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Imagist Poetry. English III. Background info. A poetry movement started in the early 20 th century Came from an idea by T.E. Hulme who was promoting writing poems with the least amount of verbiage (words) possible
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Imagist Poetry English III
Background info • A poetry movement started in the early 20th century • Came from an idea by T.E. Hulme who was promoting writing poems with the least amount of verbiage (words) possible • First tenet of The Imagist Manifesto: “To use the language of common speech, but to employ always the exact word, not the nearly-exact, nor the merely decorative word."
What is imagist poetry? • It was a reaction to the abstract nature of Romanticism • It wanted to replace vague language with exact detail. • Basically, Imagists thought you should get to the point and, if you could say something in less words, do so. • Most of these poems center around one distinct image, and the poets describe that central image using all five senses and descriptive detail.
Imagist Poets • Famous Imagist poets include: William Carlos Williams, Ezra Pound, H.D., and D.H. Lawrence (to name a few). • Ezra Pound defined Imagist poetry: I. Direct treatment of the "thing," whether subjective or objective. II. To use absolutely no word that does not contribute to the presentation. III. As regarding rhythm: to compose in sequence of the musical phrase, not in sequence of the metronome.
Example of Imagist Poem Fog The fog comes on little cat feet. It sits looking over harbor and city on silent haunches and then moves on. -Carl Sandburg-
Questions • What did Sandburg compare the fog to? • To which of the five senses did he appeal? • What are some examples of descriptive details or imagery he uses?