pound did at putting this book together because the editors have admittedly added, removed and otherwise distorted the book out of Pound's original vision. To prove how horribly they did, there is a section of the book toward the end called "Three Cantos." Any reader familiar with Pound would expect it to be the Cantos he spent the later portion of his life writing: they're not. I have no idea what they are but the editors lied to the reader.

That said, the book also contains some of Pounds best works. Unfortunately I am forced to give this 5 star poet 3 stars, due to the harm done to me by the editors of Personae.