| "Without
question, Wilhelm's study is the most detailed analysis of this period
of Pound's life we have or are likely to have soon. Wilhelm has turned
to a wide variety of sources (both here and abroad) that have never
been examined before and the result is a thorough and penetrating
analysis of the tumultuous life and complex works of this major figure.
It will be essential reading for Pound scholars and for students of
modern literature who want to know more about Pound's life as well
as for those who wish to understand the complex relations between
literature, culture, and politics in the period between the two wars."’—Stuart
Y. McDougal, University of Michigan
This
third and final volume of Wilhelm's life of Ezra Pound commences
with Pound's departure from Paris at the height of his writing career
for Italy, where he hoped to find a quieter life, and it takes him
to his death in 1972. It tells of Pound's foolish support of the
fascists during World War II and his subsequent incarceration by
the Allies in a camp where he wrote some of his finest poetry, The
Pisan Cantos. Wilhelm chronicles Pound's escape from being tried
for treason on the grounds of insanity only to be remanded to St.
Elizabeth's Hospital for twelve years. Pound ultimately returned
to Italy, where he died in 1972.
Part
of Wilhelm's strength as a biographer is his deep immersion in Pound's
poetry and prose, as well as his knowledge of the complexities of
the publishing history of Pound's work. Wilhelm quotes extensively
from Pound's poetry, with many illuminating comments on the biographical
background of the Cantos. He also discusses Pound's influence on
an entire generation of poets ranging from Robert Lowell to Allen
Ginsberg.
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