A. M. Klein

Zailig Hirsch Pollock (Trent University)
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A. M. Klein holds a central place in Canadian literature for two reasons. He was the first writer from an ethnic minority – that is, of neither French nor English background – to have made a genuine and lasting contribution to the multi-cultural fabric of Canadian literature. In addition, Klein was one of Canada’s leading modernist poets, and his account of the role of the poet in the mid-twentieth century, “Portrait of the Poet as Landscape”, is one of the most powerful and most frequently cited poems in Canadian literature. In fact, Klein’s career, with its great achievements and tragic conclusion, can best be seen as a working out of the tensions, unbearable at times, between his Jewishness and his modernity.

Abraham Moses Klein was born in Ratno, Ukraine, in 1909, and in

2530 words

Citation: Pollock, Zailig Hirsch. "A. M. Klein". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 04 December 2006 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=2534, accessed 19 March 2024.]

2534 A. M. Klein 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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