ENGLISH 1A03 Lecture Notes - Lecture 13: William Carlos Williams, Imagism
23 Jun 2018
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William Carlos Williams (1883–1963) “The Red Wheelbarrow” (1923)
American poet of the early 20th century
A doctor by profession, wrote poetry, fiction, and essays on the side
Associated with Imagism, a 20th-century movement in American poetry that emphasized
clear visual imagery over florid, sentimental, Victorian styles
Minimalist style; few words framed by white space enhances the aesthetic weight of each
word and phrase
Imagery: Use of words to give a picture of something
oNo action is described here; instead, the poem offers a static image, like a photograph
Stanzas are organized both syllabically and visually: specific numbers of syllables, but also
shaped like wheelbarrows
The transformation of the wheelbarrow—a functional object—into an image, an aesthetic
object
oWhat “depends” upon a wheelbarrow? The gardener depends on it to carry things
oWhat might depend upon a wheelbarrow “glazed with rain,” Beside the white /
chickens”—i.e. the wheelbarrow as part of aesthetic tableau, as component of poem? The
poem depends upon it as an aesthetic form—it models itself after its appearance
o“wheel / barrow”—the word is taken apart to become incorporated into the poem’s
structure: as if the actual wheelbarrow is dismantled, made to give way to figurative
wheelbarrows (stanzas)—what do they carry? What depends on them?
-Dismantling of the word “wheelbarrow” to make the word/concept fit the
wheelbarrow-shaped stanza emphasizes the way poetry doesn't simply reproduce
the things it sees, even when it presents a very simple image or reference; instead, it
always breaks down its observations, references, and the other cultural materials it
gathers and transforms them into something new, that invites not just our attention
but our reconsideration
oOne kind of wheelbarrow, when turned into poetry, becomes another ○ The poem asserts
that “so much depends” upon this wheelbarrow that is pure figure, pure form, pure
aesthetic experience, rather than a “useful” object, but does not tell us what depends on
the figurative wheelbarrow—leaves to the Zuroski English 1A03 intellect or imagination
of the reader the work of determining what is contained and carried by the poem
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Document Summary
William carlos williams (1883 1963) the red wheelbarrow (1923) American poet of the early 20th century. A doctor by profession, wrote poetry, fiction, and essays on the side. Associated with imagism, a 20th-century movement in american poetry that emphasized clear visual imagery over florid, sentimental, victorian styles. Minimalist style; few words framed by white space enhances the aesthetic weight of each word and phrase. Imagery: use of words to give a picture of something: no action is described here; instead, the poem offers a static image, like a photograph. Stanzas are organized both syllabically and visually: specific numbers of syllables, but also shaped like wheelbarrows.
