Calendar for 279-Fall 2002 SCHEDULE
FOR THE FIRST TWO WEEKS.
WEEK ONE
9/4 Wednesday: Introduction
9/5-7 Sometime between today (Wed. 9/4) and Saturday, read in Kowit, chapter
one, "How to Begin," page 1-6. Then read chapter 4, "Shards
of Memory," pp. 30-35. Respond to the 8 prompts on p. 33 under the
heading "A Process for Recovering Fugitive Memories." Then try
poem assignment #7 or #8 on page 33-35. Hand in a poem based on #7 or
#8,
WEEK TWO
9/9 (Monday Morning)
1.Hand in that poem either Sunday night, by slipping it under the English
Department office door or, at any rate, Monday Sept. 9th in the English
office at 8:30 am sharp. Any poem submitted after 8:30 will not be
included in the week's packet and will count as a missed assignment.
Be sure your name and 279 is in an upper corner. ( Note that, hereafter,
poems will be due on Thursdays by 11:30 in the English office. There will
be a second poem due this week---on Thursday, Sept 12.)
2. For class on Monday
1. Read handout on annotations & the 2 sample annotations of Elizabeth
Bishop's "The Fish.
IN PREPARATION FOR THURSDAY'S POEM:
1. Read chapter 2 in Kowit, "I Couldn't Stop Watching."2. Read
handout of list poems.
3. In journal, do the exercise on p. 16 called "A process for recovering
memories" and/or, if you wish, do the exercise on p. 25, "A
process for uncovering traumatic memories."
A. Read "Taking Notes for the First Poem," in prep for Thursday's
poem-then, sometime before Thursday, do either Poem 1, 2 (You may ignore
the stanza restrictions he suggests.), or 3.
B. After you have written your poems, re-read the section called "Revising
the First Poem," on p. 20.
9/11 (Wednesday)
A. Read in chapter 8, pp. 71-74, on haiku. B. As exercise, do three haiku.
Be prepared to read them out loud.
9/12 (THURSDAY) POEM DUE
In preparation for Thursday's poem,
1. Read chapter 2 in Kowit, "I Couldn't Stop Watching."
2. Read handout of list poems.
3. In journal, do the exercise on p. 16 called "A process for recovering
memories" and/or, if you wish, do the exercise on p. 25, "A
process for uncovering traumatic memories."
4. Read "Taking Notes for the First Poem." Do either Poem 1,
2 (You may ignore the stanza restrictions he suggests.), or 3.
5. After you have written your poems, re-read the section called "Revising
the First Poem," on p. 20.
THE REST OF THE SEMESTER
9/16 Image.
A. Read the rest of Chapter 8 in Kowit.
B. Study the Annotation directions. In Poulin read all of the following
and do an annotation on the interplay of abstract statement, mimetic image,
and figurative image in one of the following: Andrew Hudgin's "The
Chinaberry," pp. 229-30; AI's "Twenty-Year Marriage," pp.
4-5; Lucille Clifton's "Homage to my Hips," pp. 87-8; Donald
Hall, "Maple Syrup", pp. 183-4;; Robert Hass, "A Story
About the Body," p. 203; Marilyn Nelsen's "I Decide Not to Have
Children," p. 379
C. In your journal, do "An Exercise in Using Figurative Language"
in Kowit, pp. 76-7. Make sure your images are fresh and precise.
9/18 Image:
A. Read handout on Image.
B. Do annotation on the difference that image and metaphor make in the
two versions of Plath's "Poppies."
C. Also read all the Frank O'Hara selection,(pp. 395-401) and study his
use of the mainly literal, prose-like, "mimetic" images. Do
the same for Sharon Olds selection (pp. 403-9).
D. For this Thursday's poem, concentrate on image-whether literal or figurative.
Let the images do the talking as much as possible.
9/23 Line & line breaks.
A. Read Kowit, chapter 21.
B. Also study the line handout and do the exercises in it. Go back to
Bishop's "The Fish," annotation #2
C. Read all of the following, then annotate one. If the poem is long,
just do a part of it: Creeley, "I Know a Man," p. 93, "The
Flower," p. 96; Olga Broumas, 'Caritas," pp. 77-81. Alan Ginsberg,
"Howl," pp. 145-152. Ellen Bryant Voigt's "January,"
p. 539; Richard Wilbur, "The Writer," pp. 551-2; C.K. Williams,
"From my Window," pp. 556-58.
9/25
A. Rewrite an earlier poem or exercise, changing the line lengths and
using more variety in break strategy.
B. Write 7 lines using seven different break strategies.
C. In this week's poem, concentrate on line breaks. Be prepared to justify
them.
9/30 Music: alliteration, assonance, consonance, repetition, repetend..
A. Read Kowit, Chapter 7.
B. See sample annotation on Bishop's "The Fish";
C. Read all of the following, then annotate one: the entire Maxine Kumin
selection, pp. 295-300; the entire Lucille Clifton selection, pp. 85-91;
Gwendolyn Brooks, the first 22 lines of "Lovers of the Poor,"
p. 68; Alan Dugan, "Love Song I and Thou," p. 128-9. Robert
Hayden, "Those Winter Sundays," p. 211;
10/2
A. No exercises, but find in Poulin a poem that uses repetition.
B. Thursday's poem, stress music and/or repetition.
10/7 -- Metrics.
A. Read Kowit, chapters 17 & 20.
B. Read all of the following, then annotate one: Elizabeth Bishop, "In
The Waiting Room," pp. 54-5, "One Art, pp. 57; all of Richard
Hugo, pp. 237-243; all of Richard Wilbur, pp. 547-53
10/9-
A. Scan handout on Robert Frost's "An Old Man's Winter Night."
B. Thursday's poem due in blank verse.
10/14- FALL BREAK-no annotation due this week.
10/16-Beginnings and Endings REMEMBER-A POEM IS DUE
A. Read the handout on beginnings and titles.
B. From poems that have not yet been assigned in our text, type out 10
great conclusions, then from among them, choose 3 different kinds, and
write an annotation, showing how they work and what their virtues are.
C. Concentrate in this week's poem on making a great beginning and ending.
10/21 - Diction, Speaker Voice And Tone--& Point Of View
A. Read around in Poulin, look for poems with distinctive tones, pick
one to annotate and write about how the poet uses one or more of the other
resources of craft (diction, syntax, image, line break, etc.) to create
specific tone or tones.
10/23-A. In-class writing
10/28-The Great Themes
A. Read in Kowit, chapters 22-4, about poems that are political or public,
that concern love, and that concern desire. Choose two poems from CAP
or one of the chapters and do a comparison and contrast annotation, showing
how they differ in point of view and, therefore, tone and diction.
B. Read the Robert Hayden selection: pp. 211-217. On the political: Robert
Hayden: "Poets are the keeper of a nation's conscience, the partisans
of freedom and justice, even when they eschew political involvement-affirming
what is human and eternal."
10/30-
A. In your journal, do the exercise on p. 190, "A Process for Germinating
Poems of Social Consciousness."
B. Peruse the poem suggestions in the three chapters and, if you feel
right about it, try a poem on one of the themes.
11/4-The Great Themes
A. Read chapters 25-27 on the poetry of loss, nature, and moments of revelation.
B. There are many good suggestions for poems in these chapters. Try one,
or two, or three. Hand in one for Thursday.
11/6 Revision
A. Hand in your first revision
11/11--Pacing, Sentences, Syntax.
11/13-Revision due Wednesday. Poem due Thursday as usual.
11/18-- Experimental poetry.
11/20 -- Revision
11/25- THANKSGIVING
11/27 - Revision.
For Thursday's poem, submit your most accomplished poem to date.
12/2- Revision.
12/4-
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