EN 322 Contemporary Poetry

Spring 2004
Professor: Kendall Dunkelberg Office: Painter 104
email: kdunk@muw.edu Phone: 329-7169
www: http://www2.muw.edu/~kdunk Hours: MW 10:00-12:00
Time: MWF 9:00-9:50   TTh 10:00-11:00

Textbook:
Jahan Ramanzani, Richard Ellmann, and Robert O’Clair. The Norton Anthology of Modern and Contemporary Poetry, Vol. 2 Contemporary Poetry, 3rd Edition.

Course Description:
EN 322 is a survey of American and English poetry during the second half of the twentieth century. Though we can not cover every poet who has written during this period, we will study poets representing the major movements that have shaped the literature of the time. We will also read essays on poetics and study the social contexts in which this literature was produced.

Goals:
• to analyze and interpret individual poems and explore themes common to the period
• to study literary movements within contemporary American and English poetry
• to examine the social contexts that influenced the poetry and poetry’s influence on society
• to learn about literary scholarship through research on a group of poems

Course Requirements:
Forum Responses: Students will be required to participate in the online forum for this class, where you may post your responses to the poems we are reading. For full credit, you should post responses prior to our class discussion. Adding to the discussion later may also earn credit, though the standards will be higher. You may earn up to 15 points per post for a total of 100 points, plus up to 30 points extra credit. If necessary, I may give a quizzes that will be averaged in with the response grade. See the forum for more information.

Presentations of Poems: Each student will be required to give 2 presentations on a poem or poems by different poets. You should present some background information on the poet: either describe the poet’s life during the decade your poem was written or describe cultural references within the poem or other backround information related to the poem. You should also give your interpretation of the poem and discuss why you chose to present it. You may choose a poet we are not covering this semester if they are in our textbook and you get my approval so we can schedule your presentation at an appropriate time. Each presentation should last approximately 5 minutes. I would encourage students to collaborate on these presentations in groups of 2 or 3. If you do, I will expect you to give 2 presentations for each member of the group and I will average the grades of all the presentations to determine your final grade for this assignment. With my permission, a group may present more poems or a long poem by a single poet and thereby combine some of their presentations. Immediately after your presentation, I will ask you to turn in your notes and any other material used. I will also ask you to post a summary of your presentation to the forum, which will not count as one of your forum responses described above. (Due on or before March 5 and May 5.)

Term Paper: You will write one major essay, 7-10 typed pages, on a group of poems: either several poems (or one long poem) by the same poet or a comparison of two or more poems by different poets. You should present a textual analysis of the poems, discuss the poetics of the poet, and place the poems in their historical or social context. You should refer to some literary scholarship on the poems or the poet in your paper if possible. If little or no scholarship is available on the poet you choose, consider using historical information or statements on poetics by the poet or related poets as the research component of your paper. (Due May 3)

Midterm and Final Exams: There will be one in-class midterm exam covering the poems and themes discussed in the first part of the course. There will also be a comprehensive final exam. Both exams will focus primarily on essay questions, though there may be some identification or short answer questions. For each exam you will need at least one blue exam book.

Attendance:
Since discussion of assigned readings is essential to the success of the course, attendance is mandatory and will be recorded at the beginning of each class. If you arrive late to class, please inform me after class that you were present; otherwise you will be counted absent. If you must leave class early, please inform me before class so that I know why you are leaving. I reserve the right to count you absent if you miss a significant portion of class. Students are required to attend a minimum of 75% of scheduled classes to receive a passing grade. Excessive absences (more than 5) will be considered due cause for lowering your grade.

Grading:
Essay grades will be determined by how well the essay addresses the assigned topic. Grammar and style will also be taken into consideration. Assignments turned in late will be penalized. In extreme circumstances, and only when a request has been made prior to the due date of the assignment, extensions may be granted at the discretion of the professor. The final due date for all late assignments is the Friday before exam week. Letter grades assigned to final drafts of papers will have the following numeric values:

A+ = 98B+ = 88C+ = 78D+ = 68F = 0-59
A   = 95B   = 85C   = 75D   = 65
A-  = 92B-  = 82C-  = 72D-  = 62

Final grades will be based on the same system and will be a composite of the following:

Forum Responses 10%
Presentations 10%
Term Paper 30%
Midterm Exam 20%
Final Exam 30%

A final reminder: plagiarism will result in an F (0) on the assignment, and in severe cases is grounds for failure in the course. Plagiarism includes using paraphrased or quoted information from a source without proper documentation. Using quoted information without putting it in quotes (or indenting for long quotes) is also considered plagiarism, regardless of whether the source is cited. Cliffs Notes and other study aids must be treated as any other source; i.e. if you use them, you must cite them. If you are unsure whether you have used material and cited it appropriately, see me before the final draft of the assignment is due. Once you have turned in your assignment it is too late to plead ignorance. Please refer to the Student Guidebook for MUW's policies regarding plagiarism and academic honesty.

Students with disabilities: A reasonable attempt will be made to accommodate students with documented disabilities. Students must first obtain an accommodations plan through Academic Support Services and make a request for accommodations prior to the due date of the assignment. When a general accommodations plan is presented, it will be tailored to the demands of the course to create a plan that is fair to all students. All information regarding a student’s disability will be kept confidential.
EN 321 Contemporary Poetry Spring 2004 Schedule
Week 1 January 12-16
Mon Introduction
Wed Elizabeth Bishop 15-44
Fri Robert Lowell 119-140
Week 2 January 19-23
Mon Martin Luther King Holiday
Wed Sylvia Plath 593-615
Fri Ann Sexton 431-438
Week 3 January 26-30
Mon John Berryman 92-100
Wed Charles Olson 1-15, 1053-1061
Fri [Mississippi Philological Association, attendance required]
Week 4 February 2 - 6
Mon Robert Creely 325-334
Wed Denise Levertov 247-256 & 1081-1086
Fri Frank O'Hara 361-370 & 1072-1074
Week 5 February 9-13
Mon John Ashberry 384-408
Wed Kenneth Koch 261-269
Fri Alan Ginsberg 334-358 & 1075-1077
Week 6 February 16-20
Mon Jack Kerouac [Handout]
Wed Lawrence Ferlenghetti 162-166
Fri Gary Snyder 534-542
Week 7 February 23-27
Mon Robert Bly 370-375
  Galway Kinnell 381-384
Wed James Wright 414-422
Fri Midterm Exam
Week 8 March 1-5
Mon Philip Larkin 210-227 & 1067-1071
Wed Kingsley Amis 202-205
  Donald Davie 205-209
Fri Thom Gunn 484-489 Presentation #1 Due
Spring Break March 8-12
Week 9 March 15-19
Mon Ted Hughes 558-571
Wed Geoffrey Hill 581-592
Fri Seamus Heaney 720-749 & 1097-1109
Week 10 March 22-27
Mon Derek Mahon 798-806
Wed Paul Muldoon 952-968
Fri Eavan Boland 844-852
  Medbh McGuckian 943-947
Week 11 March 29 - April 2
Mon Adrienne Rich 456-483 & 1086-1096
Wed Margaret Atwood 765-774
Fri Marilyn Hacker 811-814
  Louise Glück 818-826
Week 12 April 5-9
Mon Robert Hayden 52-68
Wed Gwendolyn Brooks 140-149
Fri Holiday — no classes
Week 13 April 12-16
Mon Amiri Baraka 632-640, 1078-1081
Wed Michael Harper 698-705
  Audre Lorde 615-620
Fri Lucille Clifton 658-664
  June Jordan 664-669
Week 14 April 19-23
Mon Yusef Komunyakaa 858-864
Wed Rita Dove 974-987
Fri Thylias Moss 999-1004
Week 15 April 26-30
Mon Gary Soto 969-974
  Lorna Dee Cervantes 1009-1012
Wed Joy Harjo 947-952
Fri Leslie Marmon Silko 879-887
Week 16 May 3-7
Mon Cathy Song 1018-1025 Term Papers Due
Wed Li-Young Li 1039-1045 Presentation #2 Due
Fri Course Review
Final Exam: Tuesday, May 11, 8:00-11:00 a.m.

Important Dates:
Jan. 20 Last day to enter classes
Jan. 30 Last day to drop a course without WF or WP or to change from credit to audit
Feb. 27 Last day to drop a course with WF or WP
April 23 Last day to withdraw from the university