Historical and Cultural Connections – Symbolism and Imagism

Symbolism

As with many other art and literary movements, the Modernist movement had different schools of thought, or sub-groups, that shared common beliefs. For example, within the Romanticism movement, Transcendentalists and Dark Romantics flourished. While some views differed, like the belief of humans as inherently good or evil, they developed from the same basic thought: an emphasis on intuition and feeling over reason and logic. From Realism, Regionalism and Naturalism were born. As Modernism took root in the art, literature, and culture of the United States, a poetic movement called Imagism formed.

However, Imagism itself is an adaptation of another literary movement called Symbolism, which dominated French literature in the late 1800s. The Symbolist movement was heavily influenced by Edgar Allan Poe and American Romanticism. Symbolists attempted to create poetry that engaged the reader's sense of mystery and imagination. Symbolists believed that imagination was more reliable than reason and that at least a part of the human experience would never be fully understood or explained by reason or science.

The Symbolist literary movement is not the same as the literary device of symbolism. In fact, they are almost polar opposites. The Symbolist movement does not deal with symbols with which people are familiar. Symbolists believed that the most common symbols had been so widely overused that they no longer held any real value in poetry. Symbolism as a literary movement was intent upon rearranging appearances to evoke a more truthful sense of reality. Symbolists did not describe objects; they attempted to portray the emotional effects that objects produce in humans.

Imagism

The literary movement of Symbolism never fully took hold in America. In fact, the only aspect of Symbolism that not only took hold of but heavily influenced American poets was the ideal of a purification of language. Imagism was a literary movement, led by poet Ezra Pound, which focused on the use of free verse, common speech patterns, and clear concrete images.

The Imagists were a group of poets who wrote mostly from 1909 to 1917. They rebelled against sentimental or lofty poetry and traditional forms, instead demanding that poetry be built upon clear expression, concrete images, and everyday language. They believed in using free verse and fluid structure to convey images and ideas rather than following traditional structures or denoting classic themes. An Imagist poet worked to expose the essence of an object, person, or incident with little to no explanation. The idea was that an Imagist could freeze a single moment in time with words like a painter could with paint. Imagists pulled heavily from Japanese poetic forms like the haiku and tanka for inspiration. Although the form as a movement lasted less than two decades, the ideas of simple language, concrete images, fluent rhythms, and freezing a genuine moment in time persevered.

To better understand the Imagist movement and its influence today, you will be looking at several Imagist poets: Ezra Pound, William Carlos Williams, E.E. Cummings, and Hilda Doolittle.

 

Ezra Pound

Ezra Pound (1885-1972) believed that writers should "make it new." This would lead many poets of the time period to discard all of the forms and techniques of the past. At the same time, Pound was an enigma in that though he was preoccupied with originality, he drew upon ancient poetry, filling his poems with allusions. Unfortunately, Pound did not spend his last few years in popularity with the American public. He was a supporter of Benito Mussolini because he believed that a strong dictatorship was the most stable form of government under which to work and create. From 1925 to 1943, he spent a great deal of time in Italy. Then in 1945, he was arrested for treason against the American government. Eventually he was declared mentally unstable and was sequestered in a mental institute until his death.

William Carlos Williams

William Carlos Williams (1883–1963) was a pediatrician by trade. He felt that his career was his inspiration for his poetry. Williams followed Pound's ideas about experimenting with poetic forms, but he rejected the idea that one could still gain inspiration from ancient poetry. Williams did not use allusions in his poetry, but strived to capture the essence of ordinary American life. Although his poetry continued to be filled with Imagist ideals of concrete images that spoke for themselves, he did write many forms of poetry and even received the Pulitzer Prize in 1963.

E. E. Cummings

E. E. Cummings (1894–1962) wrote poetry that reflected Imagist ideas. He was known for his unconventional use of language, grammar, and punctuation, while evoking strong imagery. Cummings was a graduate of Harvard and had studied painting in Paris. He used his poetry to explore traditional ideas and universal concerns in concrete and innovative ways. Cummings also injected satire into his poems which made him the second most popular poet of his time (second to Robert Frost who you will look at later in this module).

H. D. (Hilda Doolittle)

Hilda Doolittle (1886–1961) was a protégé of Ezra Pound, whom she had met at the age of fifteen. He guided her poetry early on, and she later became a leader of the Imagist movement in London. Doolittle spent a great deal of time in England, France, and Switzerland, although she was originally from Pennsylvania and traveled back and forth to the United States. Doolittle focused on poems that were precise and direct and that emphasized color, light, and texture. She used everyday language, abandoned traditional forms, and sought to freeze single moments in time. She also wrote some prose, translated Greek poetry, and wrote a play, but she is best known for her quintessential Imagist poetry.

 

Imagism Review

Now that you have explored Imagist poetry, review your knowledge in this non-graded activity. First, read the question and check the boxes next to the correct answers. Second, drag the poem summaries on the right and drop them next to the corresponding poem on the left. Click on the player button to get started.