Author: flyagaric23
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Death of Yeats end of Irish literary revival, says Pound, Noh enthusiast
Death of Yeats end of Irish literary revival, says Pound, Noh enthusiast
By EZRA POUNDSpecial to The Japan TimesJune 5, 1939The death of William Butler Yeats [who died Jan. 28, 1939] closes the great era of the Irish literary revival. That death will doubtless have been duly recorded in Japan. Someone in Tokyo may also know of Yeats’ Japanese interlude or flirtation. He, at one time, thought he would be called to a Japanese professorship and did, I think, receive some sort of invitation. You have a “link” with Dublin in those plays of Yeats which were directly stimulated by Fenollosa’s reports and translations of Noh. Having worked with Yeats during the three or four years of his intensest interest in the Noh, I know how much it meant to him.
“The form I have been searching for all my life” was one of his comments. (That would have been about 1917.)
* * * * * A determination for a new poetic drama in Europe, not merely a Celtic twilight or a side show, but a poetic drama that will enter the main stream of our life is manifested both by Jean Cocteau (recent play “Parents Terribles”) and by T. S. Eliot (“Family Reunion”).
The present chronicler is Confucian and totalitarian. To him both plays seem to be ends of a movement. So far as I am concerned they belong to the age of [Henrik] Ibsen wherein people’s inner wobblings and fusses were important. I believe in, and I believe there exists, a growing consciousness of the individual in the state. “The divine science of politics” (thought as to how people can live together in an organized or organic social system), interests me more than all the Freuds that ever existed.
At any rate I think the great novelists and dramatists must henceforth sort out the problems dependent on economic pressure from those which remain after this pressure is removed.
A few years ago P. Bottome [British novelist, Phyllis Bottome] wrote a novel about an insane asylum. On analysis one found a common denominator, nowhere stated by the authoress and not I think present in her consciousness. All the patients were there because of economic pressure. All the doctors and nurses were moved by monetary pressures.
Of the poets included in my “Active Anthology” [a 1933 anthology of poetry from the first 25 years of the 20th century] the best are all aware of monetary pressure, as something more clear and incisive than the vague “social” urges to be found in last century’s literature. This is not to say that Trollope and, in his last years, Henry James hadn’t come to such perception. They were above and beyond their time. The keenest minds today can be grouped. They can be grouped along this axis. The best writers are aware of problems that have lain unobserved in Dante and Shakespeare, problems of usury, of the just price, of the nature of money and its mode of issue.
It may interest you to know that the clarity of some paragraphs in The Japan Times on these subjects is, outside Italy, rather restricted to weekly papers and papers of special movements in England and America and in the rest of the Occident.
Lucid and incisive remarks of Hitler, Schacht [Hjalmar Schacht, German minister of economics 1934-1937] and Funk [Walther Funk, then president of the Reichsbank] do not get the wide and immediate publicity they deserve. They are however understood by writers of such divergent temperament as Wyndham Lewis and [British Army] General J. F. C. Fuller.
* * * * * As job lot items and notes on books worth reading: A current [issue of] Picture Post acknowledges Wyndham Lewis to be the greatest portraitist of our time (even quotes [German-born English Impressionist painter Walter] Sickert as saying, “and of any time” — which is the generous exaggeration of an older painter for a younger one who has been too long denied his just place).
The best news from America is the edition of E. E. Cummings’ collected poems, plus the publication of W. C. [William Carlos] Williams’ “Life Along the Passaic River” (prose sketches).
Both the Criterion [British literary magazine, 1922-1939] and Broletto have ceased publication, leaving my personal interest in current periodicals narrowed to The British Union Quarterly, for discussions of state organization, and to Townsman for very brief notices of books and the arts. The Examiner, published in Bethlehem, Connecticut, U.S.A., contains some very well written and carefully thought articles.
There are valuable notes in several dozens of sectarian or group weeklies and quarterlies in which publications, however, the dross and one-sidedness often out-weighs the sound matter, at least to such a degree that one cannot recommend them to Orientals wanting a clear view of the west.
Excerpts, edited for space but retaining the language of the time, from four of the articles Ezra Pound contributed to The Japan Times between May 1939 and September 1940 are used with permission from New Directions Publishing Corporation. © 1991 The Trustees of the Ezra Pound Literary Property Trus.Related links
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POUND FOR POUND "Omar Shakespear Pound"
POUND FOR POUNDby Charlie Finch
Today’s New York Times includes a small paid obituary, which reads, in its entirety, as follows: “Omar Shakespear Pound, Died peacefully at Princeton, NJ on 2 March 2010, aged 83, after long illness. Survived by his wife Elizabeth, daughters Katharine and Oriana, grandsons Ben and Joshua.”Shall we parse/deconstruct this fine and succinct piece of literary history? Omar Pound bore the name of his putative father, the poet Ezra Pound. A gifted poet and translator in his own right, Omar Pound was the son of the artist Dorothy Shakespear, a close associate of Wyndham Lewis, founder of the Vorticist movement. Dorothy was the daughter of a celebrated lover of the greatest of poets, William Butler Yeats.
Dorothy’s art work appeared in seminal issues of the Vorticist Bible, BLAST magazine, and Dorothy, of course, was the wife of Ezra Pound. By the time Pound had taken up with his lifelong lover, the violinist Olga Rudge, Dorothy Shakespear had fled to Italy and given birth to Omar Shakespear Pound, whom many suspected was not the biological son of Ezra Pound.
No matter, for Omar was a loyal son to Pound, seeing him through his grotesque alliance with Mussolini, the anti-Semitism and traitorous radio broadcasts that led to Pound’s detention by the U.S. Army, his incarceration at St. Elizabeth’s and his exile in Rapallo. We might pause to consider the penance contained in Omar’s paid obit: grandsons named Ben and Joshua, leaders of the Old Testament tribes of Israel.
I have a lifelong friend, the critic and curator Alan Jones, author of the seminal book The Art Dealers, curator of the only show of Jeff Koons‘ works done exclusively by that artist’s own hand (student work from Chicago), and a man so enthralled by the legacy of Joyce, Pound, Yeats and their circle that he long ago married royalty and gave up the New York art world that had nurtured him, forever.
Alan makes me think that to drown in the cultural past might be a better fate than a world of navel-gazing panels at dull art fairs. The sins and seductions Alan fell for had consequences, at least. And the death notices of that world, like the one for Omar Pound today, are modest and invite the sweet, subtle probe of collective memory.
CHARLIE FINCH is co-author of Most Art Sucks: Five Years of Coagula (Smart Art Press).
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CONSTRUCTIVIST SYNCHRONICITY: Steve vs. Fly?
FillosoflyConstructivist Synchronicity?
I attribute most of my early independent consciousness research to Dr. Robert Anton Wilson and his book ‘Cosmic Trigger’ in particular; combined with my will to contact some of the entities from that book, and share my findings with friends, family and local community. What happened changed my life forever, and I trace it all back to Jung’s ‘Liverpool’ dream.
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A TALE OF THE TRIBE IN VERSE INVERSE.
OUR HISTORYS BACK: SUMMARY INVERSE.
Around August 1st, 1936 Berlingham:
…and humanitas Y’all toegather geoglyficali hoisted dynastic games. Plush spun down to the stylus ship, set needle to breakers, past pretence future weave of atumz and wiffs froth broth on the godly wave riverum tumble of Sheanimate Gobjects.
Plush set up mast in mist & sail in hail and antenna on that stylus ship which rings us buoy a turntabius vicus of recirculation back to back to No Yolk and Rapateen and Merlinghum environs: august 1st 1936. Giles Chase wrapped in nanotube paste fr’over the shirt snot sea with billyum canvases rearrived again from mouth Amorika heavy with weeping and winds from starboard blow to fight his pen-isolate war on the words at the Oilamp Trick Gums.
Giles Chance cheesed in a close webbed soundcloud djinn’d by Ira Pod, Cutler Bates and Marten McLure doubling their mumper with a glitter of sun-rays, pitter-platter of Bates brewed by arclight humm’d by harplite. A prayer to the sickly death’s heads ringsome on the aquaface. The fall from centre. Foul you might rise up the well you mast!
And the penmen rose’ shadows from a swarming disk memory stick, spirit smelliported to the oil-drums and their upturnpike point and place. Poured we libations unto each the dead retaled in bed. And drawing Stylus from hip I dug the humptyhill head upon the Altumble Tabletoe step.
History clashes with wills, many men mauled by the scribes and the oystrygods. History HOAX HOAX. Singular hilarity singular. These historical forces and values gathered about me, where? Unsheath the narrow stylus I’m going into Berlingringstroms matey. But first came McLure our friend McLure, what chance cuddleys of going down the long ladder unguarded to engineer molecular mark’s.
Chromatiq thunder strux, what chance cuddleys, what chance? holding his golden drumstick his tete in a tub of firewater for to watch the future of his fate, but ere he swiftly took it out again ouch from the pouch of pouk. Dunntales and gums wave intermixed disks on our Altable. Ira sailed by Sirens the trim-coifed goddess path outward, ebbs away from Eye duno to Amorica to your hopebridge where?
Raptonne a blanket of fog:
All-town myth to cypher city and to sing singing matter and shouting mountain mutter, dancing mitten of youth and old socks. Ira fell downdown the unguarded ladder and shattered a nape-nerve against the buttress. O, you’re vine to study reading books and history to cut and sew waves at R’ town.
Flight of the blue spill abducted the town with music, painting and poetry. Bats flew in. In the best modern way. Hang it All Cutler Bates. Exit through the out door. No mystery about the Dunntales they are the tile of the fibre from the nib-nozzle of Ira and the Nob-Nuzzle of Chase.
Compiling the Camel-fnord book of dates, Ira’s news comes in, and Bates and his ship landed twelve weeks later, eyes of Dali’ water cutting under his keel overdose. Indestructible mind of Gyres’ bringularity summert summit. Phallanx of Chase history Pod’s and economic triplicity books inexstiguishable.
And the wave runs in the Rap beech grove, the stylus runs in the disk groove, RNA ink runs with atoms and quiffs in the Hawks well at noon and poor Giles blind as a bat. Invenci first doodle-cross search engine in 1922, but hark! some voice juice like thunder spake Mythalized and idealized twinned.
Three mysters of celtic quantum indetermine to be seeing cling-film animations of the rocky shoreline from swerve of shore to bendy bay, the West’s awake to the yeats and the West’s awake to the beats, there is a wine-red glow in the shallows a tin flash in the sun dazzle.
Ira, Giles and Cutler overthrow up history over the lingham wall, potting her soiled soul buck togather again wit murmur of great old one’s and the clash of our cries till we spring to be free radio. Wake running off from the bow of Rapallo. ‘Watch till death for Erin’s sake and by the Gerritsen rock pool a young boy loggy with vine must was spotted by musta’ Wools. Three quarks for Bygmester Shermon: Humanksi, Wools and Muller muttered Bates.
Apollodelphi Now Yowlk.
Young boy of four from Gerritsen beach plays McGraff’s younger cousin in McGraff’ by Carsun Wools, when they brought the young boy i said: he has god in him, though I do not know which god.” Carsun said of young Bob. The water-bugs mittens show on the bright rock below him. Shermon conceives midgital communi’ using the long moon for a churn stick.
When the snow was like sea foam Humanski Carsun and Muller watch hawks circle a well, and Sonny Bob transfers fourier transfers to Shermon by spinning the head on him in a caster of his reasons. The wave-chord plashing around the theatre hollows of pine trunks, bebop bellowing out theatre ritual into blocks of light on the knight of July 31st, 1936. This holy platterplate place of turning.
Finger Ring, Breastplate and Disk in dymaxion tension. Error Error 33 Midgital communication was error, who observes a design in process and dynamic maximum attension. These great tales told by Sherm and Shan in the gritty Shannani Wave brew Chase’s masterpiece of mathematical genius which launched the midgital information age off the page.
Glass-glint of wave in the tide rips against sunlight. Mr. Adams saw waved through the bank hoax. Grey peak of the wave, wave crest woolsrusspower to all-around humanity. Pull down thy vanity fairez. From grosskopp to megapod as from the beginning of wonders Humanski went in for structure but consumption is still done by animals.
Holy snakes chase me charley & Eva’s got barley under fluencies! Tempus tacendi, tempus loquendi. And the plot to alert Ira got underway by Wittgenstein. The scarab is bowed at the altar, dung beetle rolled and the green light gleams in its shell, folded hands bow as the head and gun sales lead to more gun sales, guns, guns, guns.
Dollis and Skully Von cum to have Adolphted such a Adelphus! O, the singing contracts to secure guns and dope. Using the people as a mere dupe undercover: the oilympic troops. Mr Pope has conformed it to the notions of writtishmen and Americans in Tacitus and in Homer. Ingle end says now for know. No to greed and guns, enough already.
Stevenscum, Dollis, Folly and Skully Von and the Berlingham faith exchange sickness. Germoney, Inkland, Mitale’ Amorica, Oh where in history will you find em? Isle wail for yews said Chase, the spooks grilled Pod, Bates and Chase, literally, electrochemically shocked them blotch and void.
I am noman, my name is noman. Ira announced to the twelvepodstall inquisitors. The old moderns resisted Spengleton’s pet project Sadio: Trading Hallibut-Cola, Christy crude oilam, a kind of Christmess speedball for summer 36’ around the globe. Let those I love try to forgive what I have made. Do not move, let the wind speak for all their faults I am pissing out. “yes” Ira, Chase and Bates said, in beautiful synchrony, Noh tales.
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OUR HISTORYS BACK: a tale of the tribe
Back Cover
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8149333 Category Literature & Fiction Description The MPHDJ Method translates roughly as mixing special kinds of sampled literature using the approach of a musical DJ or turntablist. In our historys back this method is applied to ‘the tale of the tribe’ as defined by Dr. Robert Anton Wilson and brings together some of the greatest minds of the 20th century to rewrite history with their genius and invention. DJ Fly Agaric 23 lays out his vision for 2012 where the tribetable method becomes a tool for scholar activists and historical researchers who wish to move beyond rhetoric and into psycho-drama. Copyright Year 2009 Language: English Country United Kingdom Keywords FLY AGARIC, OLYMPIC GAMES, 1936, 2012, ROBERT ANTON WILSON -
Aleister Crowley on James Joyce and the Novel of the Mind
Aleister Crowley on the novel of the mind
1923
Extract from ‘The Genius of Mr. James Joyce’, New Pearson’s Magazine, xlix (July 1923), 52-3.
In a discussion of a new form of literature, the ‘novel of the mind’, the critic notes that this kind of fiction may ‘depart from artistic creation’.
. . . This form of writing has been saved, by the genius of Mr. James Joyce, from its worst fate, that of becoming a mere amateur contribution to medical text-books.
Every new discovery produces a genius. Its enemies might say that psycho-analysis—the latest and deepest theory to account for the vagaries of human behaviour—has found the genius it deserves. Although Mr. Joyce is known only to a limited circle in England and America, his work has been ranked with that of Swift, Sterne, and Rabelais by such critics as M. Valery, Mr. Ezra Pound and Mr. T. S. Eliot.
There is caution to be exercised in appraising the work of a contemporary. . . . I am convinced personally that Mr. Joyce is a genius all the world will have to recognize. I rest my proof upon his most important book Ulysses, and upon his first novel, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, and on such portions of Ulysses as have appeared. Before these he wrote two books, Chamber Music, a collection of most delicate songs, and Dubliners, sketches of Dublin life distinguished by its savage bitterness, and the subsequent hostility it excited. The Portrait when it appeared was hailed as a masterpiece, but it has been boycotted by libraries and booksellers for no discernible reason other than the fact that the profound descriptions tell the truth from a new, and therefore to the majority a disturbing, point of view.
http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=102931236 -
NOH Play
“Consider the Tale of the Tribe as an alternative form of scripture. Which form’s of alternative scripture seem appropriate for the 20th Century? And which for the 21st?” —Robert Anton Wilson. Recorsi. 2005.
‘Noh’ or Accomplishment: a study of the classical stage of Japan
By Ernest Francisco Fenollosa, Ezra PoundNew approaches to Ezra Pound: a co-ordinated investigation of Pound’s poetry …
By Eva HesseYeats the European
By Alexander Norman Jeffareshttp://books.google.com/books?id=G5iaubedD28C&lpg=PA233&dq=yeats%20noh%20plays&pg=PA233&output=embed
Transcending space: architectural places in works by Henry David Thoreau, E …
By Taimi Anne OlsenModern drama in theory and practice: Symbolism, surrealism and the absurd
By J. L. Styanhttp://books.google.com/books?id=GNkfv6l7-OgC&lpg=PA61&dq=yeats%20noh%20plays&pg=PA61&output=embed
Modernity in East-West literary criticism: new readings
By Yoshinobu Hakutanihttp://books.google.com/books?id=1ggnAQv14m4C&lpg=PA23&dq=yeats%20noh%20plays&pg=PA23&output=embed
Progress and identity in the plays of W.B. Yeats, 1892-1907
By Barbara Ann Suesshttp://books.google.com/books?id=3Z6HF3cyjjUC&lpg=PA54&dq=yeats%20noh%20plays&pg=PA54&output=embed
A calculus of Ezra Pound: vocations of the American sign
By Philip Kuberski
DEEP SCRATCH 