Selected Essays of Delmore Schwartz

The arrangement of the essays and reviews is based on their subject matter and to some extent on their length and tone. Parts I and II are devoted respectively to general commentary on the condition of modern poetry and to the examination of a number of modern poets from Rombaud to Roethke. Part III contains essays on some 20th century fiction; it is introduced by "The Duchess' Red Shoes" an essay that, uniting polemic, humor and passion, is probably the fullest single statement of Delmore's deep feeling about the morality of literature. Part IV is devoted to modern literary criticism. Part V is composed of miscellaneous short pieces, their subjects ranging from existentialism to comic-book adaptations of the classics and Pat VI consists of nine film reviews and two reviews of Hollywood biographies.