ENGL 316.001

Modern Poetry: Voices and Visions

Poet, poet! sing your song quickly! or
not insects but pulpy words will blot out your kind.
—William Carlos Williams

NOTE: This is representative of the syllabi for this course. It is not necessarily the syllabus being used in any one semester.

Text:

Modern American Poets: Their Voices and Visions, Robert Yanni

Description:

The early 1900s were filled with a new breed of poet as creative innovator, an identification that has expressed itself in diverse and revolutionary ways over the course of the 20th century. In this class we will explore the significant arts movements that precipitated such wide-ranging poetry and come to an understanding of what modernism is.

Requirements:

There will be weekly reading and short writing assignments, two tests (a midterm and a final), a group presentation and a final creative project. I would like you to attend a poetry reading on or off campus and write an analysis of the experience (I will give guidelines).

Grade:

Your grade will be based on two tests (30% each), writing assignments (20%) and a creative project (20%). If you miss class or do not complete your papers on time, your grade will I be adversely affected. Three or more absences will lower your grade-after three absences, your final grade will drop one notch (A to A- to B+, etc.) each additional time you're absent; repeated lateness will also lower your grade. Weekly homework assignments are to facilitate class discussion and will not be accepted late.

Course Outline

Week I Introduction

I. The Avant-Garde of the 20s

"The western world and then the world in general has been witness to a revolution of the word that is simultaneously a revolution of the mind, a revolution of the world itself."

—Jerome Rothenberg

Week 2 Imagism

Week 3 Gertrude Stein, e.e. cummings, Apollinaire and the Emergence of the Modern

Week 4 W.C. Williams, Wallace Stevens and Marianne Moore

II. The Harlem Renaissance

"This was the age of blues and of jazz—an age in which music created by blacks fIrst acquired a worldwide following."

—David Perkins

Week 5 Langston Hughes and Jean Toomer

Week 6 In-class writing

Week 7 MIDTERM

Week 8 Spring Break

III. Post-War Poets and the New Avant-Garde

Week 9 Introduction

Week 10 The New York School

"Enlarging the sphere of the poetic, the New York poets revitalized poetry at a

moment when it seemed that everything that could be done had been done. They took Pound's dictum to heart. They made it new."

—David Lehman

Week 11 New York School cont'd.

Week 12 The Beats

Week 13 The Beats cont'd.

Week 14 The Confessionals

IV. The Spoken Word Revolution

"From Baja California to Seattle to Detroit, from the dance clubs with rap lyrics booming to the schools where Gil Scott-Heron plays to the churches . . . to community centers and coffeehouses throughout the whole nation, the spoken word is on fire."

—Bob Holman

Week 15 Spoken Word

Week 16 Creative Projects

Finals Week Final Exam




			ENGL 316.001 Modern Poetry: Voices and Visions Poet, poet! sing your song quickly! or not insects but pulpy words will blot out your kind. —William Carlos Williams NOTE: This is representative of the syllabi for this course. It is not necessarily the syllabus being used in any one semester. Text: Modern American Poets: Their Voices and Visions, Robert Yanni Description: The early 1900s were filled with a new breed of poet as creative innovator, an identification that has expressed itself in diverse and revolutionary ways over the course of the 20th century. In this class we will explore the significant arts movements that precipitated such wide-ranging poetry and come to an understanding of what modernism is. Requirements: There will be weekly reading and short writing assignments, two tests (a midterm and a final), a group presentation and a final creative project. I would like you to attend a poetry reading on or off campus and write an analysis of the experience (I will give guidelines). Grade: Your grade will be based on two tests (30% each), writing assignments (20%) and a creative project (20%). If you miss class or do not complete your papers on time, your grade will I be adversely affected. Three or more absences will lower your grade-after three absences, your final grade will drop one notch (A to A- to B+, etc.) each additional time you're absent; repeated lateness will also lower your grade. Weekly homework assignments are to facilitate class discussion and will not be accepted late. Course Outline Week I Introduction I. The Avant-Garde of the 20s "The western world and then the world in general has been witness to a revolution of the word that is simultaneously a revolution of the mind, a revolution of the world itself." —Jerome Rothenberg Week 2 Imagism Week 3 Gertrude Stein, e.e. cummings, Apollinaire and the Emergence of the Modern Week 4 W.C. Williams, Wallace Stevens and Marianne Moore II. The Harlem Renaissance "This was the age of blues and of jazz—an age in which music created by blacks fIrst acquired a worldwide following." —David Perkins Week 5 Langston Hughes and Jean Toomer Week 6 In-class writing Week 7 MIDTERM Week 8 Spring Break III. Post-War Poets and the New Avant-Garde Week 9 Introduction Week 10 The New York School "Enlarging the sphere of the poetic, the New York poets revitalized poetry at a moment when it seemed that everything that could be done had been done. They took Pound's dictum to heart. They made it new." —David Lehman Week 11 New York School cont'd. Week 12 The Beats Week 13 The Beats cont'd. Week 14 The Confessionals IV. The Spoken Word Revolution "From Baja California to Seattle to Detroit, from the dance clubs with rap lyrics booming to the schools where Gil Scott-Heron plays to the churches . . . to community centers and coffeehouses throughout the whole nation, the spoken word is on fire." —Bob Holman Week 15 Spoken Word Week 16 Creative Projects Finals Week Final Exam home \| bs, corporate communication \| ba, english \| ma, publications design \| mfa, integrated design \| mfa, creative writing & publishing arts \| people \| portfolio \| facilities \| classes \| undergraduate applications \| graduate applications \| contact \| site index \| university of baltimore