Reference no: EM133516765

Question 1. Choose one passage or idea or group of ideas that are new to you or that you find especially interesting in Burt's chapter on feelings (Chapter One.) Respond to these ideas.

Perhaps you've never thought of poems in the way that Burt explains, or never quite to her depth.

Explain why the ideas or passages help you to understand how to read poems in a new and perhaps more satisfying way. Quote from at least one poem in Burt's book or from elsewhere to support your assertions, and include at least one quote from Burt herself.

Question 2. Choose one poem linked in Unit 3 (Matthew Arnold, Mary Oliver, etc.) Draw on what you learned from Burt's Chapter Four, Difficulty, or Chapter Five, Wisdom. Apply an idea or ideas from ONE of these chapters to your chosen poem.

Remember, you must quote from the chapter and from your chosen poem to support what you are trying to say.

Burt says in Chapter Six that "poems can address, imagine and even call into being versions of community, showing what holds groups of people together and how some poems speak to many people at once." Discuss in your group how some of the poems Burt quotes "speak directly to national, regional, ethnic, and professional identities."

Probably the most fun way to tackle this prompt is to think of other "poems" that do this: songs, even the American National anthem, possibly some rock and hip hop or rap. See if you can compare what you know from your own listening and reading with what Burt is explaining.

Read the essay prompts for poems in Unit 3.

Write a sentence outline for the essay that you propose to write. (Don't worry; you can change your mind later if you want to.)

Then, write a short paragraph explaining at least two elements of form in one of the poems you'll be using. Explain its rhyme scheme or use of stanzas, for example -- anything that you learned from Stephanie Burt's chapter on form will be excellent here. Be sure to add your ideas about how the poem's form affects the way you read it, or its meaning.

Question. Write an essay in which you respond to Burt's chapter on Wisdom, Chapter Five. Use any poem or poems that she uses, or find one or more on your own, that have messages that appeal to you. Explain the messages and support your assertions with quotes from both Burt and the poem you choose.