Poetry Unit

Writers of the 21st century12-2

Posson/Pescatello

Introduction

In this unit students will examine the lives and work of contemporary poets from the late 20th and early 21st century. Students will explore different research methods and practices in order to learn and write about a poet of their choice. Students will use their research to write a biographical sketch of the poet, an analysis of one or two poems, as well as to create an original, creative project that seeks to connect the poet’s ideas and themes to the work of another artist (painter, film maker, musician or another poet).

The goal of this unit is to gather information and explore ideas about poetry that will be shared in multiple ways in student writing, class discussions, and small group work.

Overview of the Assignments

A.Biographical Sketch*

B.Summary of Critical Reading (Article)

C.Analysis of a Poem

D.Creative Connection Project

*The first week of the unit will be dedicated to learning how to do research on your poet of choice and to gather information for assignments A., B. and C.

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  1. Biographical Sketch

Assignment: After choosing a poet that interests you, write a one-page biography of the poet. You should conduct your research keeping the following two questions in mind: a) what interests me about the poet’s life? and b) what information do I want to share with the class? Your profile must include:

  1. Information about the poet’s life (date of birth, childhood, education, life experiences)
  2. Style of poetry
  3. Important themes that the poet explores in his or her poems
  4. Significant influences (other poets, writers or artists)
  5. A quotation by the poet, which addresses his or views about the creative process or significant themes or subjects
  6. A photograph (if available) and/or an audio clip of a reading of a poem

Date Due: ______

Biographical sketch must be typed, 12pt, MLA format

  1. Summary of Critical Reading and C. Analysis of a Poem

Directions: As part of your library research, look through several collections of the poet’s work or an anthology. Complete the following tasks in the library:

  1. Copy 3-4 poems to submit for class discussion. The poems from all of the students in the class will used to conduct class discussion over the next few weeks. You will be responsible for leading the discussion of the poems you submitted.
  2. Find a critical analysis of one of the poems or one of the themes used by the poet. Read and xerox the article.

Date Due: ______

  1. Summary of Critical Reading

Directions: As part of this unit you will read and summarize a scholarly article that pertains to themes, imagery, style and/or poetic techniques explored by your poet in his or her work. After selecting and copying the article in the LMC, complete the following assignment:

  1. Read and annotate the article. Underline and mark up the text with comments and questions.
  2. Write a summary that addresses the following questions:
  3. What is the author’s thesis (controlling argument)?
  4. How does the author develop his or her ideas? In other words, how is the article organized?
  5. How does the author support ideas with examples from the poem?
  6. What is your opinion about the article? In what ways does it add to your understanding of the poet’s message? (Be sure to include specific examples from the article and/or the poetry)

Date Due: ______

Summary should be 3-4 paragraphs in length and must be typed, 12pt, MLA format.

  1. Analysis of a Poem

Directions: After you have read and collected a variety of poems by your poet, choose a poem to analyze in depth. Read the poem closely to decide your focus of study. You may choose to focus on two or more of the following poetic elements: tone, figurative language (metaphor, simile, personification, metonymy, synecdoche), diction, rhetorical devices (irony, allusion, paradox, pun, oxymoron) and syntax. Of course, your goal is to examine the poet’s use of his or her craft and how it conveys ideas about life and the human condition in interesting ways. In other words, your choice of a poem should engage you and inspire you to examine how the poet writes and thinks.

Date Due: ______

Analysis should be 2-3 pages in length and must be typed, 12pt, MLA format. Please note that more information about how to analyze a poem will be provided.

  1. Creative Connection

To Be Announced