Intermediate Poetry Writing
ProfessorMerrillCole
M–Cole@wiu.edu http://faculty.wiu.edu/M-Cole/
Office: Simpkins109
Hours: MW,2:00-3:00p.m.
TTh,3:30-4:30p.m.
English385,Section001
IntermediatePoetryWriting
W,5:30–8:00p.m.
Simpkins308
Texts
Addonizio,Kim.OrdinaryGenius:AGuideforthePoetWithin.ISBN:0393334163
Poemswillbepostedforclassdiscussiononmywebsite—NOTWesternOnline.
Course Objectives
Thiscourseofferspoetstheopportunitytorefineanddeveloptheirskills,exploringa
varietyofpoeticpossibilities.Becomingabetterpoetmeansmorethanmastering
technique,thoughwewillspendagooddealoftimeexperimentingwithpoeticform.
Becomingabetterpoetalsomeansdevelopingcriticalawarenessofourselvesandofthe
worldaroundus.Thisseminarwillexplorepoeticcompositionastheopportunitytolive
uptothepotentialofwhoweareandtoexplorewhowemightbecome.
Thebestwritersarethebestreaders,forcontrarytopopularbelief,writersmust
carefullystudyotherwritersinordertoexcelattheirart.Wewillexaminethe
productionsofavarietyofpublishedpoets,alwayswithaneyetolearningabout
technique.Thepoemswillservetoincreasetheunderstandingofliterarylanguage,to
widenthevocabulary,tocultivatetheappreciationofdiversestyles,andtoinspireour
owncreations.
Thiscourseisawritingworkshop,whereparticipantsareexpectedregularlytosubmit
writinginprogress.Writersneedpractice—andthenmorepractice.Wewillalsohave
routineclassroomandhomeworkexercises.
Therewillbefocusedwritingassignments,butstudentswillalsohaveopportunitiesto
writeastheyplease.Disciplinealoneisthedeathofcreativity.Freedomwithout
disciplineleadsnowhereinteresting.Inattemptingtobalancethetwo,thecourseis
designedtoproducebetterpoets.
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Requirements
Thisisaportfoliocourse,meaningthateachstudentwillpresentafinalportfolioof
twentypages,oralittlemore,attheendofthecourse.Theportfoliomayconsistofany
numberofpoems,includingprosepoems.Asageneralrule,twopoemsshouldnot
appearonthesamepage.Alongwiththeportfolio,studentswillturninathree-pageselfreflectiveessayonhowtheyhaverevisedtheirworkshoppoems.Studentswillalsokeep
ajournalwithatleastoneentryeveryday.
IexpectyoualwaystobringtoclassthepoemsthatIassignfrommywebsite,whetheron
anelectronicdevice,orinprint.Iwelcomestudentreadingsuggestions,butIreservethe
righttomaketheultimatedecisiononthereadings.Allhomeworkexercisesandall
workshoppoemsmustbeprintedinenoughcopiesforallclassmembers,includingme.All
homeworkassignmentsandworkshoppoemsmustbeemailedtomeasMicrosoftWord
attachmentsbeforethebeginningofclass.
Afterapoemisworkshoppedinclass,youwillemailthestudentandmewitha150-word
critique,formattedasaMicrosoftWordattachment.Thiscountsasparticipation.
Critiquesneedtobeemailedwithin48hours.ThePoetryCritiqueGuidelinesexplainwhat
isexpectedandhowthecritiquesaregraded.
Everyonemustactivelyparticipate.Lackofparticipationwilldamageandperhapsdestroy
yourgrade.Thismeansdoingthehomework,completingthereadings,performingclass
activities,andjoininginworkshop.Pleaseseehttp://www.wiu.edu/provost/students.php
forstudentrights&responsibilities.
Grading
Participation:
20%(includescreditforworkshopsubmissions)
Critiques:
20%
Journal:
5%
Self-ReflectiveEssay: 5%
Portfolio:
50%
Missingclasses,orarrivinglate,willaffecttheparticipationgrade.Astudentwithmore
thantwounexcusedabsencesautomaticallyfailsthecourse.Iamlenient,though:ifyou
givemeavalidreasontomiss,ortohavemissed,asession,Iwillprobablyexcuseyou(I
mayaskfordocumentation.).
Poemsareonlygradedintheportfolio,butyougetcreditforworkshoppingthem.
Lazystudentsmakelousypoets.Youwasteyourtimeandmineifyoudon’tworkhard.
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Visiting My Office
Pleasetaketheopportunitytomeetwithmeduringmyofficehours,orbyappointment,
totalkaboutthereadings,oryourwriting.Iverymuchappreciateanykindoffeedback
aboutthecourse.
Students with Disabilities
InaccordancewithUniversitypolicyandtheAmericanswithDisabilitiesAct(ADA),Iwill
makeacademicaccommodationsforanystudentwhonotifiesmeoftheneed.Formeto
providetheproperaccommodation(s),youmustprovidemedocumentationfrom
DisabilitySupportServices.Itisimperativethatyoutaketheinitiativetobringsuchneeds
tomyattention,asIamnotlegallypermittedtoask.Studentswhorequirespecial
assistanceinemergencyevacuations(i.e.,fire,tornado,etc.)shouldtellmethemost
appropriateprocedurestofollow.PleasecontactDisabilitySupportServicesat298-2512.
Schedule
Iamopentomakechangestokeepthelearningsituationactiveanddynamic.
OG=Ordinary Genius. Please note that you are expected to have read the pages before
youcometoclass.Poetryselectionsarenotlistedbelow.
January20:
Introductiontothecourse.Haiku.
January27:
OG,13-46.Five-poemhomeworkdue.Openworkshop.Workshopon
exercisepoems.
February3:
OG,47-59.Workshoponexercisepoems.Openworkshop.
February10:
OG,61-76.Workshoponexercisepoems.Openworkshop.
February17:
OG,61-76.Workshoponexercisepoems.
February24:
Openworkshop.In-Classexercises.
March2:
OG,77-95.Workshoponexercisepoems.Openworkshop.
March9:
Workshoponexercisepoems.Openworkshop.
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Spring Break
March23:
OG,99-108.Workshoponexercisepoems.Openworkshop.
March30:
OG,109-26.Workshoponexercisepoems.Openworkshop.
April6:
NoClass.RykaAokireadingonApril7at7:00p.m.
April13:
OG,135-46.Workshoponexercisepoems.Openworkshop.
April20:
OG,148-63.Workshoponexercisepoems.Openworkshop.
April27:
OG164-69.Workshoponexercisepoems.Openworkshop.
May4:
Portfolioworkshop.Journaldue.
PortfoliodueonMonday,May9at1:00p.m.,orThursday,May5at10:00a.m.for
comments.
Therewillbeastudentreadingduringfinalexamweek,dateandtimeTBA.