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This module aims to develop and enhance the student’s skills in the craft of writing poetry; to familiarise students with writings on poetics; to enhance skills in close reading and analysis particularly in relation to poetry; and to develop skills such as the use of extended metaphor and dramatic monologue in the composition of their own poems. Students will critically reflect on the nature and variety of poetic practices, including their own, and use this critical reflective process in order to better understand the making of poems as an artistic process with particular attention to craft and poetics through the critically reflective practice of poetry composition.

This module will run as weekly seminars, followed by two-hour workshops.  The seminars will focus on subject-related readings and discussion.  Topics/themes will be largely chronological and will be chosen from among others: the practical application of various types of simile, metaphor and irony; the use of dialogue and dramatic monologue in poetry; and various writings by Hopkins, Pound, Eliot, Mayakovsky, Loy, Lorca, Olsen, Ginsberg, Boland and Rich which deal with poetics. Workshops will focus on the critical development of the students own poetry.

A student passing this module should be able to:

1. demonstrate knowledge and understanding of, and an ability to analyse and evaluate, a range of theories related to poetry;

2. demonstrate ability to analytically and evaluatively relate theories of poetics to the work of poets including themselves;

3. demonstrate understanding of the creative relationship between theory and practice;

4. demonstrate understanding of , and analyse the main elements of character and narrative construction in poetry;

5. demonstrate the ability to use the various tropes of poetry in an integrated fashion;

6.  demonstrate understanding the creative and professional relationship between poetic writing, re-writing, editing and publication.

The Library Catalogue contains full details of the current reading list for this module. Further details may also be found in the Module Guide.