Spirituality & Wallace Stevens

The topic of my Modernism Form & Theory final paper will be the theme of Spirituality in the poems of Wallace Stevens. In addition, I want to compare and contrast how the spiritual imagery and tones are used by other Modern poets in their meditative or narrative lyrics. I'll articulate a more definitive thesis in the next few days.

One aspect of Wallace Stevens that I find extremely fascinating is his writing process. He walked everyday to his job with Hartford Insurance, stopping sometimes along the way to write down notes and ideas on the blank envelopes in his jacket pocket, or he'd wait until he arrived at work and then write down the poem which he had composed in his head. Then he'd give his notes to his secretary to type up. Reportedly, she said once when giving the typed document to Wallace, "I don't know what this means, but here you go." The methodical way he scheduled his life, the daily morning walks, the solitude in his bedroom after dinner (him and his wife kept separate quarters in their house), the precision of a M-F job, his long walks on weekends...all of this helped him to cultivate a meditative lifestyle. To tap into that quiet space inside himself where he could hear his "voice"...his soul even.

Despite his established notoriety today, Wallace Stevens worked on his poetry and publishing career in almost total secrecy from his community. He kept his poems private from his co-workers and was not involved socially in the literary culture and society of his day.

I still have more research to do on Stevens' biography, but from what I've read so far he was not committed to religion, church attendance, and the like. Still, I think Stevens expresses his spirituality through his poems, even a Christ-centered spirituality maybe, without being attached to a specific church or theology.

And here is an interesting article that explores this issue:
Spirituality for All the Wrong Reasons
Eugene Peterson talks about lies and illusions that destroy the church.