As usual, I probably overreact.  "Imagist" seems to work well as a
description of a certain approach to a particular poem.  But from
"Imagist Poem" or "Imagist Passage" to "Imagist Poet" or "Imagism" is a
leap.  When the question becomes, "who was the best Imagist poet?", it
starts getting really hairy for me.  Does that question refer to a poet
who limited herself or himself to the qualities described by an imagist
platform?  Or would it include any poet in any language at any time from
whose works one could cull passages or short poems that fit the Imagist
description?  Would the greatest single such passage confer the title
"Greatest Imagist Poet" upon the writer?  Or would there have to be some
set volume of Imagist passages for him or her to qualify?

Do we include Basho in this?  Li Po?  Sappho?

Ricks' suggestion of finding Imagist passages in the Cantos is a good
one if you have a strong personal preference for such passages.  But, if
you read all of the Cantos, you will find many, many lovely "Imagist"
passages, and many beautiful "Non-Imagist" passages.  For this reason
(though there are others less weighty), I can't call Pound, the inventor
of "Imagism", an Imagist poet.  And, in that context, I find it
difficult to believe in Imagism or imagism.


Brennen Lukas wrote:

> Ok I'll bite. Why don't you believe in imagism?
>
>>
>> I  actually don't believe in imagism, so to an answer to your question
>> would be similar to answering questions about (as the Tibetan Lamas use
>> for an example) a rabbit with horns.
>>
>> ricks wrote:
>>
>>> Brennen
>>>
>>> You still haven't answered my question.  Who was a better Imagist than
>>> Pound?  Not Amygist; Imagist.
>>>
>
>
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