The Cantos
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Reading and Writing Workshop: Epic Motifs in Ezra Pound’s The Cantos
Workshop Theme:
Exploring common epic motifs in Ezra Pound’s The Cantos and tracing their origins in canonical epic poetry.

Session 1: The Modern Epic Form and Pound's Inheritance
Primary Reading:

• The Cantos I-III (Excerpts from early Cantos focusing on Pound's invocation of Homeric tradition)

Motif Focus:

• The invocation of the muse
• The descent to the underworld

Public Domain Connection:

• Homer’s The Odyssey (Invocation and Nekyia/Underworld journey)
  • URL: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/1727
• Virgil’s The Aeneid (Book VI - Katabasis)
  • URL: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/228

Writing Exercise:
Write your own "invocation" for a modern epic poem. How would you call upon inspiration in today’s world?

Session 2: Epic Catalogue and Historical Scope
Primary Reading:

• The Cantos XVI-XVII (Historical figures and cataloguing)

Motif Focus:

• Epic catalogues and lists of heroes or events

Public Domain Connection:

• Homer’s The Iliad (Catalogue of Ships - Book II)
  • URL: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/6130
• Beowulf (Genealogical cataloguing of Danes and Geats)
  • URL: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/16328

Writing Exercise:
Create an epic catalogue of figures, events, or places from your own cultural or historical background.

Session 3: The Hero’s Journey and Fragmentation
Primary Reading:

• The Cantos XX-XXIV (The journey motif and fragmented narrative)

Motif Focus:

• The wandering hero
• Fragmentation of narrative and time

Public Domain Connection:

• The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri (Inferno, Canto I - The lost pilgrim)
  • URL: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/1004
• The Odyssey by Homer (Odysseus as the wandering hero)
  • URL: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/1727

Writing Exercise:
Write a fragmented narrative of a hero’s journey in non-linear vignettes.

Session 4: Cultural Syncretism and Allusions
Primary Reading:

• The Cantos XXX-XXXV (Blending of classical, Chinese, and Renaissance sources)

Motif Focus:

• Syncretism of cultural traditions
• Intertextual allusions in epic poetry

Public Domain Connection:

• The Ramayana by Valmiki (Themes of dharma and cultural identity)
  • URL: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/24869
• The Epic of Gilgamesh (Themes of kingship and mortality)
  • URL: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/11000

Writing Exercise:
Compose a short piece blending two distinct mythological or cultural traditions.

Session 5: The Poet as Seer and Sage
Primary Reading:

• The Cantos LXXXI (The poet’s voice, prophecy, and the role of art)

Motif Focus:

• The poet as visionary
• The moral voice of the epic

Public Domain Connection:

• Paradise Lost by John Milton (Invocation of the Heavenly Muse - Book I)
  • URL: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/20
• The Faerie Queene by Edmund Spenser (Cantos invoking moral allegory)
  • URL: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/15272

Writing Exercise:
Write a poem where you assume the role of a seer or sage reflecting on a modern-day issue.

Session 6: The Sacred and the Profane
Primary Reading:

• The Cantos XC-XCV (Religious symbolism and economic criticism)

Motif Focus:

• The intersection of the sacred and the profane
• The role of religious imagery in epics

Public Domain Connection:

• The Nibelungenlied (Themes of betrayal and sacred oaths)
  • URL: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/1151
• The Song of Roland (Religious zeal and martyrdom)
  • URL: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/391

Writing Exercise:
Craft a scene juxtaposing sacred imagery with a secular or profane setting.

Session 7: The Epic’s Political Vision
Primary Reading:

• The Cantos XCV-C (Pound's vision of governance and justice)

Motif Focus:

• The epic as political and social commentary
• Justice and governance in the epic tradition

Public Domain Connection:

• The Oresteia by Aeschylus (Justice and societal order)
  • URL: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/264
• The Mahabharata (Dharma and kingship)
  • URL: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/15474

Writing Exercise:
Draft an epic-style reflection on contemporary political issues through allegory.

Closing Reflection:
​Participants will be invited to compile their writings into a modern “Canto,” reflecting on how Pound's methods might apply to contemporary epics.