The Ugliness in Pound's Poetry: A Matter of Style or Ideological Content? (continued) <<Your point Wei often seems to be that what Pound sees in this double connection is manufactured and false to history, far from what any Chinese thinker of the time could relate to.>> Which time are you refering to? And what Chinese thinkers? Many, many Chinese thinkers, especially poets, dramatists, and even Confucian scholars have written extensively on the degree to which history is manufactured and falsified. This is arguably the main theme of Chinese historiography. One of Pound's greatest defects as a "thinker" is his one-dimensional approach to Chinese history (and toward history in general, I would argue). <<We also know that Mussolini and other fascists in power thought EP a mad man, author of obscure, difficult texts -- the writings in themselves having no use for Fascism but the man presented them with the possibility of a diverting spectacle.>> An interesting summary. But the fascist authorities put Pound on the Radio for a reason, and Pound was happy to oblidge. I don't recall that Mussolini ever said he thought Pound was a madman, and as far as the bureaucrats in Miniculpop were concerned, there was severe disagreement as to what use his work could be. Some suggested he might be mad, others defended him; and the defenders won out. Thus, Pound spewed out the equivalent of several hundred pages of prose over the radio, which was pre-approved, and examined prior to broadcast. Much of it was very abstruse, but none of it was found to contradict fascist political principles; and much of it was directly supportive of Hitler, Mussolini, and Hirohito. IF this were not the case, the broadcasts would not have been allowed for such an extended period. If you have read the broadcasts in their entirety, you will agree, I think, with the obsevations I have made in this paragraph. <<So, if Wei is correct in seeing a particular ugliness in the overlay of Confucianism and fascism, the question remains: of what use is such a perception? >> If only this were a simple overlay. But that is not a valid summary of my perception. At the risk of being accused of repetition, I will repeat it: Pound's use of Confucianism is thoroughly intertwined with his admiration for fascism. This authoritarian strain of his thought is not a mere addition, but forms the ideological basis of his work. It informs, taints, or affects virtually all his views on major social, political,economic, and religious matters. The vast bulk of the Cantos is imbued with this ideological outlook (as are all his major prose works, and many minor ones as well). To call it an overlay, is to mistake a part of the essential nature of his work for a simple surface feature. <<Or are we to take seriously Achilles Fang's notion that EP is in fact a major figure in the Confucian tradition? >> Pound called himself a Confucian on countless occasions, and (strangely enough) wrote more about Confucius IN AN UNCONDITIONALLY POSTIVE MODE, than virtually any significant twentieth century Chinese figure. Achilles Fang's notion is right, in this sense. The fact that Pound re-wrote (or "translated"--I use the term losely) all FOUR CONFUCIAN books --- (excluding Mencius--which he summarized in a prose essay), the Confucian Analects, PLUS numerous other Sung Confucian texts (and the Comprehensive Mirror, in the China Cantos)-- must indicate a STRONG committment to Confucianism. And we have not even seriously dealt with the issue of Pound's frequent use of Chinese written chararcters in the Cantos, and in other works. This move has both aesthetic and socio-political implications, which need exploring. The use of Chinese characters, East Asian history, Confucian philosophy, ethics, and metaphysics, are all central to and parallel with Pound's use of Fascist philosophy, in even more ways than have been mentioned thus far. Regards, Wei ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com