ENGH 454: Topics in Poetry

ENGH 454-002: Transatlantic Modernism
(Spring 2018)

01:30 PM to 02:45 PM MW

Section Information for Spring 2018

Ever wondered what it would feel like to be modern?  Ever had a desire to be a Vorticist? Ever thought it would be cool to live in London (or New York) a century ago and writing cutting-edge poetry that people still enjoy? (Or to write a novel--and I kid you not--called The Snooty Baronet?)

In this class, we'll be looking at the way (mostly) English and American Modernist poetry created itself and had fun in the process.  On the way we'll read Yeats, Pound, Eliot, H.D., Mina Loy and a cast of thousands.  Well, maybe not thousands.  But we'll look at a lot of cool stuff, starting with a poem that sounds like this:

The apparition of these faces in the crowd:

Petals on a wet, black bough.

(Pound, "In A Station of the Metro")   

 

And taking in some Garcia Lorca on the way: 

       Sleep: nothing remains.
       A dance of walls shakes the prairies
       and America sinks into machines and tears.
       I want the strong airs of deepest night
       to remove the flowers and letters from the arch where you sleep
       and a black boy to announce to the white golden ones
       the arrival of the kingdom of grain.

       (Lorca, "Ode to Walt Whitman")                                                 

 

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Course Information from the University Catalog

Credits: 3

Study of selected topics, periods, or poets. Notes: May be repeated when topic is different with permission of department. May be repeated within the term for a maximum 6 credits.
Specialized Designation: Topic Varies
Recommended Prerequisite: Satisfaction of University requirements in 100-level English and in Mason Core literature.
Schedule Type: Lec/Sem #1, Lec/Sem #2, Lec/Sem #3, Lec/Sem #4, Lec/Sem #5, Lec/Sem #6, Lec/Sem #7, Lec/Sem #8, Lec/Sem #9, Lecture, Sem/Lec #10, Sem/Lec #11, Sem/Lec #12, Sem/Lec #13, Sem/Lec #14, Sem/Lec #15, Sem/Lec #16, Sem/Lec #17, Sem/Lec #18
Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

The University Catalog is the authoritative source for information on courses. The Schedule of Classes is the authoritative source for information on classes scheduled for this semester. See the Schedule for the most up-to-date information and see Patriot web to register for classes.