This course aims to introduce students to contemporary English-language poetry in Great Britain and Ireland by tracing the most important developments, poets, texts and movements from the post-war period to the present day. After a brief overview of the contemporary poets’ most influential forebears, students will be given the opportunity to be introduced to the politically committed poetry of the 30s, the surrealist and New Romantic trends of the 40s, the “Movement” of the 50s, the “British Poetry Revival” of the 60s and the 70s, and we will conclude by considering some of the most engaging and original poetry written in Britain and Ireland the last three decades as expressed through some contemporary movements like the “Martians,” the “Poeclectics,” the “Poetry Slam,” the “New Poetry,” and the “New Generation” movement, minority poetry, performance poetry, new media, digital, experimental and twitter poetry. The emphasis of the course will be on reading and engaging with poetry first hand. The organizing principle throughout the course will, nevertheless, be the connection between poetry and innovation, form, gender, multiculturalism, minorities, politics, nationality, performativity, spatiality, subjectivity (especially the lyric subject) and electronic writing.
Course Outline
