Imagism poem

What is imagism? Imagism is an English and American poetry movement that flourish between 1908 and 1917. The Imagists used precise, clearly presented images in their works. They also used common, everyday speech and aimed for conciseness, concrete imagery and the creation of new rhythms.

One of the representative poet is Ezra pound. He wrote In a Station of the Metro. Because of it is very short poem. So I will exhibit it to you." The apparition of these faces in the crowd; petals on a wet, black bough." Ezra Pound use the juxtaposed images to show the impersonality and haste of city life.

Moreover, Pound use metqphor, to compare the face of the crowd to the petals to show that they are pretty, clear, and alive whereas crowd to bough to show that they are black, cold, indifferent and depressed.

The translation of this poem is "这几张脸在人群中幻影般闪现，湿漉漉黑色枝条上的众多花瓣。"

In conclusion, let us return to the Imagism. It has four major features: direct treatment of the "thing"; Economy of expression(to make fewer words do more work) and free verse.

Another is William Carlos Williams. His poem The Red Wheelbarrow is also very short and typically in form.

So much depend

Upon

A Red wheel

Barrow

Glazed with rain

Water

Beside the white

Chickens

This poem has sharp, clear images and short, direct form. It also use many contrast. The contrast between action and silence, human and nature, live and dead.