[Cwgrad-announcements] FW: Grad Poetry Syllabus 270

[Amanda J Labagnara]

FYI

 

-----Original Message-----
From: chris abani [mailto:chris.abani at gmail.com] 
Sent: Monday, November 27, 2006 10:51 PM
To: Amanda J Labagnara
Subject: Grad Poetry Syllabus 270



Graduate Poetry Workshop Syllabus (270): Winter 2007

Overview:

This workshop aims to combine an element of the creative workshop approach
with an analytical approach aimed at understanding the process of
composition. The analytical approach involves research and a presentation;
while the creative/craft approach involves constructive critiques of each
other's work.

The Analytical:

Each student will be assigned a CD with music from a particular composer.
The instructions for this are as follows: Listen to the CD often. Then
research the composer. Find out what their aesthetic positions and ideas
are, who influenced them, what tradition they belong to and where their own
innovations have occurred. Then pick a sequence of poems from any published
poet you like and trace a similar arc in their work. Your findings will be a
twenty-minute presentation to the class using any format you want. (Please
note that any technological needs should be communicated in time for
allowances to be made). In your presentation, where applicable, show a
sample of your work and what approaches to composition you take. The purpose
here is not to find parallels between the composer and the poet, but simply
to approach an analysis of composition.

This exercise will help not just in the composition of individual poems, or
even sequences, but will help you think through questions around the
architecture of your manuscripts or books.

The Creative:

Please pick a sequence of work - ten to fifteen poems and submit them for
workshop. While you can assemble the work in any order, or respond in any
order, it would be useful to think in terms of themes and arcs.

In responding, please try to follow (as much as possible) the following
order. This will help focus your comments to be most useful to your
colleagues.

1. Speak to any thematic issues you see. What are the major tropes,
underlying philosophical thrusts etc?
2. Speak to the collection of poems as a whole, as though addressing a book.
3. Having done this, that is identified the things you think are at play in
the work, speak to individual poems with suggestions that improve the work
(the individual poem as well as the collection).
4. At this point, talk about your likes and dislikes.

Week by Week:

As we progress, the order of works and workshop will be determined in
consultation with the students.

Chris

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