History, Memory, and the Literary Left Modern American Poetry, 1935–1968 by John Lowney contemporary north american poetry series history, memory, and the literary left contemporary north american poetry series Series Editors Alan Golding, Lynn Keller, and Adalaide Morris History, Memory, and the Literary Left Modern American Poetry, 1935–1968 by john lowney university of iowa press iowa city University of Iowa Press, Iowa City  Copyright © by the University of Iowa Press http://www.uiowapress.org All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means without permission in writing from the publisher. All reasonable steps have been taken to contact copyright holders of material used in this book. The publisher would be pleased to make suitable arrangements with any whom it has not been possible to reach. The University of Iowa Press is a member of Green Press Initiative and is committed to preserving natural resources. Printed on acid-free paper Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Lowney, John, –. History, memory, and the literary left: modern American poetry, –/ by John Lowney. p. cm.—(Contemporary North American poetry series) Contents: The janitor’s poems of every day: American poetry and the s — Buried history: the popular front poetics of Muriel Rukeyser’s “The book of the dead” — Allegories of salvage: the peripheral vision of Elizabeth Bishop’s North & South — Harlem Disc-tortions: the jazz memory of Langston Hughes’s Montage of a dream deferred — A reportage and redemption: the poetics of African American counter- memory in Gwendolyn Brooks’s “In the Mecca” — A metamorphic palimpsest: the underground memory of Thomas McGrath’s “Letter to an imaginary friend” — The spectre of the s: George Oppen’s “Of being numerous” and historical amnesia. Includes bibliographical references and index.  ---(cloth) . American poetry—th century—History and criticism. . Right and left (Political science) in literature. . Politics and literature—United States—History— th century. . Poets, American—th century—Political and social views. . Depressions——United States. I. Title. II. Series. .   '.—dc            For Ashley Contents Acknowledgments and Permissions ix 1. The Janitor’s Poems of Every Day: American Poetry and the s  2. Buried History: The Popular Front Poetics of Muriel Rukeyser’s The Book of the Dead  3. Allegories of Salvage: The Peripheral Vision of Elizabeth Bishop’s North & South  4. Harlem Disc-tortions: The Jazz Memory of Langston Hughes’s Montage of a Dream Deferred  5. A Reportage and Redemption: The Poetics of African American Countermemory in Gwendolyn Brooks’s In the Mecca  6. A Metamorphic Palimpsest: The Underground Memory of Thomas McGrath’s Letter to an Imaginary Friend  7. The Spectre of the s: George Oppen’s Of Being Numerous andHistorical Amnesia  Notes  Bibliography  Index  Acknowledgments and Permissions Having spent quite a few years writing this book on American poetry and collective memory, I appreciate more than ever how scholarly books are col- laborative efforts. I am fortunate to have had the support of a number of intellec- tual communities that have enhanced the experience of researching and writing this book. I want to acknowledge those whose generosity, enthusiasm, and wis- dom have made this experience so gratifying. My colleagues in the St. John’s University English Department have collab- orated on this project in innumerable ways, as they have continually reminded me how vital the relationship of research to teaching is. I thank especially Steven Sicari and Derek Owens, whose friendship and intellectual support since the ear- lieststages of this book have meant so much to me. My conversations with them and with Gregory Maertz, Willard Gingerich, Jennifer Travis, Robert Fanuzzi, Granville Ganter, and Lee Ann Brown have influenced my thinking about mod- ernism and American cultural studies as the book has evolved. I also want to thank my undergraduate and graduate students at St. John’s, who continue to challenge me and confirm my purpose as an educator and scholar. This book has become what it is largely because of the classes in twentieth-century American and African American literature that I have taught at St. John’s. Finally, I am grateful to St. John’s University for the institutional support I have received while writ- ing this book, specifically for the Summer Support of Research grants that have facilitated my research. I express my gratitude in particular to Jeffrey Fagen not only for his support of my work but also for his leadership as dean of St. John’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. I thank the editors of the Contemporary North American Poetry Series for their vision and perseverance in making this series possible. Alan Golding, Lynn Keller, and Adalaide Morris have provided me with exemplary guidance as this project has found its home at the University of Iowa Press. Holly Carver, the director of the University of Iowa Press, has impressed me not only with her pro- fessionalism but also with her patience, kindness, and sense of humor. I also want to thank Charlotte Wright, Allison Thomas, Karen Copp, and the staffat the University of Iowa Press for their outstanding work in producing this book. I am especially appreciative of the copyediting work of Robert Burchfield. Walter Kalaidjian and the anonymous reader for the University of Iowa Press have enhanced this book with their thoughtful and thorough comments. I also want to acknowledge those who have read and responded to parts of this book ix