The verse and criticism which he produced during the early years of the
twentieth century very largely determined the directions of creative
writing in our time; virtually every major poet in England and America
today has acknowledged his help or influence. Pound's lyric genius, his
superb technique, and his fresh insight into literary problems make him
one of the small company of men who through the centuries have kept
poetry alive--one of the great innovators.
This book offers a compact yet representative selection of Ezra Pound's
poems and translations. The span covered is Pound's entire writing
career, from his early lyrics and the translations of Provençal songs to
his English version of Sophocles' Trachiniae. Included are parts of
his best known works--the Chinese translations, the sequence called
Hugh Selwyn Mauberly, the Homage to Sextus Propertius. The Cantos,
Pound's major epic, are presented in generous selections, chosen to
emphasize the main themes of the whole poem.