Studying Poetry and Poetics

This unit of study is an introduction to the reading, analysis and performance of poetry. It aims at both immersion in the creativity and playfulness of poetic language and to teach coherent ways of thinking appreciatively and critically about this. Students will be introduced to basic skills in critical method and to vocabulary relevant to the study of poetry in its various forms. There will be an emphasis both on the formal elements and the varieties of poetry and the social and cultural contextual influences upon these: theoretical questions arising from this will be considered. There will also be some emphasis on the ways in which a sympathetic understanding of a poem can inform a successful oral presentation of it. Students will be encouraged to consider the complex transactional processes involved in responding to and performing texts and discussing them with others. The poems covered will range from the traditional to the contemporary, with significant reference to the recent resurgence of youth-oriented and 'new wave' poetry writing, reading and performing in Australia: this includes attention to 'spoken word' poetry and the poetry of popular song lyrics.