Wallace Stevens

Wallace Stevens (October 2, 1879 - August 2, 1955) was an American Modernist poet.

Reception and influence

From the first, critics and fellow poets recognized Stevens's genius. While in college, he exchanged sonnets with George Santayana. In the 1930s, the rationalist Yvor Winters criticized Stevens as a decadent hedonist but acknowledged his great talent. Hart Crane wrote to a friend in 1919, after reading some of the poems that would make up Harmonium, "There is a man whose work makes most of the rest of us quail." Beginning in the 1940s, critics such as Randall Jarrell spoke of Stevens as one of the major living American poets, even if they did so (as Jarrell did) with certain reservations about Stevens?s work.

Related Topics:
George Santayana - Yvor Winters - Hart Crane - Randall Jarrell

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Stevens? work became even better known after his death. Harold Bloom was among the critics who have ensured Stevens? position in the canon as a great poet, and perhaps the greatest American poet of the 20th century. Other major critics, such as Helen Vendler and Frank Kermode, have added their voices and analysis to this verdict. Many poets—James Merrill and Donald Justice most explicitly—have acknowledged Stevens as a major influence on their work, and his impact may also be seen in John Ashbery, Mark Strand, John Hollander, and others.

Related Topics:
Harold Bloom - Helen Vendler - Frank Kermode - James Merrill - Donald Justice - John Ashbery - Mark Strand - John Hollander

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