English 291

Course: Poetry is the oldest literary art we have (the novel’s a relative newborn in comparison). Yet, despite it’s long historical development, poetry today is the most diverse it has ever been, with poets doing such a variety of interesting things that we’ll unfortunately only have time to enter into an introduction in this course. This course will give you the tools to further study and enjoy the art—which, like all art, is a wonderful lifelong process.

Two obvious essential activities are required for studying the art of poetry: writing and reading (both of which we will do plenty of in this course). We’ll add to these “discussion.” We want to create a community focused on studying poetry in our class to take advantage of the benefits of collaborative learning to enhance our concentrated study. So, the work in this course will facilitate these three activities as follows:

1. You will write 12 poems (roughly one a week) to be turned in each Thursday.

2. To help you produce and explore, you will complete weekly writing exercises (these exercises can, of course, be developed into full poems).

3. You will substantially revise at least 5 of your 12 poems (which will be included in your Portfolio at semester’s end).

4. 3 of your 12 poems must be imitations of poems you admire (you can imitate more than 3 times, but at least three).

5. For each of your 3 imitations, you will write a 2-3 page explanation of what you tried to borrow and incorporate in your poem from the original, how it turned out, and what you discovered in the process.

6. Following the advice of Robert Pinsky, you will assemble a packet of your 30 favorite poems by professional poets, which will require you to read widely. But don’t just assemble them, use them, imitate them, read and reread them.

7. You will learn the terms of the art of poetry (expect our mid-term to be a test of your knowledge of these terms in exam form). I will provide you with a list of terms.

8. You will obviously come to class. Your attendance should be stellar.

9. You will obviously come to class prepared, and you will obviously participate. Your participation will be constructive.

10. In addition to Writing Poems, you will read two books of poetry by individual authors (no selected collections), one of which will be by Robert Wrigley (more on this later).

11. You will learn to workshop effectively and constructively.

12. You will assemble a final portfolio that represents your best work in this exploration of the art of poetry.

You should notice the expectations of the course are high, but completely reasonable. If you have mistakenly signed up for Creative Writing: Poetry under the impression that it will be an easy A, I encourage you to find a different venue for earning credit. You will not be happy in this class. A student who signs up for Creative Writing: Poetry should be one who is honestly curious about the art to the level of desiring deeper investigation and exposure than casual reading would permit. Some of you may have had experience in a creative writing class before, but this is, of course, not necessary. Only necessary is a respectful commitment to poetry and the class.

Important Note: All of your assignments, unless otherwise noted, must be typed.

Textbooks and other Materials: The required texts are as follows:

· Boisseau, Wallace and Mann. Writing Poems: Seventh Edition. (Available at the university bookstore.)

· 2 additional books of poetry (not selected poems), poets do write books after all: one poet to by chosen by you, the other to be chosen by me—namely one Robert Wrigley (I highly recommend Lives of the Animals, which he considers his best in print).

· An excellent dictionary.

Important Dates: We will try to follow the calendar on the class Blackboard site. Any changes will be announced in class or on Blackboard. You are responsible for knowing what those changes are, which means if you miss class it is essential you ask someone what you missed.

Grading:

Category	Percentage of final Grade:
Attendance	10%
Part/Prep	10%
12 Weekly Poems	25%
Writing Exercises	15%
Portfolio	20%
Book Responses	10%
Mid-Term Exam	10%
Total	100%

Attendance (10%): I will determine your attendance grade by the number of unexcused absences you have during the semester. If you attend all classes, your attendance grade will have earned the full 10%. For each unexcused absences I will deduct 2.5%. If you are absent five or more times, your attendance grade will automatically become zero.

I will count an absence as excused for the following reasons: (a) required field trips for other classes; (b) participation in university athletics; and, up to a certain point, (c) illnesses for which you have a doctor’s excuse (if you are seriously ill for an extended period, it may not be possible to continue with the class). In the first two cases, you will need to provide a letter or note from the department (the Athletic Department or another academic department) that requires your absence from this class.

If you know you must miss a class, try to inform me about it in advance. Remember that you are responsible for making up all the work you have missed. It is especially important not to miss conferences in which we discuss your writing.

Participation and Preparation for Class(10%): Each week I will assign you a participation grade that reflects how involved you are in the class. I will evaluate your participation through your willingness to take part in class discussions and activities as well as your level of preparation determined by your performance on daily quizzes. Your participation grade will be the average of these weekly grades. An unexcused absence will have a detrimental effect on your participation for the day.

Writing Exercises (15%): These will be both exercises you do outside and inside of class. Outside Writing Exercises can be found on our Blackboard site; in-class Writing Exercises will obviously be given in class. In-class Writing Exercises can only be made up if you have an excused absence. Outside Writing Exercises should be completed by the end of the day they are assigned whether you are absent or not.

Portfolio (20%): The portfolio will consist of your 12 poems, 5 of which are revised (include both original and revised drafts), and 3 of which are imitations (be sure to include the imitated poems) accompanied by 2-3 page explanations of what you were able, or at least tried, to use/employ from the model poem; 30 Favorite poems (order doesn’t matter).

Book Responses (10%): Each book response should be like a vigorous journal entry—a 2-3 page response to each book explaining observations, asking questions, expressing admiration/befuddlement/frustration, etc… Basically you want to show a level of analysis that reflects serious study, but you don’t need any formal organization.

A – Represents achievement that is outstanding or superior relative to the level necessary to meet the requirements of the assignment. Your overall average is greater than 90.

B – Represents achievement that is significantly above the level necessary to meet the requirements of the assignment. Your overall average is greater than 80 and less than 90.

C – Represents achievement that meets the basic requirements in every respect. It signifies that the work is average, but nothing more. Your overall average is greater than 70 and less than 80.

W – Stands for Withdrawal. This is the grade you will receive if you withdraw from the course between September 21 and Friday, October 30. A W has no effect on your GPA, but you can have only 20 W credits during your time as an undergraduate at UI (about six courses). If you reach that limit, you can no longer withdraw from any courses after the fourth week of class.

D – Represents work that does not meet the requirements, but still shows substantial effort. Your overall average is greater than 60 and less than 70.

F – Stands for Failure. A grade of F has a negative effect on your GPA. Your overall average is less than 60. There is no reason for receiving an F in this course, unless you simply do not attend class or fail to do the required work.

I – Stands for Incomplete. Under very unusual circumstances you could be assigned an Incomplete in the course if something happened to you within the last two weeks of the semester that made it impossible for you to complete the course (a serious accident or illness that left you hospitalized and very significant personal tragedy, etc.). An Incomplete means that we expect that you can finish the course by handing in one last assignment, usually within only a few weeks of the end of the semester. You must be doing passing work in the course before being incapacitated by an unexpected event. Needing extra time to complete your work is not grounds for an Incomplete. You have to request an Incomplete from your instructor; they are not granted automatically.

Disability Support Services:
Reasonable Accommodations Statement: Reasonable accommodations are available for you if you have a documented disability. Please notify me during the first week of class regarding accommodation(s) needed for the course. All accommodations must be approved through Disability Support Services located in the Idaho Commons Building, Room 312 (885-7200; email at dss@uidaho.edu; see also www.access.uidaho.edu or www.webs.uidaho.edu/aap).