The Necessary Angel: Essays on Reality and the ImaginationIn this collection of essays, consummate poet Wallace Stevens reflects upon his art. His aim is not to produce a work of criticism or philosophy, or a mere discussion of poetic technique. As he explains in his introduction, his ambition in these various pieces, published in different times and places, aimed higher than that, in the direction of disclosing "poetry itself, the naked poem, the imagination manifesting itself in its domination of words." Stevens proves himself as eloquent and scintillating in prose as in poetry, as he both analyzes and demonstrates the essential act of repossessing reality through the imagination. |
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LibraryThing Review
User Review - NielsenGW - LibraryThingTalking of poetry is a kind of poetry, and Wallace Stevens does his best to assert that. Being a man known for his dense and wildly imaginative poetry, his prose is no different. In the seven essays ... Read full review
LibraryThing Review
User Review - Cymie - LibraryThingNot an easy read; this poet's prose is leaden compared to his verse, but it is worth the work for the brilliant ideas embedded in the rhetoric. Read full review