Midwestern Poets were popular
for their use of realism and dramatic emphasis
Most Midwestern poets
looked to keep traditional forms and ordinary speech
Chicago was “cultured” because
architecture, poetry, and the orchestra
Symbolist poets believed
in imagination over reason
Imagism poets believed
in simple language; fragmented meaning; concrete images
Carl Sanburg
folksinger; Lincoln historian; traveled Midwest as a hobo
William Carols Williams
diverse racial background; underrated poet
Ezra Pound
insane imagist poet; anti-USA; “Make it new”
Edgar Lee Masters
Midwest small-town poet; epitaph poems
Robert Frost
supported family as a dairy farmer; many personal tragedies
Personification
giving non human things human qualities
Epitaph
inscription or dedication for deceased
