, • FLORIDA STA TE UNIVERSITY A STUDY OF THE BOLLINGhN PRIZ! IN POSTIIY By '·lEf< NE IIIUS • I A Paper Submitted to the Graduate Council of Florida Stat. Uniyeratty 1n part1al fulflllcent of the r.qu1re~.nt. for ~h. degrde of Muter of Arts. Approyed: ~~ Direct~·iifi·r~ aper Nona ••aor • Augu.t, 1958 • " TABLE or CON TEITS Pal. INTRODUCTION • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 1 Ch .. pter I. THE [STABLISHlIEST AIIll DEV&LOPMENT OF THE nOLLIRGEII PRIZS IN POETRY • • • • 3 II. BOLLINGEft PRIZE BlCIPIEIITS • • • • • • • 14 III. BOLLINOEII PRIZE WINNING BOO~S • • • • • 36 IV. BOLLINGEN PRIZE WINNING POETS • • • • • 50 V. SUMMARY • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 62 BlBLIOORAPHY • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 65 • • INTRODUCTION A reputable litorary award ie an invaluable aid io book ••lection. for auch an award a1gn1!1 •• approval by experte. Thi. recognition i •••pecially .ignificant I n a field such as poetry, whero ""Dy of the publica­ tions are 1saued by Yanity presael, receive little pub­ licity, and few If any review.. For the librarian who ha. not had speCiAl training in thi. p. rtlcular are. and de .. not han time to read widely enougb to develop ....- tery in all areAa, literary prise. render a •• lstance in .electing works which will best .erve the noode of a par­ ticular library. The award .elected for this paper was tho 80111n&on Prise in Poetry, one of the major literary award. and on. of the few to be offered by a univereity. Tho purpoeo of this study is to preslnt a briof history of tho aWArd it­ .olf and to give. critical eVAluation of tho work. of the recipient •• The procedure followed wae firat to a ecure inforaa­ tion concerning the history of tho Boll1n&en Pris. in Poetry. The next etep WB. to collect fro~ the baeic bio­ graphical sources Info~ation on the authors who rece1T8d the award. Third, the apecific booka which received the 1 2 award ..ere e.,.luated throllllh • at.wly ot the react10"a ot critica aa found ill t.he revia.. e l1st.ed ill Tba Book ReTi,. Dig.,t. The tourth atep waa to liye a IB"eral crlt1cal over-v1 .. ot tbe worka ot tho.e authora who recalved tbe award for the body ot their work .. it ..a •• cured fro.. tha books liated in the Essay A"d General Liter ture Index. The re.ulta of thia atudy ..111 be preaent.d ill tlve chaptera: • dlacueaio" ot the Bolli",en Prl.a 1" Poetry, biolraphlcal lnto~tlo" on the Bolll",e" recipi­ e"ta, all evaluat!o" ot t.he Bo1l1",... Pri ....w1nni'" booka, an evaluatl.o" ot tbe Bo1l1",." Priae-winnillg poete who received the a ..ard tor th. body ot their work, and • tinal a_ry. .. ... ClIAPmR 1 TIll! ESTABLISRIWIT AND DEVlI:LOPlllEln' or THE BOLLI5GEI PRIZI! 1ft POETRY Th. Bolling" Pris. in Po.try he. com. to b...... prded. as ona of thia nation'. olltsundin, lit..rary award., but 1t. hi.tory in the .arly y.ars wa. a t ..p ••- tUO\l8 on.. Th. purpo •• of this chept.r i. to gi•• a g.n.ral account ot the ••tabliehaent .nd d.velopa.nt ot the .ward and a listing of it. r.cipients. Th. beginning. of the ~.. toward ths ••tabli.h­ ment of the Bolling.n Pri •• w...... d. in 1936. when thro~ privata ,anero.ity, a Cheir of Poetry .ae founded at the Librarr of Conar.... Six y.ar. l at.r in 1942. the incumb.nt 1n the eheir of Po.try va. Allen Tate; the Librar1en ot COn,r... was Arch1bald Ma cL.lah. Doth m.n. poet. th•••• l •••• w.re ••C.r to s ••• d.v.l­ op... t ot increas.d interest in Amer1 can lit.rature. Wh.n Tat. IUCC.Sted. the e.tabliahaent ot • &rOIlP to b. known •• the 'ello•• in Americln Lat.t.r. of t.he Library of COngre •• , IIacL.1ah h ..rtily approved.. h later de­ .crib.d by Malcolm Cowl.y. the purpo •• ot this group .a. to attord a sed.ium throug)t which to .chi... "a 11T1n& re- 3 4 lationahip between the Library and the artiste and writer. of our t1JM.·l III 1944, MacL.t.b appointed the fir.t ot these groups and ampowered the .amber. to "adyI.. the LIbrarian conc.rn1n& tbe .treng\ban1nc of Library of Con­ ere •• collect lone , pro.otlon of bibllo~.phlcal project. in Aaerlcan literary qatari.l, and to ady!.e tbe Librar­ lan of Concra.. on tbe cboice of the annual incumbent for the Chair of tngliah.·2 From thls group of Fellowe in Aaarican Letter. eame tt>e Id.. of e.tabl1ahing annual award. for the an­ courege~nt of AaaricaD poeta and, after careful inyestl­ gation, the augge.tlon to approach the Bolllncen Founda­ tion for fUnd. with whlch to .poneor BUch a prl.e. Eatabl1ahed b,. Paul MeUon, the ..ealth,. philan­ thropi.t aon of Andrew Mallon, the Boll1ngaD Foundation ia a beneYOleDt educational organiaation which also pub- 11ahes book. of a .cleatiflc and cultural nature on a non-profit ba.l•• ) ~lthough l.ter dlaclaialnc an,. con­ nectlon with the actual averdin, ot the Bol11n,en Priae, the roundatlon granted the Library of Congre •• a fund of teD thousand doll.rs wlth the .tlpuletlon that tbe award lMaleo18 Cowl.,., "the Battle OYer Eara Pound,~ Rew Republic, October ), 1949, p. 20. 20' Letter from tbe Librarian of Conere••• The Saturday Rni... of Literature, Jul,. 2, 1949, p. 26. - )'Pound, 1. Mental CliniC, Win. Pri.e for Poetry Penned 1n Traaao. CeU,· the lIew York Tilles, February 20, 1949, p. 1. s would conaiet of one thousand dollars per year for ten year. to "the author of that book of .aree, published dur1nc the pr..,ious calendar year which, in the judgment of the fellow. in A•• rlean Lettere, rapre.. nted the h1&/l ..t .cb1en",ent ot American poetry dur1nc the y.ar.·l The rellowe were accorded th. prlY1lece of refusing to !18k. the -...:I in 8 year when no poetry worthy of it had appeared. The one restriction rel.ti•• to rec1plent. is that the prise st be ..de to • poat who either 1. or was foreerly 8 eitla.n of the Unlted State •• Th. name, Boll1ncen, accordlnc to Robert Hlllyer, 1. that of the SWi •• lakes1de retreat near Zurich where Dr. and Mr •• Carl Jung ha.e frequently entertained .ueh notahle. as Paul Mellon and where it i. reported that Mellon'. first wlCe was once a petient.2 In 1949, an eminent commlttee of judIe. co~po.ed of Conrad Aiken, W. H. Auden, Loul.e 8o,an, latherine Ann Porter, latherina Garrison Chapin, T. S. Ellot, Paul Green, Robert Lowell, Earl Shapiro, Allen Tate, Willard Thorpe, and f~b.rt Penn Warren awarded the 8011incen Priae.3 The firat recipient was Esra Looai. Pound, who wa •••en then lRobert Hl11yer, "Treason'. Stranc. fruit, the ea •• of Ears Pound and the Boll1ncen Award,' The SeturdAl' R..,l ... ot LiterAture, Jun. 11, 1949, p. 10. 2Ibid• 3·pound , in Mental Clinlc, Wins Pri.e for Poetry Penned in Treaeon Cell,' The N... York Tia.s, February 20, 1949, p. 1. • 6 1D • mental cllnlc. At tb. t1ae of the .w.rd tbe jndee. i ••ned tb. followlng .tat.. ent' Tb. F.llow..... aw .... that obj.otion... y b. IIIIde to .w.rdin& • prise to • .... .1 tuated .. 1. Nr. Pound. In thelr Yiaw. how.Yer, tb. po •• ibillty of ancb obj.ction d1d not alter tbe ....pon.ibllity a ••u,ed by tbe jury of ••lection. Thia .na to IIIIk. a choioe for the award among the .lillbl. book., proYlded .ny on. merited aucb ...cognitlon, according to the .tated t.rm. of th. 801linlen Pri ••• To permit other con.id.rations than th~t of a poetiC achl.y... nt to ..ay the d.ci.ion wonld deatroy the .igniflcance of the ow.rd and would 1n prinoiple deny the Yalldlty of that abject lYe pero.ption of Yalu. on whlch any clY11i ••d &Oclety .o.t ....tl l The croup found it n.o.... ry to leau. thia at.ta­ cent becan.e of Pound'. wart1••• ctlYltl.. At tb. out­ br.ak of World War II, he had b•• n llylng ln Italy for ny y •• r., and haYin& denounced the Un1t.d State. for 1t. uaury oyer a lonl period, b. found h1.selt 1n sym­ pathy with the Fa.ciat.. He =ad. broadcast. for th.. can.oring and repudiating bie homaland throUlhout the ••r, and because of the.e actlY1tlee, h. waa indicted for trea­ .on 1n 1942 . He waa brought back to tb. Unlt.d State. for trial at th. and of the .ar, but doctor. said h. wa. not san. and could not be tried. At tbe t1•• h. r.c.1yad the 80111D1en Pris., be waa undercoini p.ychi.tric t ....tm.nt in St. &liaab.th'a Ho.pital, Waabington, D. C. Iaaediataly after tb. announe ...nt, loud eri •• aro .. fro," all aid... The If", York T1mes l.d ott by giY- 7 ine the .ward rront-pa,e cOTera,. witb a bold-f.ced cap­ tion wbich read "Pound. in Mental Clinic. Win. Pri •• for Po.t..,. P8Nled in Treaeon Cell.· l Tb. rray w.. be,lnnin, to elack... wben th. Saturdax !telft ot Li tnatve 11l tbe par.oll ot Robert RlllT8r took Iq> ....... U. t ...... ed Pound'. po ... "ubicl•• of colltelllPt tor heric•• r ••ci .... ant1- • • ruthl... mocke..,. or our Chri.tian w.r d.ad. · 2 ibout tbe PieAn CAnto. be wrot•• In ,.Ileral they are .erely the landslide from tb.