The Advance of English Poetry in the Twentieth CenturyPhelps, William Lyon
History
The Advance of English Poetry in the Twentieth Century
Phelps, William Lyon
American poetry -- 20th century -- History and criticism; English poetry -- 20th century -- History and criticism
Like many creative writers, Mr. Lindsay is an artist not only with the
pen, but with the pencil. He has made drawings since childhood;
drawing and writing still divide his time and energy. The first
impression one receives from the pictures is like that produced by the
poems--strangeness. The best have that Baconian element of strangeness
in the proportion which gives the final touch to beauty; the worst are
merely bizarre. He says, "My claim for them is that while laboured and
struggling in execution, they represent a study of Egyptian
hieroglyphics and Japanese art, two most orthodox origins for art, and
have no relation whatever to cubism, post-impressionism, or
futurism.... I have been very fond of Swinburne all my life, and I
should say my drawing is nearer to his ornate mood than any of my
writing has been. But that is a matter for your judgment." I find his
pictures so interesting that I earnestly hope he will some day publish
a large collection of them in a separate volume.
One of his latest developments is the idea of the _Poem Game_,
which is elaborated with interesting poetic illustrations in the
volume called _The Chinese Nightingale_. In giving his directions
and suggestions in the latter part of this book, he remarks, "The
present rhymer has no ambitions as a stage manager. The Poem Game
idea, in its rhythmic picnic stage, is recommended to amateurs, its
further development to be on their own initiative. Informal parties
might divide into groups of dancers and groups of chanters. The whole
might be worked out in the spirit in which children play King William
was King James's Son, London Bridge.... The main revolution necessary
for dancing improvisers, who would go a longer way with the Poem Game
idea is to shake off the Isadora Duncan and the Russian precedents for
a while, and abolish the orchestra and piano, replacing all these with
the natural meaning and cadences of English speech. The work would
come closer to acting than dancing is now conceived."
Here is a good opportunity for house parties, in the intervals of Red
Cross activities; and at the University of Chicago, 15 February, 1918,
_The Chinese Nightingale_ was given with a full chorus of twelve
girls, selected for their speaking voices. From the testimony of one
of the professors at the university, it is clear that the performance
was a success, realizing something of Mr. Lindsay's idea of the union
of the arts, with Poetry at the centre.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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