Led by Ezra Pound, Imagism valued direct treatment of the subject, economy of language, and rhythm linked to phrasing. In poetry, it champions the image as a radiant node, capable of conveying complex emotion. This approach rejects Victorian ornament, favoring stark, vivid presentation. Imagism profoundly influenced 20th-century poetry, emphasizing the visual and the immediate over discursive, moralizing content.

Imagism was a major modernist movement in poetry, centered around figures like Ezra Pound, H.D., and Amy Lowell. It championed a precise, concrete, and clear use of imagery, advocating for the direct treatment of the subject, economy of language, and freedom from traditional meter and rhyme. The "image" was seen as a "radiant node" or vortex of meaning, capable of conveying an intense emotional and intellectual experience in a single, vivid snapshot. The movement rejected the ornament and abstraction of late Victorian poetry, focusing on the "thing itself" and the use of common, everyday speech. For poets, Imagism was a revolution in craft, emphasizing the power of the objective image over subjective commentary. Its influence is still immense, and its principles are foundational to modern and contemporary poetry.