Professor Tytell includes a memorable account in his biography of
Leopardi leading the machine gun charge on Fiume in 1921 or whenever.
 
The great poet died in 1837.  D'Annunzio led the charge.
 
Mistakes like that one do cause one to lose confidence in Tytell's
grasp of the Italian background.
 
Consider a biographer who said that Whitman served in the ambulance
corps in World War I. . . .
 
By the way, GREAT conference on modernism at Penn State last week.
Thanks to Michael Coyle and Gail McDonald.
 
Cheers!
 
Tim Redman
 
On Thu, 14 Oct 1999 09:16:20 -0400 Robert Yunk <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
 
> Leon Edel says of Tytell's work: "The best and most balanced critical
> biography of Ezra Pound -- Tytell maintains a striking balance between the
> rambunctious man and the gifted poet and tells his story not as an act of
> judgment but as a searching inquiry into the madness of art."
>
> I must admit, there is also a LARGE photo of Tytell reclining in a wicker
> chair on the back that made me laugh.  His posture seems so pompous and
> self-serving, but so many of these "academics" come off this way.
>
> The reason I brought this up is that there is a particular section in which
> Tytell discusses Pound's reading of The Seafarer at a dinner party for Amy
> Lowell in London...I wanted to use it in my thesis but I don't want to cite
> a work that is going to be criticized...my professors have given me mixed
> messages...one calling Tytell "a fool and a knave" and another offering
> blank support.  I've already used Wilhelm, Stock, Carpenter, and Kenner in
> this thesis...
>
> My personal view, after interrogating the other biographies, is that
> Tytell's work is acceptable...his Notes section is loosely attributed and
> yet thorough (no strict citation, but he has extensive 'works consulted'
> sections for each chapter)...he uses many primary sources drawing directly
> from unpublished letters in some cases, while at the same time covering
> major works.  Of course I didn't know about the "African gods" mistake...
 
Tim Redman
School of Arts and Humanities, JO 31
University of Texas at Dallas
P.O. Box 830688
Richardson, TX  75083-0688
 
(972) 883-2775 (o)
(972) 883-2989 (fax)