Pound

With usura hath no man a house of good stone, each block cut smooth and well fitting, that design might cover their face. With usura hath no man a painted paradise on his church wall, harpes et lux, that virgin may receiveth message, halo projects from incision

(Search 'In A Station of the Metro', obviously.)

Actually that distinction between 'artists' and 'shakers' might be a goer, in all kinds of contexts.

TS: Pound vs Kenner

OTOH, Pound did more than any English speaker in the 20th century to advance the art of translation. IMO, most of his best works are translations. I do agree that his major importance was as an irritant and a catalyst, an explainer and a complainer, a self-conscious gadfly and a theorist. He was one of the people who shaped modern poetry.

Unquestionably, Ezra is the best poet ever born in Idaho. I think we can all agree to that.

(+ cf Bunting on the Alps, bien sur)

PITCHFOX ON THE FOXING CHINESE CHARACYTERTING KUNG-FU-TSEUING qomaam outside th3e pub tonighingt monety

cantos overrated, how you like them challops?

insert chinese ideogram for "RONG" here

The best pro-Pounding critical assessment I have read is The Pound Era by Hugh Kenner. He neatly proves that, if your head is stuffed with the proper grabbag of allusions and you are willing to read, sift, reread and resift the Cantos, then they will appear to you as richly suggestive works of art.

However, Kenner failed to persuade me that remodeling my brain along the lines of Pound's personal crochets would make me sexier, more handsome, a better cook or a happier person, but only that I would be able to better appreciate the Cantos. This wasn't a weighty enough reason for me to undertake the task, so I still find them densely inedible.