Jan 2, 2010

The Poetry of Stevens | The Poetry of Stevens

At a glance:

Critical Evaluation:

Wallace Stevens’ poetry has been called both “elegant” and “austere.” It has been criticized for “an air of sumptuousness, chic, expensiveness, ’conspicuous consumption,’” as well as for bleakness, abstractness, a lack of personal warmth. Neither of these criticisms, however, says much about Stevens, who, according to Northrop Frye, was a rhetorician and therefore expendable, but an essential poet.

Stevens’ first and perhaps most “elegant,” least “austere,” volume of poems, HARMONIUM, was unlike many first volumes...

[The entire page is 1748 words long]

Join eNotes

The above is a free excerpt. Get total access to this content with the:

©2000-2010 Enotes.com Inc.
All Rights Reserved