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Introduction to PoetryELIT 011-01 Introduction to Poetry--Fall 2008
Wallis Leslie, Instructor
Office: F11L
Phone: 408-864-8999 ex.3047
Email: lesliewallis@fhda.edu
Why is it that a few lines of print floating in a sea of white space deserve the name of poetry: "queen of the arts, "news that stays new," a spontaneous overflow of emotion," and "the most condensed form of verbal expression"?
The study of poetry leads us to the power and magic of language itself. Ancient Egyptians believed that unless they had the money to pay a priest to say the right words in the right order, their spirits would not be admitted to eternal life. The right words in the right order carry a power; they are the language of incantation, the spell, the charm, the song, the poem. Orpheus, fabled Greek, sang words of such power that the Furies listening in hell wept; the animals, trees, and stones and even the shade drew near to listen.
During the next twelve weeks, we will read and read poetry (out loud as much as possible) beginning with An Introduction to Poetry where we can examine how poets from many countries and many times have used the tools and forms of poetry. Here we can also get a sense of the ideas that were influencing poets in the times they were writing. We will read widely enough to see how poets working within one tradition, the Romantic, for instance, differ from those in another and to see how poets grow dissatisfied with forms they no longer believe adequate to express their truths and seek to create new ones. We will see how poets work within and beyond the tradition of what poets have done in the past; how they "re-make it new" by bringing fresh insight or new technique to the subjects, forms, or work of previous poets. We will see how one generation of poets rejects as old and worn out patterns of rhyme, meter, and stanza only to have those forms taken up and redeployed as freshly wonderful by a future generation of poets.
Required Texts:
An Introduction to Poetry, 12th ed. X. J. Kennedy and Dana Gioia.
The rich variety of poems in this edition and the explanation of poetic tools and forms will lay the groundwork for our understanding of what makes a given batch of words a poem and how the poetic tradition has changed through time.
Here Bullet, Brian Turner
Brian Tuner uses the power and punch of poetry (how's that for alliteration?) to give readers his lived experience as a soldier in Iraq.
Attendance: Students are expected to attend class regularly, arriving on time, having read the material and prepared to discuss and write about the assigned readings. Much classroom work is done collaboratively, that is, working in pairs or small groups. The most sought after qualities in the current job market (although perhaps we lovers of poetry are not concerned with such mundane considerations) are the ability to find information, to work productively without supervision, and to work within a group. All these traits are fostered in a collaborative classroom. Thus, your punctuality and preparation are essential to your successful performance in this class.
Quizzes: Spot quizzes on assigned reading; no make-ups.
Tests: There will be a midterm and a final exam consisting of essay questions covering class work and assigned reading.
Group projects: An assortment of spontaneous exercises to experiment with the tools of poetry (such as, metaphor, irony, allusion, tone, rhyme, meter) and poetic forms (such as, sonnet, sestina, villanelle, haiku, blank verse) and projects requiring more time and planning (such as reports on poetic traditions and movements, (such as, Neo-classicism, Romanticism, Imagism, language poetry) or reports on specific poets.
Term Paper: An analytical and/or argumentative essay on a topic to be chosen by the student in conference with the instructor. The first draft of this essay will be written in class and stapled to the back of the typed, double-spaced, 4-6 page paper (1000-1500 words). The thesis will appear on the title page in addition to wherever else it is placed in the body of the paper.
Integrity Alert: Plagiarism (presenting other people's words or ideas as one's own) will not be tolerated in this class.
Grades: Grades are based on points. Keep a record of the points you have earned as well as the points that are possible to earn for all the class activities so that you will always know your current grade. Points are earned for term paper (150), midterm (100), final (150), class participation (50), quizzes (10 each), and class projects (10-20 each). Points are subtracted for late papers and for more than four absences (you will be marked absent if you arrive late or leave early). Of total possible points, 94-100%= A; 90-93%=A-; 87-89%=B+; 84-86%=B; 80-83%=B-; 77-79%=C+;70-76%=C; 60-69%=D; less than 60% of total possible points = F
Discuss
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