Improvisation and the Making of American Literary Modernism.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Wallace, Rob.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

American literature--20th century--History and criticism.

American poetry--History and criticism--20th century--United States.

American poetry.

Modernism (Literature).

Local Subjects:

American literature--20th century--History and criticism.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (210 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

London : Continuum International Publishing, 2010.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Improvisation, despite its almost ubiquitous presence in many art forms, is notoriously misunderstood and mysterious. Although earlier strands of American philosophy and art emphasized what might be called improvisational practices, it was during the modernist period that improvisational practice and theory began to make a significant impact on art and culture, specifically via the African American musical forms of jazz and blues. This musical development held important consequences for the larger artistic, cultural, and political life of America as a wholeGÇöand, eventually, the world. The hi

Contents:

Contents; Acknowledgments; INTRODUCTION: WRITING IMPROVISATION INTO MODERNISM; CHAPTER 1 EZRA POUND: MUSIC, HISTORY, TIME; CHAPTER 2 LANGSTON HUGHES: "HOW TO TAKE THE IMPOSSIBLE AND MAKE IT DANCE"; CHAPTER 3 LISTENING TO GERTRUDE STEIN'S SAXOPHONE; CHAPTER 4 BANJOS, BLACKBIRDS, AND BLUE GUITARS: THE SOUNDWORLD OF WALLACE STEVENS; CONCLUSION; Notes; Bibliography; Index

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

ISBN:

9786612947896

9781282947894

1282947893

9781441122896

1441122893

OCLC:

699475273