Research Option: This is your chance to dig deeper into a poem by your favorite poet of the semester! Do research on what the poet him or herself or critics have said about a particular poem (which should be by a poet we read, but not a poem we read in class). For the research, you’ll find two sources (they could be of these three types: 1.)essays, by or about a poet we read in class, 2.)book reviews of a book by that poet, and/or 3.) interviews with that poet. Be sure to take your essays/interviews from credible sources that were published by a periodical (rather than personal blog postings or study sites like Schmoop.com, enotes.com, etc. ) and have an author indicated. Do not use sources that just give biographical information—use sources that help you interpret the poet’s aesthetic.
Include lots of quotes from the two essays and the poem, and include a Works Cited. Aim to cover all the main ideas of the article/interviews you read, not just throw in a quote or two from them. Also, if the poem is not in our book, copy and paste it to the end of your paper. Length: 1250 word minimum.
Tips for Research Option:
Approach: In the paper, think of your task as to simply offer an interpretation of the poem you’re writing about, perhaps devoting each paragraph to a different technique in the poem. You’re using sources to help you do this. You could write your interpretation all out before reading outside sources, or read all your sources first, and then write. Ultimately, though, you want to interweave your sources into your own ideas– link the things you’ve said to things other people (or the poet him or herself, if you use an interview) have said about the poet. For instance, perhaps I have a paragraph on images in the poem, I could quote a line from a book review on the poet that comments on the poet’s images.
Resources:
–the Poetry Foundation website–search for the poet and then see if articles are listed (not the bio on that poet but actual articles that are linked to on the website)
–JSTOR or Literature Resource Online which you can access by going to www.kirkwood.library and searching, in the lower left in “All Kirkwood Databases
–EBSCO Host, another Kirkwood database, may also lead you to articles
–Google Scholar, another Kirkwood database. (Though you can access it right through Google, connecting through Kirkwood will ensure you have access to articles listed which Kirkwood owns. If you find articles here which Kirkwood doesn’t have a subscription to, you can order them on Interlibrary Loan (see the lower right of the library home page—they’ll be emailed to you in generally just a day or two.)
–Google—when Googling, I’d suggest looking specifically for “interviews” or “book reviews.” Remember to find only things that have an author listed and that were published in some periodical or by an organization—don’t use blog postings or copies of other student papers you might find online.
Citing:
–as Comp I or its equivalent is a prerequisite for this course, you should have been instructed on how to cite sources responsibly—noting not only quotes but also ideas obtained from your sources and noting these in two ways: via in-text citations and a Works Cited at the end of the text. (You can use MLA, APA or any other style, as long as you use it consistently.) See me if you have questions about citing; you will be responsible for any intentional or unintentional plagiarism.
- Robert Lowell’s “Man and Wife”
- Robert Pinsky’s “Shirt”
- Li Young Lee’s “Eating Alone”
- Robert Hass’s “A Story about the Body”
- Gregory Orr’s“Father’s Song,”
- Robert Hayden’s “Those Winter Sundays”
- Wendell Berry’s “Marriage.”
- Gregory Corso’s “Marriage,”
- Joe Brainard’s “Death”,
- Denise Levertov’s “What Were They Like?”
- Mariahedessa Ekere Tallie’s “Global Warming Blues”
- Donald Justice’s “The Wall.”
