NAVIGATION: Index of Introduction to Poetry Materials Index of Dr. Weller's Class Materials

Introduction to Poetry — ENGL 271 — Winter, 2017
8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. MWF Patterson Hall 249
Web address of this page:
https://shakespeare-navigators.com/courses/Intro_to_Poetry/Intro_to_Poetry_Syllabus_Winter_2017.html


What I hope to accomplish in this class ("Student Learning Objectives")

Schedule
Wednesday, January 11
My plan for the course: Learn some vocabulary, write a paper, and then have some fun.
The present status of poetry:
  • The word should refer to all verse, including Homer, Shakespeare, and Emily Dickinson, but it actually refers only to Emily Dickinson, or, in other words, lyrics. See Wikipedia: Lyric poetry.
  • The unpopularity of poetry in the wider world.
Why are we doing this at all? Exercise on the Essence of Poetry
Friday, January 13
About Getting the Facts Straight:
  • Why it's important: Yes, every poem means something different to each person who encounters the poem, but no, not something entirely different, and we can't have a discussion if we can't agree on facts.
  • Exercise on getting the facts straight.
About Online Resources on Figures of Speech:
     Starting a Google query with "define" will bring up links to a variety of sources, But some are better than others.
     For example, the Google-supplied extract for the definition of "simile" omits the essential information that a simile is an explicit comparison which uses the words "like" or "as."
     For another example, the Google results for the query "define metaphysical conceit" features an inadequate extract from the Encyclopedia Britannica.
     I suggest that you check several sources.Here are some comments on resources that I have browsed through:
--Literary Vocabulary, (part of the site of Dr. Wheeler, of Carson-Newman University): The entry on "conceit," which includes the term "metaphysical conceit," is excellent, but the entry on "simile" says that the comparison is implied, which is wrong.
--Literary Terms has an adequate definition of "simile" illustrated with a cartoon, but no entry for "conceit" or "metaphysical conceit."
--Literary Devices: There's a rather wordy definition of "simile," but no entry for "conceit" or "metaphysical conceit."
--The Wikipedia Glossary of literary terms has excellent explanations of both "simile" and "metaphysical conceit." The only problem that I could see is that the list of terms is very long, and the only way to navigate it is to scroll and scroll. Note: The list is presented as a table, with the term to be defined in the first column, but usually nothing at all in the second column. However, each term is a link to a Wikipedia page about that term.
Monday, January 16:
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Holiday
Wednesday, January 18: SNOW DAY
Friday, January 20:
Figurative Language:
  • Terms to look up: Connotation, Pun, Simile, Metaphysical Conceit, Metaphor, Apostrophe, Personification, Synecdoche, Metonymy
    • They are all techniques of enriching meaning, usually by making a comparison of some kind. Famous example: "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?"
    • The point of learning the names of the various figures of speech is to sharpen our perceptions of the variety of effects that can be achieved. For example: 'He is a pig' v. 'He eats like a pig'.
  • Exercises
Monday, January 23:
Figurative Language 2:
  • Words to look up: Paradox, Overstatement, Understatement, Verbal Irony, and Allusion
Exercises
Wednesday, January 25:
Figurative Language continued
Friday, January 27:
No class meeting: First Quiz (online) (multiple choice, T/F, etc.) on what you have learned so far.
Monday, January 30:
Imagery
  • The kinds of imagery: visual, auditory, olfactory, gustatory, tactile, and kinesthetic.
  • The specifics matter, and images have connotations.
  • Things to look for: Progression and contrast.
Start on Imagery Project
Wednesday, February 1:
Work on Imagery Project
Friday, February 3:
Present Imagery Project to Class
Monday, February 6:
Versification
Exercises
Wednesday, February 8:
Versification Continued
Friday, February 10:
Rhyme and Form: Exercise on the Sonnet form
Monday, February 13:
Sound Effects:
Wednesday, February 15:
No class meeting: Online quiz (multiple choice, T/F, etc.) on what you have learned since the first test.
Friday, February 17:
Begin unit on writing an essay on poetry.
Monday, February 20: Presidents' Day Holiday
  • NO CLASS
Wednesday, February 22:
First paragraph and outline of your essay due: Bring everything to class.
Friday, February 24:
Monday, February 27:
Wednesday, March 1:
Presentations: Poetry Slam Project


  • Raven Java-MaCandless & Mariell Steinberg: Megan Maughan - "5 Reasons to Date a Girl With an Eating Disorder"



  • Bree Mackee & Jeffrey Fay: Neil Hilborn - "OCD" (Rustbelt 2013)



  • Hannah McLaughlin & Michelle Rubio: Melissa Lozada-Oliva - "Tonsils"



  • Alexandria Meridth & Alexandria Nepean: Blythe Baird - "Girl Code 101" (NPS 2014)



  • Annika Bair & Makenzie Norman: Rudy Francisco - "My Honest Poem" (Button Live)

Friday, March 3:
Conferences on essays for those who want to revise their essays for a higher grade. You must bring with you a printout of your essay with my comments, and you must have corrected all of the mechanical errors (sentence fragments, dangling modifiers, comma splices, etc.).
Wednesday, March 8:
Friday, March 10:
Monday, March 13:
Wednesday, March 15:
Friday, March 17:
  • Start poetry reading project.
Monday, March 20 (Last Class Day):
  • Prepare for poetry reading.
Wednesday, March 22: Final Exam Day
  • poetry reading

Grading

Here are the weights for your various assignments:
     Attendance: 10%
     Average of grades for the two quizzes (Wednesday, Jan. 25, & Monday, February 13): 30%
     The essay: 30%
     Average of grades for the Imagery Project, the Poetry Slam Project, and the Willow Springs Fantasy League: 30%
     The poetry reading at the end of the quarter is required, and for that you will receive a bonus of up to .3 of your quarterly grade.