Ezra Pound Research Paper

Ezra Pound

Ezra Pound can be regarded as a literary genius, artistic revolutionary, narcissistic fascist, or even an insane economist, some consider him all of the above, but it is unquestionable that Ezra Pound is one of the greatest literary contributors of his time. Having led a life filled with many experiences, accomplishments, and different literary projects within his 87 years, it earned him influence and prestige during his time. Being the strong driving force in the creation and impact of many notable literary trends and movements garnered additional notability for Pound across any era. Along with being so well versed and charismatic that his character helped to inspire and shape some of the most recognized authors of his time and

In 1922 T.S. Eliot sent Pound a copy of his manuscript for The Waste Land, Ezra edited it extensively for his friend. Earnest Hemingway also asked Ezra to blue-ink his short stories and in doing so the two formed a lifelong friendship. That fall, Pound was introduced to the American violinist Olga Rudge; the two spent the next summer together in the south of France while Ezra worked more in depth with vorticism. He collaborated with American composer George Antheil in the writing of two operas, and also wrote several solo violin pieces for Olga to perform. In 1924 the Pounds relocated once again, this time to Rapallo, Italy, where Ezra rekindled his focus on Cantos. During this period they lived off of his wife’s income and the payoffs from a stock she had chosen to invest in. Olga on the other hand, followed Ezra to Italy because she was pregnant with his child, giving birth to a daughter, Mary, in 1925. Unprepared to be a parent, Olga decided to leave the baby with a peasant woman who agreed to raise the child in good care. Ezra admitted his extramarital child to his wife Dorothy that winter, who in turn left him for the next 4 months, she returned to him in March, and found out she was pregnant with his child in June. They left their home to attend the premier of Ezra’s opera, Le Testament de Villon in Paris, that September Hemingway drove Dorothy to an American hospital for the birth of Pound’s son, Omar. Dorothy gave the child to her mother Olivia, to raise in London until he was old enough for school. In 1927 Ezra introduced The Exile, his own magazine, but it was short lived with only four issues and in 1928 he won the Dial’s poetry award for his translation of Confucius: Ta Hio: The Great Learning. During the 1930’s pound became increasingly interested in history and economics, he studied political policies and began to favor fascism as a basis for finance reform, he