Wallace Stevens and Francis Parkman: The American West and Beyond discovers a previously unacknowledged connection between the poet and the historian. Parkman in his historical narratives served as a source for a variety of poems by Stevens, including some of his more major efforts. Early on, Stevens responds in a playful way to Parkman; later on, Stevens becomes more serious and thoughtful, admitting to the more troubling aspects of Parkman’s narratives. With an understanding of how Parkman relates to these poems, the reader will more easily engage with the poet, and see how Stevens, in conjunction with Parkman, becomes a guiding light for acknowledging the cognitive dissonance that shadows the American experience.
Stevens was not always distant, not always a solipsistic poet. At least at times, he was deeply in touch with his world and deeply affected by it, as he aspired to grow beyond the historical burdens so deeply embedded in it. All readers of Stevens will benefit from reading this book, and, in particular, anyone with an interest in what makes Stevens a distinctly American poet.
