ENGLISH 213

Professor Mark Brazaitis

Office: Stansbury 458

Office telephone: 293-3107 ex. 402

Email: MarkBraz@excite.com

Class Hours: TTh 11 :30- 12:45

Class Location: Hodges 316

Office Hours: Tuesdays (2:30-3:45), Thursdays (2:30-3:45) and by appointment

Objective: In this class, you will learn to become a poet. To become a poet, you must dedicate yourself to both writing and reading poetry, and this class will allow you (read: require you) to do both.

Requirements: Over the course of the semester, you will read more than one hundred poems and write at least five, which you will collect in a mini-chapbook. You will be expected to master poetic terminology. You will be required to present an in-depth analysis of two of the poems in our reading. In addition, you will be expected to participate in classroom discussions. Finally, you will write two, three-page essays analyzing two collections of poems written by your classmates.

Texts: The Poet's Companion: A Guide to the Pleasures of Writing Poetry (by Kim Addonizio and Dorianne Laux); Immortal Poems of the English Language (edited by Oscar Williams); Queen for a Day (by Denise Duhamel); and Hip Logic (by Terrance Hayes).

Grades: Grades in this class will be based on the following: attendance (10 percent); two quizzes on poetic terms and readings (30 percent); analyses of two poems from our reading (20 percent); five or more of your poems to be critiqued in class and collected in a mini-chapbook (20 percent); written critique of classmates' chapbooks (20 percent).

Attendance: Attendance will be graded as follows: 0-2 absences (A); 3-4 absences (B); 5-7 absences (C); 8 or more absences (F).

Class Schedule and Day-to-Day Assignments

Tuesday, August 19: Getting acquainted

Thursday, August 21: Review poetic terms.

Tuesday, August 26: Review poetic terms.

Thursday, August 28: Review poetic terms.

Tuesday, September 2: QUIZ on poetic terms

Thursday, September 4: Read: "Writing and Knowing" (page 19) and "The Family: Inspiration and Obstacle" (page 30) in The Poet's Companion.

Tuesday, September 9: Read: "Death and Grief'' (page 39) and "The Shadow" (page 56) in The Poet's Companion.

Thursday, September 11: Read: "Witnessing" (page 64) and "Poetry of Place" (page 74) in The Poet's Companion.

Tuesday, September 16: Read: "Images" (page 85) and "Simile and Metaphor" (page 94) in The Poet's Companion.

Thursday, September 18: Read: "The Music of the Line" (page 104) and "Voice and Style" (page 115) in The Poet's Companion.

Tuesday, September 23: Read: "Meter, Rhyme, and Form" (page 138), "Repetition, Rhythm, and Blues" (page 151) and "More Repetition: Villanelle, Pantoum, Sestina" (page 161) in The Poet's Companion.

Thursday, September 25: Read: "A Grammatical Excursion" (page 171) and "The Energy of Revision" (page 186) in The Poet's Companion.

Tuesday, September 30: Quiz on readings and information in The Poet's Companion.

Thursday, October 2: Discuss the poetry of Denise Duhamel and Terrance Hayes. Due: Analyses of two poems–one by Denise Duhamel, one by Terrance Hayes. Each analysis should be at least two typed, double-spaced pages.

Tuesday, October 7: Discuss the poetry of Denise Duhamel and Terrance Hayes.

Thursday, October 9: Discuss the poetry of Denise Duhamel and Terrance Hayes. Due: first poem.

Tuesday, October 14: Class workshop of poems

Thursday, October 16: Class workshop of poems

Tuesday, October 21: Class workshop of poems. Due: second poem.

Thursday, October 23: Class workshop of poems

Tuesday, October 28: Class workshop of poems

Thursday, October 30: Class workshop of poems. Due: third poem.

Tuesday, November 4: Class workshop of poems

Thursday, November 6: Class workshop of poems. Due: fourth poem.

Tuesday, November 11: Class workshop of poems

Thursday, November 13: Class workshop of poems. Due: fifth poem.

Tuesday, November 18: Class workshop of poems

Thursday, November 20: Due: a chapbook of at least five of your poems. Bring in three copies of your chapbook.

THANKSGIVING BREAK–ENJOY

Tuesday, December 2: Due: reviews of two of your classmates' chapbooks

Thursday, December 4: Class reading of poems

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Core Values/Social Justice at West Virginia University

The following core values establish the foundation for Social Justice at West Virginia University.

Every person has intrinsic worth and dignity;

Respect for the law is fundamental;

Freedom from fear is universal;

A climate of opportunity, mutual respect, and understanding engenders a feeling that the future should be shared by all community members;

There is an absence of discrimination and harassment based on age, color, disability, ethnic origin, marital status, pregnancy, race, religious beliefs, sex, sexual orientation, and veteran status; and

The rich diversity of people, their cultures, and the bonds that tie people together are appreciated and celebrated.