Images

When I flipped to Pound's "In a Station of the Metro" I spent a solid minute trying to find the rest of the poem. I initially agreed with Dr. Hicok's assertion of his insanity and wondered why anyone would bother writing--let alone publishing--a two-line poem.
But his every word hung heavy with imagery. Pound himself wrote, "Use no superfluous word, no adjective which does not reveal something," and he made his case by painting an enveloping--if morbid and morose--image in two short lines. Because it is so short every word had weight and impact; it punched with conciseness and direction.
The poetry in this week's reading followed that same theme of consise and vivid imagery. Stevens' "Blackbird" read as dozens of short, punctuating phrases, toggling between physicality and veiled metaphor. It is abstract but gripping.
This reminds me of Modernist art as well. The themes are very abstract as are the implemented styles, but the works as a whole are usually lucid and attention-grabbing. There are very few frills, a characteristic which defines the Modernist movement as a whole. It seems to me that Modernist prose, poetry, and art all tried to shed all the excess from the core of the subject, which is what allowed Modernist authors and artists to approach these themes from such revelationary perspectives.
After reading these pieces over the last two weeks, I have come to see Modernism as uncommon thought toward very common subjects.