ENGL 351(S) American Poetry

"American poetry is a very easy subject to discuss for the simple reason that it does not exist," declares one early-twentieth-century literary critic. Beginning with an extensive examination of the works of Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson, this course will take up the challenge posed by this quote, to discover what distinguishes an American poetics in the nineteenth- and early-twentieth centuries. Are there distinctively American poetic traditions, uses of language, forms? How does one determine relations of influence between poets? What makes modernism in America distinctively American, or is nation ultimately a limiting category? Along the way we will debate what poetry might have to do with other areas of political, social, sexual, and individual life. Emphasis will be placed both on doing close, strong readings of single poems and on developing ways to discuss poets' oeuvres and influence. Readings may include selections from Ralph Waldo Emerson, Whitman, Dickinson, Hart Crane, Wallace Stevens, William Carlos Williams, Langston Hughes, Gertrude Stein, Marianne Moore, and Elizabeth Bishop. Requirements: two short papers, one longer paper, and journal entries. Prerequisite: English 101. Enrollment limited to 25.

Hour: KENT