LEARNING GOALS To understand how memory impacts and inspires
writers To understand that personal experience is only one source
of inspiration To familiarize ourselves with poetic devices so we
may analyze the poetry we explore in terms of how they are crafted
and what tools their creators utilized to invoke an emotional
response and give meaning To analyze a poem in terms of poetic
devices, meaning, and conventions
Slide 3
WARM UP POEM Suli Breaks, Why I Hate School But Love Education
http://mariamuir.com/why-i-hate-school-but-love-education/suli-breaks-1/
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MINDS ON: The Role of Memories in Literature
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WHERE DO WRITERS GET THEIR INSPIRATION? Life experiences
Stories they hear or read Observations Events Their
imaginations
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DO WRITERS ONLY WRITE FROM THEIR EXPERIENCES? Is every story
Stephen King tells a reflection of his own life? Did the writer
experience everything they wrote about? Of course not, however,
they get their inspiration from their own experiences that are
stored in memories Memories are treasure troves for writers Every
story and character they create has roots in something the writer
experienced whether virtually (through reading, watching, hearing
others stories both fact and fiction)
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MEMORIES Are the foundation for all literature Poetry is one
genre that is often used to express personal experiences and deep
emotions more than any other genre In this Module and the next, we
are going to explore some forms of poetry that are particularly
reflective of the poets experiences, emotions and memories While
you read the poems presented to you, ask yourself: Is the poet
speaking from personal experience? Is the poet sharing their
personal response to an event? What role does memory play in the
poem?
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POETRY IS A literary work in which special intensity is given
to the expression of feelings and ideas by the use of distinctive
style and rhythm; poems collectively or as a genre of literature
Oxford English Dictionary Although poetry is written and read, it
is most powerful when it is read aloud Poetry has been put to music
and sung since the time of bards
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POETRY Is a genre of literature Has genres of its own like?
Concrete poetry Prose poetry Romantic poetry Lyric poetry Pastoral
poetry Slam poetry Haiku Cinquain Sonnet Free verse Ballad Epic
Allegory Odes Narrative poetry Blank Verse Epitaph Couplet Acrostic
Alexandrine Anagram Carol Found And so on...
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POETRY For definitions of the various subgenres of poetry go
to: www.poetryfoundation.org www.poetryfoundation.org There are as
many forms of poetry as there are emotions and feelings to express
We cannot possibly delve into every form during this course So we
will touch on a few
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POETIC DEVICES Go over and discuss the handout on poetic
devices Familiarize yourself with the common ones and refer to this
handout as we analyze and create poems Many of these devices, if
not all, are used by authors of all forms of literature so they are
important to know and understand as we analyze how skilled writers
use them to create and enhance meaning, evoke emotion, and tell the
stories in interesting, even provocative, ways
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WHAT FORM OF POETRY IS THIS? "Dr. Afua Cooper." Who's Who in
Black Canada, 2013. Web. 16 Sep 2013..
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WHAT IS DUB POETRY? Poetry of West Indian origin which
originated out of dub music consisting of spoken word over reggae
rhythms; Generally performed without music The rhythms is built
into the poem through chanted speech with rhythmic accentuation and
dramatic stylization of gesture "Dub poetry." En.wikipedia.org,
2013. Web. 16 Sep 2013.. Could you hear the reggae rhythm as Afua
Cooper recited her poem?
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THE ASSIGNMENT Read Memories Have Tongue by Afua Cooper While
you read it try to recite it with reggae rhythm as your beat
Identify the poetic devices Cooper utilizes What affects do they
have? How do they enrich meaning?
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POETRY In Part 1, we discussed and considered how the writers
memories shape their poems and inspire them We also looked at
poetic devices and familiarized ourselves with them In Part 2, we
will consider how the readers own experiences and perspectives
inform how they interpret a poem Do your experiences, memories and
perspective affect how you interpret a poem? Can you be moved by a
poem written from experiences that are very different from your
own?
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DISCUSSION QUESTION How can you relate to a poem that is
written from an opposing perspective? Can we read and respond to a
poem without our own bias getting in the way? Are poems open to
interpretation and is it okay that we take from a poem something
different than what the writer is trying to convey? How important
is it to know the background of the writer when reading?
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CASE STUDY: LENORE KEESHIG-TOBIAS Read I Grew Up once before
reading about Keeshig-Tobias backgroundI Grew Up What do you learn
about her from the poem? "Publisher: Sister Vision Press (Open
Library)."OpenLibrary.org, 2013. Web. 17 Sep 2013..
Slide 18
LENORE KEESHIG-TOBIAS An interview with Keeshig-Tobias
discussing her culture, her life and how they have influenced her
writingsKeeshig-Tobias How do her memories and experiences
influence her writing? Re read the poem I Grew Up How does knowing
her background and perspective influence you as you read the poem?
Do you believe knowing the writers background is important? Why or
why not?
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WHAT FORM OF POEM IS I GREW UP? Is there a clear beginning,
middle and end? Does it rhyme? Is there a pattern? Is there a
rhythm?
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A NARRATIVE POEM Tells a story (has a beginning, middle and
end) Is told by a narrator or character May include several
characters Has a conflict: in short narrative poems, the conflict
tends to involve the emotional transformation of a single
character(Edel). Has line breaks that contribute to meaning
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Has punctuation at the end of sentences Enjambment line breaks
that do not coincide with sentence breaks Has a persona NOT THE
AUTHOR represents a fictitious character unique to the work Uses
symbols and metaphors Uses powerful imagery A NARRATIVE POEM
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I GREW UP Who is telling the story? A narrator or a character?
What is the conflict? How does it get resolved? Or does it? What is
the narrator like? What symbols are present? Identify some of the
imagery What is the theme or main idea? What message does the
narrator try to convey?
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I GREW UP Is a unique style of narrative poetry It is a Native
poem that deals with the issues of identity and native culture They
address the complexities around being Native in Canada
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THE ASSIGNMENT There are 2 parts: Respond in complete sentences
using concrete examples from the poem to the questions put forward
Create your own I Grew Up poem following the pattern of
Keeshig-Tobias poem in terms of rhythm, line length, number of
lines in the stanzas, number of stanzas, and the reversal in the
refrain at the end
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PART TWO OF THE ASSIGNMENT Create your own narrative poem about
growing up Use Keeshig-Tobias poem as a model Your lines should be
about the same length It should have the same number of stanzas It
should have a refrain which is slightly inverted at the end You can
rhyme if you like You may use humour It must have a beginning,
middle, and end It must have imagery and symbolism
Slide 26
REFERENCES "Dub poetry." En.wikipedia.org, 2013. Web. 16 Sep
2013.. "Dr. Afua Cooper." Who's Who in Black Canada, 2013. Web. 16
Sep 2013.. Edel, Ryan. "What is a Narrative Poem?." 2010. Web. 17
Sep 2013.. "Keeshig-Tobias also storyteller." nurun.com, 2013. Web.
17 Sep 2013.. "Publisher: Sister Vision Press (Open
Library)."OpenLibrary.org, 2013. Web. 17 Sep 2013.. Suli Breaks.
Digital image 2013. Web. 4 Mar 2014.