English 160 - Introduction to Poetry

REQUIRED TEXTS

Michael Meyer, Poetry: An Introduction, 4th edition
a good dictionary (preferably a heavy, hardcover one)

COURSE GOALS

The aim of this class is to get you thinking, talking, and writing about poetry (as opposed to writing poetry itself-the English Department addresses that skill in ENG 201 and ENG 302). As the class progresses, we will learn the terms for various aspects of memorable poetry (such as figurative language and various sound effects) and how these aspects work together in the best poems-poems that linger in your memory after you've read them, encouraging you to read them over again and often showing you new aspects when you do. We will be thinking, talking, and writing about what various poems might mean and how they convey that meaning in interesting, poetic ways. In addition, you will write at least one paper about poetry in the style that scholars use-that is, formally, carefully, and persuasively.