English 247 - Poetry Now: New American Lyric

An introduction to American poetry in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. What fuels the contemporary American poetic imagination? What is its shape and form? Along with supplementary essays, criticism and reviews, we'll focus on a wide range of poets, including John Ashbery, Louise Gluck, Jorie Graham, Claudia Rankine, James Tate, Terrance Hayes and Tracy K. Smith. We'll attune our ears to the pulse, music, and tone of the 'new' lyric, while foraging for fresh images and metaphors. As we explore this moment's 'nuances of the ego' (Harold Bloom), we'll also identify the values that chiefly define our nation's poetry today.