There Shall be No Commerce Between Us Pound, Yet There is Literary Respect

    I am at a crossroads with Ezra Pound. How am I to praise his intellect without praising the man? How am I to claim the genius of his writing without flattering his worldview and political beliefs? How can I complement his poetry and alienate his ethics at the same time? This feat shall be difficult, much like the day we “set keel to breakers, forth on the godly sea, and We set up mast and sail on that swart ship,” but I shall give it my best.

   Pound’s use of historical and literal figures throughout his poetry speaks volumes of his intellect. His ability to infuse these historical and literary figures into his poetry with ease furthers the argument that Pound may have indeed had the most impressive literary mind of his time. Such a case can be made after reading Canto I and furthered with the reading of the remainder works recorded in The Cantos.

    In Canto I, Pound takes his readers on a journey with Odysseus as he sets sail to travel into Hades to seek advice from Tiresias. Pound writes this poem as if he is one of the crew who travels with Odysseus (He often uses the word “we” when speaking of the crew), which draws his audience into his poem even more, setting the mood which the audience is to read the text. In a way to both reach a more vast audience and to pay homage to Andreas Divus, (The man who translated the Greek epic into Latin) Pound tends to use the Roman names for the gods as he takes the reader through this Greek epic. His ability to use this tool successfully, allowing the reader to connect with the work no matter their bias in mythology, is the most incredible apologetic to his literary capabilities that he possesses (that is to relate to his audience). His ability to continue this feat throughout The Cantos strengthens such a claim.

      Though I exalt Pound’s literary capabilities, it must be made clear that I denounce his social and political stance. For more on his worldview, I suggest you look him up. There is not enough room to write on the problems associated with his worldview.

        Hasmukh Amathala’s poem New Approach is political in meaning. I choose this poem to write on alongside of Pound due to Amathala’s desire to see change in how politics are handled. Coming from a liberal point of view, Amthala first claims to seek help for people from their struggles. He continues to speak on ways that a person can work and strive to better themselves, which mostly consists of knowing the right people and gaining the benefits of knowing these people, such as political power and recognition. He argues people will know you by those you are associated with. His liberal view is prevalent when he claims he wants to help people but insists that religion is no help at all. Most religions, whether you agree with them or not, provide hope for the believers. Hope begins the process of a one striving to be better, so why say it is a bad thing? pound shared some of these political views.