Laura T. Smith: Teaching

Original Poem (5%)

For this class, I ask you to compose one original poem during the semester (though I find that many students compose more than one.) Why include a creative-writing component in a class primarily focused on literary analysis? The purpose is to allow you to explore a poetic form, idea, theme, occasion, or mode through experimenting with it directly, rather than through research and analysis. It’s another way to better understand poetic structures and language. In fact, there’s probably no better way of understanding what makes a sonnet a sonnet (or a villanelle a villanelle, or an epic an epic) than by writing one yourself (though I don’t really expect anyone to write an epic….).

For ideas on how to begin to write a poem, consult the “Prompts for Writing an Original Poem” handout. You are not required to use any of these, but they can help with the blank slate feeling.

In addition, I encourage you to use the original poems forum. I’m asking everyone to post one original poem to the forum by the end of the semester, but students often use it more frequently and enjoy commenting on each other’s writing. (I especially encourage you to respond to each other’s writing.)