CRW 4310

LIT 4930

 

 

Denise Duhamel                                                                            CRW 4310

Office hours: M/W 3:30-5
Room AC1 358/(305) 919-4812/ sedna61@aol.com

Writing Poetry                                 

FALL 2002 

REQUIRED TEXTS: 

SECRET ASIAN MAN by Nick Carbó

LITTLE ICE AGE by Maureen Seaton

LAND OF COCKAIGNE by Ed Ochester

MONSTER ZERO by Jay Snodgrass  

This class is based on the premise that in order to write contemporary poetry, one must read contemporary poetry.  The assigned books of poetry will be discussed in terms of how they can influence and inspire student work.  You are required to write one poem per week.  It is each student's responsibility to supply enough copies of his/her poem for the entire class the day the work is due. Students also have a unique opportunity to listen to poetry.  Three of the writers whose books you will read will visit our class for discussion.  The fourth, Ed Ochester, will read in the Writers on the Bay series.  Writers on the Bay readings will be held at 8 pm on Thursday evenings-- other venues in Miami host readings as well.  I have listed some of the readings I am aware of this semester (note especially the Miami Bookfair)--and will bring in word of others as well as they are publicized. It is required that students attend at least 2 readings this semester (in addition to class visits by poets) and write 2 response papers (2 pages) or 2 response poems of any length.  Participants must turn in a chapbook of at least 8 finished poems  by the end of the semester in place of a final exam.  Grades will be based on the quality of creative work, rigor in which the work is revised, response papers/poems, and class participation.  Since the class meets only once a week, any more than two missed absences will result in a failing grade.                                                                                     

M 9/2             NO CLASS--LABOR DAY                       

M 9/9             INTRODUCTION TO THE CLASS, WRITING EXERCISES 

M 9/16           WORKSHOP 

R 9/19            READING BY FICTION WRITER DEBRA MONROE, WOB (8 pm) 

M 9/23           WORKSHOP 

M 9/30           DISCUSSION OF JAY SNODGRASS'S MONSTER ZERO

                        JAY SNODGRASS VISITS CLASS 
                        
                        WORKSHOP                       

M 10/7           CHAPBOOK MAKING WORKSHOP WITH CAROL TODARO  

M 10/14         WORKSHOP 

R 10/17          READING BY NONFICTION WRITER DAVID AMRAM, WOB 8 pm  

M 10/21         WORKSHOP 

M 10/28         DISCUSSION OF MAUREEN SEATON'S LITTLE ICE AGE

                        MAUREEN SEATON VISITS CLASS

                        WORKSHOP 

M 11/4           DISCUSSION OF ED OCHESTER'S LAND OF COCKAIGNE

                        WORKSHOP 

R 11/7             POET DENISE DUHAMEL READS AT THE FACULTY LUNCH SYMPOSIUM,  
SOUTH CAMPUS FACULTY LOUNGE, noon
 

M 11/11         NO CLASS--VETERANS DAY 

R 11/14           READING BY POET ED OCHESTER, WOB, 8 pm 

M 11/18         DISCUSSION OF NICK CARBO'S SECRET ASIAN MAN

                        NICK CARBO VISITS CLASS

                        WORKSHOP 

R 11/22-S 11/24  MIAMI BOOK FAIR, VARIOUS READINGS  

M 11/25         WORKSHOP 

M 12/2           WORKSHOP 

W 12/4            FINAL PORTFOLIO DUE.  PLEASE HAVE ALL POEMS IN MY MAILBOX--hand delivered, 
   
                     pony express, UPS, etc.--by 5 pm at the very latest.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Denise Duhamel           
Office hours: M/W 3:30-5

                                                                                                        LIT 4930                                            

Room AC1 358 /(305) 919-4812 / sedna61@aol.com    

FALL 2002                               

  

TRENDS IN AMERICAN POETRY, 1950-PRESENT

REQUIRED TEXT:

 

Postmodern American Poetry: A Norton Anthology by Paul Hoover (Editor)

 

This literature course will explore various schools that make up postmodern poetry of the second half of the twentieth century.  You will be required to have read the following anthologized poets--their poems and their poetics--by the dates outlined below: you will report each Wednesday via a typed one-page (250 word) response paper that, in addition to handing in, you will share with the class.  These response papers will count heavily towards your final grade as they will serve as a means into group discussions.  In these papers, using Hoover's introduction as a guide, you can illustrate the postmodern aspects of a poem and launch into your own theories or what interests you about the work, including questions to which you may not have an answer.  In addition, each student will give a presentation on one poet, in terms of his/her postmodern influence.  Your oral presentation should take roughly 20-30 minutes, and must incorporate resource materials you find in the library or on the web.  Biography, process, and critical work written by or about the poet can all be included. You may guide the class through specific poems of your choice (these poems need not be included in the anthology as long as you provide the class with copies.)  Finally, each student will turn in or present a final postmodern project, a thorough interpretation of a postmodern poem in terms of video, music, dance, drama, or visual art. Grades will be based on your response papers (40%), oral presentation (20%), final project (20%), and overall participation (20%).  Since the class meets only once a week, any more than two missed absences will result in a failing grade.   

 

W 8/28            INTRODUCTION TO THE CLASS and ASSIGNING OF PROJECT POETS  

W 9/4             Discussion of Hoover's introduction to Postmodern American Poetry and Frank O'Hara 
                       (poems plus his manifesto "Personism"), Kenneth Koch, and John Ashbery                         

W 9/11           Further discussion of O'Hara, Koch, and David Lehman (poems)

                        PRESENTATIONS: 

                        Frank O'Hara________________________________

                        Kenneth Koch________________________________                                   

W 9/18           Discussion of Charles Bukowski (poems)

                        PRESENTATION: 

                        Charles Bukowski_______________________________ 

W 9/25           Discussion of Anne Waldman (poems)

                        PRESENTATION: 

                        Anne Waldman_______________________________ 

W 10/2           Discussion of Allen Ginsberg (poems and "Notes for Howl ...")

                        PRESENTATION: 

                        Allen Ginsberg_______________________________                       

W 10/9           Discussion of Jack Kerouac (poems) and Gregory Corso (poems)

                        PRESENTATION: 

                        Jack Kerouac_________________________________ 

W 10/16         CLASS VISITS DAN WAKEFIELD'S "NEW YORK IN THE FIFTIES" CLASS

                        TO LISTEN TO DAVID AMRAM SPEAK ABOUT KEROUAC 

R 10/17           READING BY NONFICTION WRITER DAVID AMRAM, WOB 8 pm  

W 10/23         Discussion of Amiri Baraka (poems and "How You Sound??")

                        PRESENTATION: 

                        Amiri Baraka_______________________________ 

W 10/30         NO CLASS--SEASIDE

 

W 11/6           Discussion of Jayne Cortez (poems) and Wanda Coleman (poems)

                        PRESENTATION:

                        Wanda Coleman _______________________________ 

R 11/7             POET DENISE DUHAMEL READS AT THE FACULTY LUNCH SYMPOSIUM,

SOUTH CAMPUS FACULTY LOUNGE, noon 

W 11/13         Discussion of Victor Hernández Cruz (poems and "Mountains in the North: Hispanic Writing in the USA")  
                       and Miguel Algarín (poems)

PRESENTATION: 

                        Victor Hernández Cruz_______________________________ 

R 11/14           READING BY POET ED OCHESTER, WOB, 8 pm 

W 11/20         Discussion of Diane di Prima (poems) and Eileen Myles (poems)

PRESENTATION:

                        Diane di Prima_______________________________ 

R-S 11/21-11/24  MIAMI BOOK FAIR, VARIOUS READINGS  

W 11/2           Discussion of Andrei Codrescu (poems) and Harry Mathews (poems)

                        PRESENTATION:

                        Andrei Codrescu_______________________________  

 

W 12/4           FINAL POSTMODERN PROJECT DUE--PRESENTATIONS BY ALL