Ezra Pound

Ezra Pound was born in Hailey, Idaho in 1885. After graduating from Pennsylvania University in 1906 he taught at Wabash College in Indiana.

In 1908 Pound travelled to Europe and after arriving in London he became friends with W. B. Yeats, Ford Madox Ford, Percy Wyndham Lewis, and James Joyce. His first collection of poems, With Tapers Quenched, was published in 1908. This was followed by Personae and Exultations (1909) and a book of critical essays, The Spirit of Romance (1910).

Pound became co-editor of Blast in 1914. He was also London editor of the Little Review and Paris correspondent for The Dial. Considered to be the motivating force behind modern poetry, he published Lustra (1916), Homage to Sextus Propertius (1919) and Hugh Selwyn Mauberley (1920).

!n 1924 Pound moved to Rapallo in Italy where he worked on the Cantos. The first collection, Draft of XVI Cantos appeared in 1925. This was followed by Draft of XXX Cantos (1930), Eleven New Cantos (1937), The Fifth Decade of Cantos (1937) and Cantos LII-LXXI (1940).

A supporter of Benito Mussolini he advocated fascist ideas and during the Second World War made radio broadcasts in Rome attacking the Allies.

Pound was arrested by partisans in April 1945 and taken back to the United States to be tried for treason. Judged to be insane he was confined in an asylum. He continued to write poetry and published The Pison Cantos in 1948 and Rock-Drill: 85-95 de los Cantares in 1956.

After his release in 1958 Pound returned to Italy. His later work included The Cantos of Ezra Pound (1970). Ezra Pound died in 1972.