In 1968, when an interviewer asked Jorge Luis Borges what he thought of the Portuguese poet Fernando Pessoa, the great explorer of the literary labyrinth responded, "Who is he?" Portugal, alas, is one of the most overlooked outposts of Europe. The North's snobbery towards the South is one of the caus

Clever, Dreamy, Eclectic, Enigmatic, Modernist poetry, Sensual, Subtle

A dense reticulum of ideas, which unravels into a swarm of images and a cacophony of sounds but nevertheless maintains a fluid coherence: such is the world of Wallace Stevens, Modernist poet par excellence, a man of stoic temperament and intimidating intelligence. With a daunting arsenal of unfamilia

Composed, Contemplative, Dense, Modernist poetry, Quirky, Smart, Sophisticated

Kipling was never one to pity the vanquished or cry for the victim. He preferred to praise the victors, fortify the reign of imperialism, legitimize and rationalize colonial order. Having lived in both Bombay and England, Kipling came to see English civilization as the only hope for a dirty, barbaric

Dark, Dense, Eclectic, Masculine, Modernist literature, Modernist poetry, Tense

In the unceasing rush of the modern world, everything conspires to prevent meditation, awareness, or faith in anything greater than the day's events. Much of contemporary poetry reflects the confusion of accelerated lives: Language poetry presents us with our dislocated selves, while the work of Ashb

Domestic, Modernist poetry, Pathos, Sensual, Visceral