The poem is Pound's written equivalent for the moment of revelation and intense emotion he felt at the Paris Metro's Concorde station. The poem is essentially
a set of images that have unexpected likeness and convey the rare emotion that Pound was experiencing
at that time.
Why is in a station of the Metro a metaphor?
The metaphor
stays with you because the ground has been laid by that initial abstraction
: “apparition.” Without it, I don't think this poem would have the same hold on your memory. The way “apparition” points us towards the kind of experience the perceiver has is more profound than simply, “these faces in the crowd.”
What is the literary device in the station of the Metro?
This poem contains both
alliteration and consonance
, two related literary devices that allow its short form to link disparate images with sound. There are only a few instances of each, and they all occur in the poem's second line.
What is being compared in in a station of the Metro?
At any rate, the faces in the subway are being compared
to flowers on a tree branch
. Another fact to keep in mind is that Japan is famous for its beautiful flowering trees, and considering that this poem is written in Japanese haiku style . . . well, heck, he might just be thinking of a Japanese tree.
What is Ezra Pound describing in the poem in a station of the Metro?
In short, ‘In a Station of the Metro' briefly encapsulates the main driving idea behind the Imagist movement. Ezra Pound once defined an image as
‘an intellectual and emotional complex in an instant of time
‘, and this is exactly what this poem offers.
What makes in a station of the Metro an imagist poem?
Pound's two-line poem is a famous example of “imagism,” a poetic form spear-headed by Pound that
focuses above all on relating clear images through precise, accessible language
. In just 20 words (including the title!), this poem manages to vividly evoke both a crowded subway station and petals on a tree branch.
How is in a station of the Metro like a haiku?
“In a Station of the Metro” is a type of poem called a haiku (sometimes spelled “hokku”) a traditional Japanese nature-image poem of precisely
17 syllables
. Pound's haiku has 19 syllables, 12 in the first line and 7 in the last.
What impression of the Heat do these verbs create?
The verbs the speaker uses to lessen the heat are; cut the heat and plow through it. These verbs give the heat's impression that
it is very bad and hard to get through
.
What is literary Imagism?
Imagism was
a movement in early-20th-century Anglo-American poetry that favored precision of imagery and clear, sharp language
. … Imagism is sometimes viewed as “a succession of creative moments” rather than a continuous or sustained period of development.
What is the tone of the poem In a Station of the Metro?
The poem has
an unmistakably somber tone
, even though we may not, at a first pass, be able to say precisely why. The content of the poem seems to be just the description of a moment in a subway station, when the people appear to look (somehow) like petals stuck to a branch.
What does absolutely no word that does not contribute to the presentation mean?
Imagism
was a sub-genre of Modernism concerned with creating clear imagery with sharp language. The essential idea was to re-create the physical experience of an object through words. … To use absolutely no word that does not contribute to the presentation.
Why is the image of petals on a wet black bough surprising?
So Pound uses some intense natural imagery to describe the “wet, black bough” to which the petals are attached. This image
connects to our sense of sight and touch
, so the reader feels like he or she could reach out and pluck the faces out of the scene like a flower from a tree.
Why do you think pound chose to use the word apparition rather than appearance?
He uses the word apparition to describe the way in which the faces appear. He could have used the word appearance, but chose instead to
use a word that has a ghostly, otherworldly effect on the text
. In addition to unusual word choice, Pound also employs unusual sentence structure.
How do the authors of “A Psalm of Life” and “Auspex” use different images to illustrate their themes?
“Psalm” contains primarily images of battle and human interactions
, while “Auspex” focuses on natural imagery. … Highlight the words in the text that seem to be most important to the poet's theme.
Was Wallace Stevens an Imagist?
Wallace Stevens
was not an Imagist
; in fact, he was critical of Imagism as a literary movement.
Was Carlos Williams an Imagist?
With Ezra Pound and H.D., Williams was
a leading poet of the Imagist movement
and often wrote of American subjects and themes. … Though his career was initially overshadowed by other poets, he became an inspiration to the Beat generation in the 1950s and 60s.
What is negative capability in literature?
negative capability, a writer's ability, “
which Shakespeare possessed so enormously,” to accept “uncertainties, mysteries, doubts, without any irritable reaching after fact and reason
,” according to English poet John Keats, who first used the term in an 1817 letter.
How does Ezra pounds in a station of the Metro embody the ideals of modernism and Imagism?
5. How does Ezra Pound's “In a Station of the Metro” embody the ideals of Modernism and Imagism? Sample response:
Pound rejected tradition by writing a 14-word poem
. He also expressed the disillusionment of the era by stating that nothing is permanent and that people are isolated from each other.
What does this is just to say poem meaning?
Temptation, Guilt, and Simple Pleasures
“This Is Just To Say” can be understood as a
poem about the simple pleasures of everyday life
. To illustrate this, the poem features a speaker who has eaten chilled plums that another person—perhaps the speaker's lover—was saving.
Why did Ezra Pound reduce in a station of the metro from 30 lines to?
Why did Ezra Pound reduce “In a Station of the Metro” from 30 lines to two?
He wanted to make the poem more concise and direct
. What ideal of imagist poetry is best reflected in this poem by Ezra Pound in which he compares a crowded metro station to a flowering tree branch?
Who said image is an intellectual and emotional complex in an instant of time?
The essay begins with the three principles of imagism, including “Direct treatment of the ‘thing'.”
Pound
defines “image” as “an intellectual and emotional complex in an instant of time.” He elaborates on the “rules” of imagism, advising precision, and proclaiming, among other things, “Use either no ornament or good …
Where do I start with Ezra Pound?
- ‘In a Station of the Metro'. …
- ‘The Return'. …
- ‘The Seafarer'. …
- ‘Hugh Selwyn Mauberley'. …
- The Cantos.
What poems should not do?
- Cliché In case you don't know, clichés are overused phrases. …
- Melodrama. …
- Doing Thing To Sound “Poetic” …
- Abusing Figures of Speech like Metaphor and Simile. …
- Your Free Verse is Prose With Line Breaks.
Why doesn't pound include the phrase looks like at the beginning of the second line?
Why doesn't Pound include the phrase “looks like” at the beginning of the second line? … Pound could have used the word “
appearance” in the first
line.
What emotions does the imagery of petals and water in the poems second line convey?
If the petals symbolize the beauty of such fleeting moments, and the rain symbolizes the bleakness and uncertainties of life, this image can evoke
comfort and serenity or apprehension and uncertainty
depending upon the predilections of the reader.
HOW DOES A Psalm of Life and Auspex differ in how they describe the concept of time?
How do “A Psalm of Life” and “Auspex” differ in how they describe the concept of time?
“Psalm” suggests that the passage of time cannot defeat the soul
, while “Auspex” indicates that it can.
What tells you that the word heart is important in both poems analyze word choice imagery and structure?
How does each poet use word choice to create tone and imagery? What tells you that the word “heart” is important in both poems? … The word “
heart” is a stressed syllable in each poem
and part of a key image related to the theme. Which lines from “A Psalm of Life” contain an example of enjambment?
How are the speakers of Auspex and A Psalm of Life similar?
How are the speakers of “Auspex” and “A Psalm of Life” similar?
Both are angry to see time passing
. Both contemplate a kind of loss. Both are deeply and desperately in love.
