tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15401982.post8870524219702087607..comments2024-01-11T19:21:29.397-08:00Comments on Julie R. Enszer: Why Waldo Frank MattersJulie R. Enszerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18225279980205699210noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15401982.post-89885852942226763282007-11-05T08:33:00.000-08:002007-11-05T08:33:00.000-08:00I don't think Frank was trying to "closet" Crane, ...I don't think Frank was trying to "closet" Crane, thought I do agree that he was deeply committed to a Whitmanian (Whitmanesque?) aesthetic revival. In fact, Frank has been cited as having written one of the earliest American homoerotic/ homosexual novels--"The Dark Mother" from Boni and Liveright, 1920. It's really quite extraordinary and if you can get your hands on a copy, I recommend it--but I'll warn you it's pretty demanding. Frank saw himself as a Poet (capital P), took himself VERY seriously, and his fiction reflects this. In fact, there's a fictional depiction of Frank in Evelyn Scott's novel "Narcissus" which might interest you. And Frank's relationship with Jean Toomer--their correspondence--clearly evinces some homoerotic dynamic, thought I'm not prepared to argue that they were lovers. Some of their letters certainly read like love letters, though.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com