Imagist Dialogues: Letters between Aldington, Flint and Others

In this book Michael Copp introduces and annotates a collection of letters, almost all unpublished, documenting the lives, concerns and ambitions of many of the leaders of early 20th century literary modernism during the crucial period around the First World War.The names of Ezra Pound, Robert Frost, T. E. Hulme, Ford Madox Ford, H.D., Amy Lowell, and Harriet Monroe stand out for their stature while creating the perfect background to the in- depth analysis of two English Imagist poets: Richard Aldington and F.S. Flint. The letters here gathered span exactly sixteen years, from 1909 to 1925, thus covering the time when early Anglo-American literary modernism developed its identity and both Aldington and Flint played an important role in the Imagist circle. Thanks to his judicious selection of letters, his scholarly commentary and informative footnotes, Copp makes a valuable contribution to the study of the movement.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgements; Introduction; Pre-War; The War Period; Post-War; Appendix; Bibliography; Index.

About the Author :
Michael Copp worked for many years as a tutor for the Board of Continuing Education of Cambridge University, teaching courses on the literary response to war in the twentieth century. His previous books include From Emmanuel to the Somme: the War Writings of A.E. Tomlinson (Lutterworth, 1997), An Imagist at War: The Complete War Poems of Richard Aldington (2002) and The Fourth Imagist: Selected Poems of F.S. Flint (2007).

Review :
"If Imagist Dialogues does not seek to revise the twentieth century's literary history radically, it does hope to restore a sense of the indispensable if minor figures through whom it passed." C. D. Blanton in Journal of Historical Biography, Vol 8, Fall 2010 'Copp's selection of letters from Flint draws mainly on his correspondence with other literary figures, the largest selections being to Harriet Monroe and Amy Lowell. There are also small selections to Flint from Ford Madox Ford, John Cournos, T. S. Eliot, and H.D., along with a range of minor literary and official figures...Copp's annotations fully detail each historical figure mentioned, including information on even the most obscure names... In the absence of a biography of Flint...this book gives us valuable information about the life of this underrated, quietly significant author.' Andrew Frayn, Modernist Cultures, vol.6, no. 2, 2011