Joe,
I would agree that, as it stands, Robert's remark smacks of academic
chauvinism, but to characterize it as "most absurd" is to overstate things more
than a little. The allusive nature of much (though by no means all!) of Pound's
poetry, his use of archaism, of foreign tongues, et cetera, all require readers
to have a certain kind of knowledge, or at least it requires of them a
willingness to expend considerable effort in looking things up if they do not
have that knowledge firsthand from their own reading or experience.  The Cantos
are not intended for "the casual reader". If Robert were to replace the phrase
"the academic" with "the serious reader" wouldn't his statement have a grain of
truth?
Tim Romano
 
Joe Brennan wrote:
 
> Robert Kibler wrote:
>
> <<His poetry, too, is arguably that best suited for the researcher, for the
> academic. The Cantos are the professor's friend more so than they are the
> friend of those who would simply open up a page randomly on the bookshelf.
> >>
>
> this is arguably one of the most absurd statements on Pound that I've ever
> read.
>
> joe brennan....