In his recasting the canon of English poetry in New Bearings in English Poetry, which of the following pairs was downgraded by F.R. Leavis?

Correct option is D

Explanation:

F.R. Leavis, in New Bearings in English Poetry, critiqued the romantic tradition and its continuity in poets like Milton and Shelley, downgrading them for their lack of immediacy and engagement with modern realities. Milton, though admired for his grandeur, was criticized for being too remote, rhetorical, and lacking a personal voice. Shelley was faulted for his perceived abstract idealism and for writing poetry that lacked connection with the realities of life.

Leavis championed poets like Eliot, Pound, and Yeats for their modernist sensibilities and for addressing contemporary concerns with a fresh perspective.


Information Booster:
F.R. Leavis was a staunch modernist, emphasizing intellectual engagement and moral seriousness in literature.
He criticized the romantic tradition for fostering a disconnection from real-life complexities.
New Bearings in English Poetry (1932) became a pivotal work in re-evaluating the English literary canon, leading to a shift towards modernist preferences.
While poets like Milton and Shelley had dominated the traditional canon, Leavis argued for their replacement with poets who engaged directly with the modern condition.

Additional Knowledge:
John Milton is best known for Paradise Lost, a work showcasing his mastery of blank verse and Christian theology but critiqued by Leavis for its detachment from human immediacy.
Percy Bysshe Shelley is celebrated for his lyrical and visionary works, but Leavis found them overly idealistic and detached from practical concerns.
Leavis appreciated modernist poets like Eliot and Pound for their innovative use of language and engagement with contemporary life, rejecting older traditions of rhetorical or decorative poetry.