Living Poets

Each week, we will read a published book by a living writer and discuss that book in detail, roughly locating it in the context of contemporary American poetry. Each of the authors on the syllabus will come to class and share his or her work publicly with the group. Each reading will be followed by a discussion with the author, where students will be able to ask about influence, creative process, and craft. Our group conferences will be writing workshops, where each student will bring in copies of a new poem for discussion. Over the course of the semester, students will read 11 books of poetry, writing one- to two-page critical responses. Students will revise three of their own poems as a final creative project. For a final critical project, students will write a five-page paper, focusing on one or two of the authors on the syllabus.