At least then we are not guilty of infanticide. I would suspect that
everyone on this list is Humanitarily Correct.
Erik
--- Daniel Pearlman <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> Political Correctness requires that we dump out the
> baby with
> the bath-water. I guess not too many of us on this
> list could
> be Politically Verrry Corrrect if we're still
> holding on to
> the baby.
>
> ==Dan
>
> At 07:28 PM 9/6/99 -0700, you wrote:
> >How and where does anti-semitism effect or embody
> Pound's poetics? His
> >economics, personality, social views: yes. Imagism?
> Modernization of
> >dramatic monologue? the Vortex? free verse? where
> is anti-semitism
> >relevant in the development of any of these poetic
> achievments? In The
> >Cantos, do the fragments of anti-semitism consume
> the main poetic
> >themes and techniques which Pound strove to
> perfect? Pound was a great
> >poet, but like Villon, Chaucer, Hemmingway,and
> Joyce, was a suspected
> >asshole. Get over it. Be scholars and concern
> yourself with the
> >anti-semitism when it is necessary. When it arises,
> talk about it,
> >quote it, put it in proper context whether it makes
> Pound look like a
> >great guy or not. I would like to see more comments
> supported by
> >quotes, as I sometimes miss how these comments
> relate to the work (my
> >fault).
> >Erik Volpe
> >62 Waller St.
> >Providence, RI 02908
> >401 351 3619
> >--- Daniel Pearlman <[log in to unmask]>
> wrote:
> >
> >
> >
> >> By selective quotation, you softpedal the
> >> antisemitism of the
> >> 30s, which grew more and more severe.
> >>
> >> ==DP
> >>
> >>
> >> At 12:09 PM 9/6/99 -0800, you wrote:
> >> >If I may intrude my ignorance into this learned
> >> discussion one more time...
> >> >
> >> >EP's "anti-semitism" seems to me a much more
> >> complicated matter than
> >> >either his defenders or detractors appear to
> >> realize.
> >> >
> >> >1.From his earliest letters, poems & articles,
> EP
> >> had an "anti-Judaic"
> >> >positition,but I don't think this qualifies as
> >> "anti-semitic" because
> >> >it was part of his general "anti-monotheist"
> >> stance, and (I think)
> >> >always appears as part of a general rejection of
> >> Chrisitianity, Judaism
> >> >and Islam --"all this Xtian-Jew-Moslem bunk"as
> he
> >> sez in one place.
> >> >(Selected Leters)
> >> >B. In a 1919 aritcle,EP says he prfers the Jews
> to
> >> the Xtians and Moslems
> >> >because they haven't started a religious war in
> >> 2000 years (Selected Prose)
> >> >C.The anti-monotheist position seems part of
> that
> >> aspect of EP
> >> >which comes closest to conventional
> "liberalism":
> >> he dislikes monotheism
> >> >because it appears historically linked to
> >> intolerance.
> >> >[Okay: he also disliked monotheism on poetic
> >> grounds. His type
> >> >of multilinguistic/multicultural sensibility
> >> resonated more to
> >> >polytheistic imagery than to monotheistic
> >> abstraction
> >> >or to Hindic monist abstraction.]
> >> >
> >> >2. In the 1930s, Pound repudiated anti-semitism
> >> specifically and
> >> >precisely in several places. Having joined the
> >> anti-banker radicals
> >> >as distinct from the anti-free-market radicals,
> >> Pound found he
> >> >had a lot of anti-semitic allies. He was not
> >> quickly seduced by
> >> >them. His 1930-1940 writings include several
> >> explicit rejectons
> >> >of generalized anti-semitism, usually on the
> >> grounds that "the
> >> >poorJews"were not responsible for the
> Rothschilds,
> >> and twice on
> >> >the grounds that the worst "usurers"
> >> (money-coiners) were
> >> >not all Jews and once on the grounds that some
> of
> >> them were "Aryan"
> >> >-- a sarcastic repudiation of Hitler's ideas.
> >> (Collected Letters, Cantos,
> >> >Terrel's Companion to the Cantos.)
> >> >
> >> >3. From about 1940 to somewhere in the 1960s EP
> >> clearly
> >> >and unambigously expressed uncritical (bigoted)
> >> anti-semitism on
> >> >many, many occasions. Only rarely did he pull
> back
> >> to the
> >> >(relatively sane) position of only blaming
> certain
> >> banking families.
> >> >He raved and ranted against "the Jews" in
> general.
> >> >Some consider this immoral; some consider it
> >> insane;
> >> >I can see some truth in both perspectives.
> >> >
> >> >4.From sometime in the 1960s (date unknown to
> me: I
> >> wd
> >> >love to be informed by one of the more learned
> >> members of
> >> >this list ) EP repudiated his anti-semitism.
> (See
> >> especially
> >> >his interview with Allen Ginsberg) He then
> became
> >> silent,
> >> >either in clinical depression (psychiatric view)
> or
> >> as
> >> >pennance (religious view.) In either case, the
> >> punishment
> >> >inflicted upon him by the US govt was continued
> by
> >> >self-punishment.
> >> >
> >> >5. The anti-monotheist position disappeared
> around
> >> the same
> >> >time as the anti-semitism. The religious imagery
> of
> >> Pound's
> >> >paradise cantos very carefully remains
> >> non-sectarian,
> >> >open to both monotheist and polytheist readings.
> >> >
> >> >This letter does not arrive at a verdict, and
> does
> >> not intend
> >> >to move others toward a verdict or toward
> >> abandonning thier
> >> >previous verdicts. I merely wish to share my own
> >> sense
> >> >of the complexity and tragedy of Pound's "errors
> >> and wrecks."
> >> >Most of the Cantos seem to me neither error nor
> >> wreck.....
> >> >
> >> >
> >> >Most humbly,
> >> >
> >> >
> >> >mark chan
> >> >
> >> >
> >> >[log in to unmask]
> >> >
> >> >
> >> >That is precisely what common sense is for, to
> be
> >> jarred into uncommon
> >> >sense. One of the chief services whcih
> mathematics
> >> has rendered the
> >> >human race in the past century is to put "common
> >> sense" where it
> >> >belongs, on the topmost shelf next to the dust
> >> cannister labeled
> >> >"discarded nonsense."
> >> > Eric Temple Bell, Mathematics: Queen
> of
> >> the Sciences
>
=== message truncated ===
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