Ezra Pound
Posted: Mon Nov 22, 2021 7:12 pm
I have the poet Ezra Pound's birth time as 30 October 1885 at 15:00 (= 3:00 PM ) from astro.com.
"I knew at 15 pretty much what I wanted to do. I resolved that at 30 I would know more about poetry than any man living, that I would know what was accounted poetry everywhere, what part of poetry was 'indestructable,' what part could not be lost by translation- and scarcely less important- what effects were obtainable in one language only and were utterly incapable of being translated. In this search I learned more or less of nine foreign languages. I read Oriental stuff... I fought every university regulation and every professor who tried to make me learn anything except this, or who bothered me with 'requirements for degrees.'" - Pound
"He defends them when they are attacked, he gets them into magazines and out of jail. He loans them money. He sells their pictures. He arranges concerts for them. He writes articles about them. He introduces them to wealthy women. He gets publishers to take their books. He sits up all night with them when they claim to be dying and he witnesses their wills. He advances them hospital expenses and dissuades them from suidice. And in the end a few of them refrain from knifing him at the first opportunity." - Hemingway on Pound
I remember reading the Wikipedia article on Ezra Pound when I was in college. He struck me as a very interesting man. It seemed he decided what he wanted to do with his life and he did that. I was impressed with the Hemingway quote about him. I wanted to have a friend group like that too.
I kind of skimmed the article at the time. Later in his life he supported the Axis in World War II and was confined to a mental ward for many years. I thought it was kind of weird but you know, he sounded like a good guy to me still. He said the US could have democracy and Italy could have fascism. They were different countries.
Later in his life, after the institution, he apparently stopped talking. I was reading Allen Ginsberg's biography last year and he went to visit Pound, who barely spoke.
This year I read Pound's Wikipedia article in full. It was a lot more negative than a decade ago. Him supporting Italy, railing against Jews, etc.
I am very curious. What was this man actually like? I have a biography of his (A Serious Character) that I bought years ago but have not finished. He apparently influenced all of 20th century English poetry. Robert Anton Wilson talked about his Cantos (which I haven't read either).
I took a look at his chart but I don't know much about astrology. It looks like he has Neptune opposing his Mercury. Maybe that influenced his poetry. That's about all I can really tell. Any thoughts on him?
"I knew at 15 pretty much what I wanted to do. I resolved that at 30 I would know more about poetry than any man living, that I would know what was accounted poetry everywhere, what part of poetry was 'indestructable,' what part could not be lost by translation- and scarcely less important- what effects were obtainable in one language only and were utterly incapable of being translated. In this search I learned more or less of nine foreign languages. I read Oriental stuff... I fought every university regulation and every professor who tried to make me learn anything except this, or who bothered me with 'requirements for degrees.'" - Pound
"He defends them when they are attacked, he gets them into magazines and out of jail. He loans them money. He sells their pictures. He arranges concerts for them. He writes articles about them. He introduces them to wealthy women. He gets publishers to take their books. He sits up all night with them when they claim to be dying and he witnesses their wills. He advances them hospital expenses and dissuades them from suidice. And in the end a few of them refrain from knifing him at the first opportunity." - Hemingway on Pound
I remember reading the Wikipedia article on Ezra Pound when I was in college. He struck me as a very interesting man. It seemed he decided what he wanted to do with his life and he did that. I was impressed with the Hemingway quote about him. I wanted to have a friend group like that too.
I kind of skimmed the article at the time. Later in his life he supported the Axis in World War II and was confined to a mental ward for many years. I thought it was kind of weird but you know, he sounded like a good guy to me still. He said the US could have democracy and Italy could have fascism. They were different countries.
Later in his life, after the institution, he apparently stopped talking. I was reading Allen Ginsberg's biography last year and he went to visit Pound, who barely spoke.
This year I read Pound's Wikipedia article in full. It was a lot more negative than a decade ago. Him supporting Italy, railing against Jews, etc.
I am very curious. What was this man actually like? I have a biography of his (A Serious Character) that I bought years ago but have not finished. He apparently influenced all of 20th century English poetry. Robert Anton Wilson talked about his Cantos (which I haven't read either).
I took a look at his chart but I don't know much about astrology. It looks like he has Neptune opposing his Mercury. Maybe that influenced his poetry. That's about all I can really tell. Any thoughts on him?