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JOHN CABOT UNIVERSITY

COURSE CODE: "CW 354"
COURSE NAME: "Creative Writing Workshop: Poetry"
SEMESTER & YEAR: Spring Semester 2012
SYLLABUS

INSTRUCTOR: Egan Moira
EMAIL: [email protected]
 HOURS: MW 17:30-18:45
TOTAL NO. OF CONTACT HOURS: 45
CREDITS: 3
PREREQUISITES: Prerequisite: EN 103 or 105 with grade of C or above
OFFICE HOURS: MW 16:30-17:30 and by appointment
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
To develop the creative, editorial, and reading habits needed for the production of poems; to develop self-editing skills; to foster an aesthetic sensibility for use in writing poems.
SUMMARY OF COURSE CONTENT:
Students will read a wide variety of poems (by long dead authors as well as by those who are alive and well today). They will also read and engage critically with materials related to analyzing and editing poems. Students will participate in the traditional creative writing workshop, and will complete in-class writing exercises and read classmates’ poems, all with the goal of writing and revising their own poems to be discussed in workshop. Finally, students will assemble a portfolio of the work (including various drafts and revisions) that they produce during the term.
LEARNING OUTCOMES:
Students completing this workshop course will be familiar with the skills needed to write poems, to self-edit work in progress, and to discern the characteristics of quality poetry.
TEXTBOOK:
Book TitleAuthorPublisherISBN numberLibrary Call NumberCommentsFormatLocal BookstoreOnline Purchase
Discovering Genre: PoetryPaul D. Moliken, ed.Prestwick House978-1-58049-315-4     
Ordinary GeniusKim AddonizioW.W. Norton978-0-393-33416-6     
REQUIRED RESERVED READING:
NONE

RECOMMENDED RESERVED READING:
NONE
GRADING POLICY
-ASSESSMENT METHODS:
AssignmentGuidelinesWeight
attendance 10%
class participation 10%
conscientiousness of self-editing 20%
criticism/editing of classmates' work 20%
final portfolio 40%

-ASSESSMENT CRITERIA:

JCU's Assessment Guidelines for assigning main letter grades: A, B, C, D, and F

A:  Work of this quality directly addresses the question or problem raised and provides a coherent argument displaying an extensive knowledge of relevant information or content. This type of work demonstrates the ability to critically evaluate concepts and theory and has an element of novelty and originality. There is clear evidence of a significant amount of reading beyond that required for the course.

B:  This is a highly competent level of performance and directly addresses the question or problem raised. There is a demonstration of some ability to critically evaluate theory and concepts and relate them to practice. Discussions reflect the student’s own arguments and are not simply a repetition of standard lecture andreference material. The work does not suffer from any major errors or omissions and provides evidence of reading beyond the required assignments.

C:  This is an acceptable level of performance and provides answers that are clear but limited, reflecting the information offered in the lectures and reference readings.

D:  This level of performances demonstrates that the student lacks a coherent grasp of the material. Important information is omitted and irrelevant points included. In effect, the student has barely done enough to persuade the instructor that s/he should not fail.

F: This work fails to show any knowledge or understanding of the issues raised in the question. Most of the material in the answer is irrelevant.
-ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS:
Students are allowed two absences, no questions asked. Each subsequent absence will cause the final grade to be lowered by 5 points. Two late entrances count as one absence, so please arrive on time. After five absences, the student will automatically fail the course. 
ACADEMIC HONESTY
As stated in the university catalog, any student who commits an act of academic dishonesty will receive a failing grade on the work in which the dishonesty occurred. In addition, acts of academic dishonesty, irrespective of the weight of the assignment, may result in the student receiving a failing grade in the course. Instances of academic dishonesty will be reported to the Dean of Academic Affairs. A student who is reported twice for academic dishonesty is subject to summary dismissal from the University. In such a case, the Academic Council will then make a recommendation to the President, who will make the final decision.
STUDENTS WITH LEARNING OR OTHER DISABILITIES
John Cabot University does not discriminate on the basis of disability or handicap. Students with approved accommodations must inform their professors at the beginning of the term. Please see the website for the complete policy.
SCHEDULE

ALL POEMS ARE FROM DISCOVERING GENRE: POETRY, which is available at the Almost Corner Bookstore, via del Moro, 45. 

SAMPLE SCHEDULE

(subject to change)


The primary focus of the poetry workshop, of course, is on the production of new student work. Each class meeting, therefore, will be predominantly taken up with discussion of student work according to a schedule that will be set in the first week. Good writers must also be good readers, however, so each class will also feature a close reading of one poem that is relevant (thematically or formally) to the students’ ongoing projects. The close reading will emphasize literary techniques and “take-away” lessons to be applied to the students’ own work.


All readings can be found in Discovering Genre: Poetry, the required course text.

week 1: The Natural World

Arnold, Dover Beach

Cummings, in Just-


week 2: The Natural World, continued

Stevens, Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird

Wordsworth, Lines Written in Early Spring

Yeats, The Lake Isle of Innisfree


week 3: Technology and City Life

Eliot, Preludes

Millay, City Trees


week 4: Technology and City Life, continued

Pound, In a Station of the Metro

Sandburg, Chicago


week 5: Society and War

Browning, My Last Duchess

McKay, The Harlem Dancer


week 6: Society and War, continued

Pound, The River Merchant’s Wife

Frost, Mending Wall


week 7: Society and War, continued

Crane, War is Kind

Owen, Dulce et Decorum Est

MIDTERM PORTFOLIO CHECK


week 8: Religion and Politics

Rukeyser, Ballad of Orange and Grape

Cullen, Incident


week 9: Religion and Politics, continued

Hughes, The Negro Speaks of Rivers

Herbert, Easter Wings


week 10: Religion and Politics, continued

Wilde, Sonnet on Hearing the Dies Irae Sung in the Sistine Chapel

Hopkins, Pied Beauty



week 11: Family & Self

Eliot, The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock

Dickinson, I’m Nobody! Who are you?


week 12: Family and Self, continued

Strand, Keeping Things Whole

Hayden, Those Winter Sundays


week 13: Family and Self, continued

Plath, Morning Song

Olds, I Go Back to May 1937


FINAL PORTFOLIO DUE