Thursday, October 29, 2015

Rita Dove poetry cycles

AGENDA:

 

 

 

 

Poetry Cycle Assignment Rita Dove


Go to library for Rita Dove's Selected Poems.  We will be reading "thomas and Beulah" at the end of the book.  It is a poetry cycle.

Read aloud as a class the first six poems in the Mandolin section. Discuss each poem checking on the chronology in the back of the poetry cycle for information about Thomas's life.

TPCASTT Analysis of a Poem:

Select one of the six poems you read in "Thomas and Beulah". 
What has Rita Dove done with imagery, form, theme, rhythm, language, etc. to make this poem work? Any lines that particularly strike you as interesting or powerful? Think about poetic technique: enjambment, caesura, metaphor, simile, alliteration, assonance, consonance, linebreaking, stanzaic form, apostrophe, onomatopeaia, etc.

Flash Fiction assignments are due today.
Contest entries (Hollins and Bennington are due today.



Writing Assignment:


Begin working on Poetry Cycle assignment:
Similar to Thomas and Beulah, consider some characters in your own life, or imagined characters, or actual historical characters. Imagine the significant chronological dates in their lives--high points and low points. consider how to construct a series of 8-10 (preferably more) poems that tell a story (narrative poetry) and explore these key moments and occasions.


  • a. Your poetry cycle should consist of 8-10 poems
  • b. Your poetry cycle should be accompanied by a chronology to support the key dates and occasions you chose to write about.
  • c. At least two of the poems should explore the same event from two different perspectives or viewpoints (like "Courtship" in Thomas and Beulah). These poems can have the same title.
  • d. Place one poem per page, single-spaced, 12 point type in a clean font and be sure to title each poem. you may want to title the entire cycle as well. Use italics for dialogue, songs, memories, etc as you observe in Rita Dove's work. Experiment with different stanzaic forms and poetic styles.
  • e. Poems can, of course, be narrative or lyric, but remember that the overall cycle is a narrative and must tell a story of a life or lives although we only see "fragments" or moments/snapshot

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