Imagism and Imagist Poets “An image is that which presents an intellectual and emotional complex in an instant in time.” – Ezra Pound

Imagism The Imagist movement of the 20th century included both English and American poets. Written in free verse Short-lived movement starting 1912 and ending in 1918 Strand of Modernism – which was a movement that made a conscious break from the past and its literary structure. Devoted to the “clarity of expression through use of precise visual images” It was influenced by Chinese and Japanese poetry, like haiku and tanka, which evoke emotional responses

The Imagist Manifesto #1: “To use the language of common speech, but employ always the exact word, not the nearly exact, nor the merely decorative word.” So what does this mean? Imagists expressed the essence of an object, person, or incident without providing an explanation. There is no interpretation needed in Imagist poems. They mean exactly what they say.

The Poets of the Imagist Movement Ezra Pound was born in 1885 in Idaho. He taught at Wabash College for two years then travelled to Europe where he became interested in Chinese and Japanese poetry In 1914, he moved to Italy and became involved in the Fascist movement which caused him to be arrested for treason In 1946 he was released from prison after being declared mentally ill He died in Venice in 1972.

The Poets of the Imagist Movement William Carlos Williams was born in 1883. Before and while involved in the Imagist movement, his primary occupation was a pediatrician in New Jersey. Believed his experiences as a pediatrician helped him find inspiration as a poet The focus of his poetry was on capturing the essence of modern American life by showing ordinary people, objects, and experiences Received the Pulitzer in 1963 for his final volume of poetry Died that year from a heart attack

The Poets of the Imagist Movement H.D (Hilda Doolittle) was born in Pennsylvania in 1886 She met Pound and became involved in the Imagist movement at the age of 15 Her early poetry was based after Greek lyrics which emphasized light, color, and physical texture of objects Later work was more focused on World Wars I and II and the ideas of the human psyche based on the work of Sigmund Freud She died in 1961.