Menippean Satire and Carnivalism in Ezra Pound’s Pisan Canto 74

In the context of debates about the diverse influences on the lyricism yet epic scale of Ezra Pound’s The Cantos, this chapter introduces the genre of Menippean satire as an alternative approach to the poem’s form, because of how this form includes diverse literary subgenres. Locating elements of this sub-genre throughout Pound’s epic, J. Rhett Forman proposes that reading the epic through the lens of Menippean satire may help a reader appreciate its Spanish origins. Applying Eric McLuhan’s definition of Menippean satire specifically to Canto 74, Forman demonstrates how this mode can dissuade an audience from narrow views by employing three rhetorical features of Carnivalism: a mixture of the high and the low, a digressive structure, and startling rhetorical effects. In Canto 74, these features create a carnivalesque atmosphere, juxtaposing the setting of the DTC camp with memories of restaurants, cafes, and hotels, a contrast which produces unsettling effects.