Abstract/Summary

This thesis examines the letters written by Ezra Pound between 1925 when he settled in Rapallo, Italy and his repatriation to stand trial for treason in late 1945. While they do not provide the raw material to create a reliable chronology of the poet’s work, feelings and activities, the letters offer another interpretative lens. The fragments of opinion, experience, prejudice and polemic in the correspondence expose a series of contradictions: the poet utilises the most personal of literary forms—the letter—and yet does so in a largely impersonal way; seeks to create literary groups and yet is an individualist; wishes to re-invent civilisation but chooses isolation from centres of power; with correspondence essential to pursuing his expanding agendas, as well as overcoming isolation, writes in a way that is often unintelligible; preaches collaboration and is a generous networker, but is dictatorial in what people should read and think; emphasises clearly stated beliefs and action while embracing the vague and inconsistent abstractions of fascism; has a high opinion of his own power and ability to connect to the powerful, yet his influence is largely illusory; and regards literary knowledge as something acquired diligently, but announces himself a master of other disciplines. The contradictions offer an alternative chronology which allows for an understanding of Pound according to his preoccupations, passions and objectives repeated over decades. In so doing, this exploration of his correspondence suggests a significant disconnect with biographies of the poet. The letters dominated Pound’s time in the 1930s and the dramatis personae, style and tone of the letters specifically influenced The Pisan Cantos. This thesis concludes by exploring the relationship between the contradictions in Pound’s Rapallo correspondence and the precarious equilibrium of The Pisan Cantos.