List of cultural references in The Cantos

It is a book-length work written between 1915 and 1962, widely considered to present formidable difficulties to the reader.

Strong claims have been made for it as one of the most significant works of modernist poetry of the twentieth century.

The most striking feature of the text, to a casual browser, is the inclusion of Chinese characters as well as quotations in European languages other than English.

The range of allusion to historical events and other works of literature is very broad, and abrupt changes occur with the minimum of stage directions.

This list serves as a collection of links to information on a wide range of these references with clear indications of the cantos in which they appear.

John Adams: "the man who at certain points/made us/at certain points/saved us" Canto LXII
Engraving of Confucius, Pound's greatest political hero.
Dante in a fresco series of famous men by Andrea del Castagno , ca. 1450 ( Uffizi Gallery )
U.S. Declaration of Independence: most of the signatories also feature in The Cantos .
Benjamin Franklin
Alexander Hamilton, one of the villains of The Cantos .
Andrew Jackson, a Poundian hero because of his opposition to the Bank of the United States.