Course Catalogue

Module Code and Title:       LIT101 Life in Verse: Themes in Contemporary Poetry 

Programme:                          BA in English Studies

Credit Value:                         12

Module Tutor:                       Sonam Deki, Vanlallawmkimi, Tshering Choden

Module Coordinator:             Sonam Deki

General objective: In this module, students will study a wide variety of contemporary poetry. Students will not only be able to gain a deeper appreciation for these poets and their poetry, but also be able relate to them. Students will be given an opportunity to organise a poetry fest where they will recite poems and share how these poems impacted them. The purpose of this module is to give the students a sense of how poetry continues to thrive in many different styles and forms across the globe, and understand the role of poetry as a commentary upon or critique of contemporary society. Students will read contemporary poets such as Pablo Neruda, Robert Frost, Maya Angelou, Kamala Das, Ogden Nash, Mary Oliver, e.e.cummings, Derek Walcott, Bob Dylan, Carol Ann Duffy, Guru Tshering Ladhaki, Gopilal Acharya and Benjamin Zephaniah.

Learning outcomes – On completion of this module, learners should be able to:

  1. Identify the key meanings/themes in popular contemporary poetry.
  1. Recite poetry employing proper intonation, pace and pronunciation.
  1. Clearly express their sentiment about and opinions on the poems discussed.
  2. Discuss poems from different perspectives and standpoints.
  3. Make inter-textual comparisons between poems.
  4. Identify the form and rhyme scheme by scanning lines of poetry.
  5. Examine the depiction of contemporary society and social questions through poetry.

 Learning and Teaching Approach:

Approach

Hours per week

Total credit hours

Lectures & discussions

3

45

Tutorials

1

15

Independent study

4

60

Total

120

Assessment Approach:

A. Poetry Fest: Visual display & Recitation: Portion of Final Mark: 25%

Students will plan and organise a Poetry Fest where audience from outside the English Department will be invited. Students will choose poems, display them creatively and recite them to the audience. The assessment of the visual display and recitation of the poems will be based on the ‘Oral Tasks’ rubric, and assessed out of 25% (5% visual display and 20% recitation).

B. Poetry Fest: Journal: Portion of Final Marks: 15%

Students will also be required to maintain a journal of 500 – 800 words where they explain their choice of poems, the methods of preparation for the Fest, and their reflections on the experience. The assessment for the journal will be based on the ‘Analytical Writing’ rubric and assessed out of 15%.

C. Class Tests: Portion of Final Marks: 10%

Two written tests (5% each) on the prescribed poems will be conducted, and will be for 45 min duration and cover 2-3 weeks of material.

D. Class participation and preparedness: Portion of Final Mark: 10%

Students will be expected to participate substantially in class discussions, with contributions reflecting adequate preparation for topics under discussion. 5% of class participation and preparedness will be assessed before midterm and the remaining 5% post midterm.  Assessment will be based on the ‘Participation and Preparedness’ rubric.

E. Midterm Examination: Portion of Final Mark: 10%

Students will take a written exam of 1.5 hr duration covering topics up to the mid-point of the semester.

Areas of assignments

Quantity

Weighting

A. Poetry Fest: Visual display & Recitation

1

25%

B. Poetry Fest: Journal

1

15%

C. Class Tests

2

10%

D. Class participation and preparedness

 

10%

E. Midterm Examination

1

10%

Total Continuous Assessment (CA)

 

70%

Semester-End Examination (SE)

 

30%

 Pre-requisites:

 Subject matter:

  1. Reading poetry for pleasure
  • Reading aloud with intonation and correct pronunciation
  • Practice of choral and individual reading
  1. Reading poetry for meaning
  • Analysing themes
  • Context of the poem
  • The poet’s voice
  1. On Love and Relationships
  • Reading and Analysis of If You Forget Me by Pablo Neruda
  • Reading and Analysis of i carry your heart with me by e.e.cummings
  • Reading and Analysis of Mad Girl’s Love Song by Sylvia Plath
  • Reading and Analysis of For Anne by Leonard Cohen
  • Comparative study of perspectives on Love and Relationships
  1. On Women
  • Reading and Analysis of Phenomenal Woman (1995)by Maya Angelou
  • Reading and Analysis of Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers (1951) by Adrienne Rich
  • Reading and Analysis of A Lady Who Thinks She is Thirty by Ogden Nash
  • Reading and Analysis of A Letter to My Mother by Taslima Nasrin
  • Reading and Analysis of Barbie Doll by Marge Piercy
  • Reading and Analysis of Not a Beauty by Gopilal Acharya
  • Women and roles
  • Women and society
  • Body Image
  1. On Nature and Life
  • Reading and Analysis of The Summer Day by Mary Oliver
  • Reading and Analysis of Bluebird by Charles Bukowski
  • Reading and Analysis of Going out to the Garden by Alice Walker
  • Reading and Analysis of One flower by Jack Kerouac
  • Reading and Analysis of From the Foot to its Child by Pablo Neruda
  • Comparative study of the prescribed poems to Romantic Poetry
  • Figurative language
  1. On Society
  • Reading and Analysis of Masks by Shel Silverstein
  • Reading and Analysis of The Times They Are A-Changin' by Bob Dylan
  • Reading and Analysis of The Race Industry by Benjamin Zephaniah
  • Reading and Analysis of Goodbye Party for Ms. Pushpa TS by Nissim Ezekiel
  • Reading and Analysis of Of Mothers and Heirlooms by Guru Tshering Ladaki
  • Use of vernacular
  • Depiction of contemporary society and social questions through poetry
  • Poetry as a vehicle for change

 Reading List:

  1. Essential Reading (A coursepack of the compiled poems will be made available to students)
  2. Additional Reading
    • Arthos, J. (Jan., 1943). The Poetry of e.e.cummings. American Literature. 14, (4) 372 – 390. Retrieved from http://0-www.jstor.org.helin.uri.edu/stable/2920516
    • Dwivedi, A.N. (Summer, 1992). Modernity in Nissim Ezekiel’s Poetry. World Literature Today. 66,(3). 432 – 434. Retrieved from http://0-www.jstor.org.helin.uri.edu/stable/40148360
    • Nasrin, T. and Ali, A. H. (2006). Dissident Women’s Voices Coming Out of Islam. Off Our Backs, 36, (3) 42. Retrieved from http://0-www.jstor.org.helin.uri.edu/stable/20838655
    • Neruda, P. (Spring, 1998). ‘Poetry: Pablo Neruda’. The Wilson Quarterly. Vl. 22, (2) , 113 – 118. Retrieved from http://0-www.jstor.org.helin.uri.edu/stable/40259760
    • Uroff, M.D. (Spring, 1979). On Reading Sylvia Plath. College Literature. 6, ( 2). 121 – 128. Retrieved from http://0-www.jstor.org.helin.uri.edu/stable/25111261
    • Redmond, E.B. (Spring, 1998). ‘Boldness of Language and Breadth: An Interview with Maya Angelou’. Black American Literature Forum. 22, (2), 113 – 118. Retrieved from http://0-www.jstor.org.helin.uri.edu/stable/2904487

Date: December 20, 2015

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Royal Thimphu College