Editing Wallace Stevens (section)

===Racism===

There is various evidence of Stevens's contempt for people of African descent, e.g., his use of the phrase "nigger mystics" in his poem "Prelude to Objects", and the title of his poem "Like Decorations in a Nigger Cemetery". This attitude is further illustrated by the following anecdote: "It happened during the meeting of the National Book Award committee that gave the poetry prize to [[Marianne Moore]]. [F]ive [judges, including] Wallace Stevens ... passed the time looking at photographs of previous meetings of National Book Award judges. [[Gwendolyn Brooks]] appeared in one of these. On seeing the photo, Stevens remarked, 'Who's the coon?' ... Noticing the reaction of the group to his question, he asked, 'I know you don't like to hear people call a lady a coon, but who is it?'”<ref>{{cite web|last=Jackson|first=Major|title=Wallace Stevens After "Lunch"|date=February 4, 2008|website=Poetry Foundation|url=https://www.poetryfoundation.org/harriet-books/2008/02/wallace-stevens-after-lunch|accessdate=March 5, 2023}}</ref>