... In critical condition.
I've read a good bit of the Library of America Edmund Wilson volumes. I don't think he was that good a judge of poetry, period - hence, his undervaluation of Frost. As I recall, he didn't get Wallace Stevens, either, though he was probably right about Cummings. Anyway, I think we're better off without anyone wielding the sort of critical power Wilson was thought to have.
By the way, I had a very pleasant visit from Kelly Jane Torrance, the author of this piece, only yesterday.
Because I was reading the new Library of America volumes, this past week was Edmund Wilson week at my blog, I've Been Reading Lately.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of Wilson's poetry criticism, one of the most striking aspects for me has nothing to do with his judgment, but with the reminder those pieces on poetry have given me of just how many poets from that period have lasted. Here and there, Wilson will rattle off the names of a dozen poets, and ten of them are ones that would still be familiar to your average serious reader.