Opus Posthumous

Opus Posthumous collects previously unpublished works by American poet Wallace Stevens, including poems, plays, essays and lectures written throughout his career. This compilation was first published in 1957, two years after Stevens' death. The book contains over 100 poems excluded from Stevens' other published collections, providing insight into his development as a writer. The prose sections feature Stevens' perspectives on poetry, imagination, and aesthetics through academic lectures and personal correspondence. The collection spans multiple decades of Stevens' writing life, from his early experimental works to his later philosophical pieces. Editor Samuel French Morse organized the contents chronologically and provided notes on the origins and context of many works. This volume reveals Stevens' ongoing examination of reality versus imagination, and his lifelong pursuit of truth through poetry. The interplay between concrete observation and abstract thought emerges as a central tension throughout the collected works.

Readers note this collection offers unique insights into Stevens' thought process through his essays, journal entries, and unpublished poems. Many appreciate the scholarly value of seeing Stevens' development as a poet and philosopher. Readers liked: - Access to rare personal writings and early drafts - The detailed notes and commentary on Stevens' work - Inclusion of Stevens' prose about poetry and aesthetics Readers disliked: - Dense academic language that can be difficult to parse - Some inconsistencies in editing between editions - Lack of chronological organization From online reviews: Goodreads: 4.28/5 (98 ratings) Amazon: 4.5/5 (12 ratings) "The essays helped me understand Stevens' poetry in a new way" - Goodreads reviewer "Too scholarly for casual reading but valuable for research" - Amazon reviewer "Worth it just for the unpublished poems" - LibraryThing review Multiple readers mentioned the book works better as a reference text than a cover-to-cover read.

The Collected Poems by W.H. Auden Auden's works combine philosophical meditations with formal poetic structures in a manner that echoes Stevens' intellectual rigor and aesthetic concerns.

Words Chosen Out of Desire by Helen Vendler Vendler's critical analysis of poetry focuses on the intersection of language, perception, and reality that forms the core of Stevens' poetic investigations.

Harmonium by Mark Strand Strand's collection explores the relationship between imagination and reality through abstract imagery that follows Stevens' tradition of philosophical poetry.

Selected Poems by Marianne Moore Moore's precise observations and complex metaphysical concepts mirror Stevens' approach to examining the nature of consciousness through poetry.

The Double Dream of Spring by John Ashbery Ashbery's poems build on Stevens' legacy through their exploration of consciousness, perception, and the role of imagination in creating meaning.

🌟 "Opus Posthumous" was first published in 1957, one year after Wallace Stevens' death, and contains previously uncollected poems, plays, and prose. 📝 Stevens wrote many of the poems in this collection while working as an executive at the Hartford Accident and Indemnity Company, where he spent his entire business career. 🎭 The book includes Stevens' only known attempts at writing plays, including "Three Travelers Watch a Sunrise" and "Carlos Among the Candles." 📚 The collection features Stevens' important theoretical essays about poetry, including "Effects of Analogy" and "The Figure of the Youth as Virile Poet." 🏆 Despite being published posthumously, several poems in this collection played a crucial role in establishing Stevens' reputation as one of the most important American modernist poets of the 20th century.