Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

"Epilogue" by Ezra Pound delves into the transience and fickleness of artistic fame, particularly the fleeting attention that poetry garners in the modern world. The poem self-reflexively comments on the status of poetry itself-its initial luster, its rapid descent into obscurity, and its residual, if compromised, emotional core. This cynical outlook offers a multifaceted exploration of the artist's relationship with their work and the ever-changing reception of art in society.

Pound begins by addressing the "chansons foregoing," referring to previous songs or poems that had once made a splash. He notes that these works were a "seven days' wonder," emphasizing their momentary fame. "When you came out in the magazines," he writes, "You created considerable stir in Chicago." The specificity of Chicago serves as a metonym for a broader, perhaps American, audience. However, what's striking is the sharp decline, the shift from being a "stir" to becoming "stale and worn out."

The comparison of these dated poems to "a hoop-skirt, a calash," underscores the idea that art, like fashion, is subject to the whims and fancies of public taste. Both the hoop-skirt and the calash are historical garments that had their moments of popularity before fading into antiquity. In this way, the poem laments the evanescent quality of artistic appreciation in a consumerist society, suggesting that poems are consumed, quickly digested, and then forgotten-becoming "transient antiquity."

Yet, Pound concludes on a complex note. "Only emotion remains," he asserts. This line could be seen as redemptive, a claim for the lasting power of the emotional impact of art. However, the final lines belie such an optimistic reading. When Pound states, "Your emotions? / Are those of a maitre-de-cafe," he dismisses even the emotional content of the poems as superficial and transactional. A maitre-de-cafe is concerned with the efficient functioning of a restaurant, ensuring customer satisfaction but lacking personal emotional investment. Pound, therefore, questions the depth and sincerity of the emotional core that remains in such transient art.

This skepticism aligns with Pound's modernist sensibilities, which often interrogate the efficacy of traditional forms and expressions in capturing the complexities of contemporary life. It's as if Pound is challenging poets, himself included, to rise above the transient trends and create art that retains its emotional and aesthetic significance over time.

"Epilogue" serves as a cautionary reminder of the pitfalls of poetic fame and the commodification of art. It urges us to ponder what in art-and in life-has lasting value, as it reflects on the unsettling ease with which society discards what was once held in high esteem.

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