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H.D.

File:H.D._in_Tendencies_in_Modern_American_Poetry,_1917_-_cropped.jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons

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Also known as Hilda Doolittle-Aldington, Hilda Doolittle, H. D., Hilda “H.D.” Doolittle Aldington

Hilda Doolittle (September 10, 1886 – September 27, 1961) was an American modernist poet, novelist, and memoirist who wrote under the name H.D. throughout her life. Her career began in 1911 after she moved to London and co-founded the avant-garde Imagist group of poets with American expatriate poet and critic Ezra Pound. During this early period, her minimalist free verse poems depicting Classical motifs drew international attention. Eventually distancing herself from the Imagist movement, she experimented with a wider variety of forms, including fiction, memoir, and verse drama. Reflecti

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Born
1934
Works
20

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Music · MusicBrainz

Type
Person
Gender
Female
Country
United States
Active from
1886
Active to
1961

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1,554
Total plays
6,028

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H.D. (born Hilda Doolittle; September 10, 1886 – September 27, 1961) was an American poet, novelist and memoirist known for her association with the early 20th century avant-garde Imagist group of poets such as Ezra Pound and Richard Aldington. The Imagist model was based on the idioms, rhythms and clarity of common speech, and freedom to choose subject matter as the writer saw fit. H.D. was born in Pennsylvania in 1886, and moved to London in 1911 where her publications earned her a central ro

via Last.fm · H.D.

Quotes

  • For one moment seeka lesser beautyand a lesser grace,but you will findno peace in the endsave in her presence.
  • Be indigestible, hard, ungiving.so that, living within,you beget, self-out-of-self,selfless,that pearl-of-great-price.
  • The reason is:rats leave the sinking shipbut we...we...didn't leave,so the shipdidn't sink,and that's madness,Lear's songthat's Touchstone's forest jest,that's swan of Avon logic.
  • We don't have to know,only to be:let go the jumble of worn words,reason and vanity.

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Key facts

Poet.name
H.D.
Poet.image
H.D. in Tendencies in Modern American Poetry, 1917 - cropped.jpg
Poet.caption
H.D.
Poet.birth_name
Hilda Doolittle
Poet.birth_place
Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Poet.death_place
Zürich, Switzerland
Poet.alma_mater
Bryn Mawr College
Poet.signature
"H.D." signature (Tendencies in Modern American Poetry, 1917).svg
Poet.signature_alt
"H.D."
Poet.signature_size
70px

via Wikipedia infobox

Wikidata facts

Image
Hilda 'H.D.' Doolittle.jpg
Show 5 more facts
date of birth
1886-00-00
date of death
1961-00-00
Commons category
H.D.
pseudonym
H.D.
P8168
TECO
Sources (4)

via Wikidata · CC0

~24 min read

Article

18 sections
Contents
  • Early life and education
  • Career
  • Imagism
  • World War I and after
  • Poetry cycles, novels and psychoanalysis
  • World War II
  • Later work
  • Death
  • Appraisal
  • Works
  • Poetry
  • Plays
  • Prose
  • Fiction
  • Nonfiction
  • Notes
  • Sources
  • External links

Hilda Doolittle (September 10, 1886 – September 27, 1961) was an American modernist poet, novelist, and memoirist who wrote under the name H.D. throughout her life. Her career began in 1911 after she moved to London and co-founded the avant-garde Imagist group of poets with American expatriate poet and critic Ezra Pound. During this early period, her minimalist free verse poems depicting Classical motifs drew international attention. Eventually distancing herself from the Imagist movement, she experimented with a wider variety of forms, including fiction, memoir, and verse drama. Reflecting the trauma she experienced in London during the Blitz, H.D.'s poetic style from World War II until her death pivoted towards complex long poems on esoteric and pacifist themes.

H.D. was born in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, to wealthy and educated parents. Discovering her bisexuality, she had her first same-sex relationship while attending Bryn Mawr College between 1904 and 1906. After years of friendship, H.D. became engaged to Pound and followed him to London in 1911, where he championed her work. Their relationship soon fell apart, however, and H.D. instead married the Imagist poet Richard Aldington in 1913. In 1918, she met the novelist Bryher, who became her romantic partner and close friend until her death. An associate literary editor of the Egoist journal between 1916 and 1917, H.D. was published by The English Review and The Transatlantic Review. During World War I, both her brother and father died, and she separated from Aldington. She was treated by Sigmund Freud during the 1930s, as she sought to address and understand both her war trauma and bisexuality.

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