Forum, Week 4: Poems of this era

Before the study guide is due, you have a forum. In the forum, I want you to do the following: Go here and read over read and appreciate a poem. (Links to an external site.)

With this article in mind, how can you appreciate one of the texts more deeply? Be specific. Name one or more of the readings and tell me how when you apply the Hirsch ideas, the poem becomes more enjoyable.

Next, ask a question about a different poem. So you post looks like:

“After reading Hirsh on poems, I felt I could understand Tender Buttons better, mainly because I wasn’t trying to understand it all, but instead was enjoying the images almost like pictures or paintings, the sonic and aural qualities as well as the imagery.

I have a question about Wallace Stevens’ poem “Anecdote of the Jar.” Why does the author use the word “Anecdote” in the title? “

Post your forum post by 2/8, 5pm, and pick one person to respond to by the same deadline. In your reply, answer the question posed by your peer.

As always, no late work, proofread your post for full points, and when you reply, type @Student name so we can trace who talks to whom. Points: 15 for post, 5 for answer.

American Literature 1914-1945 (click this on the TOC and the author names will appear)

• Introduction
• Timeline (right there in the intro section)
• Willa Cather, intro to author and “Sculptor’s Funeral”
• Gertrude Stein, intro to author, “The Making of Americans,” and “Tender Buttons”
• Essay: “WW1 and Its Aftermath”
• Robert Frost, intro to author and any two poems you choose
• Wallace Stevens, intro to author and any two poems you choose
• William Carlos Williams, intro to author and any two poems you choose
• Ezra Pound, intro to author and any two poems you choose

Questions

Introduction

1. What do you expect in terms of form or content in the readings from this period?
2. What was happening in visual art during these decades? Why?
3. Based on the intro essay, what are four major cultural forces shaping this period?
4. Timeline (just view it. No questions on it)

Willa Cather

• intro to author and “Sculptor’s Funeral”

1. Who was Cather?
2. What details hearken back to realism/naturalism or regional/local color writing in this story (just bullet point two-four)
3. What does this story help you understand about the time and place Cather wrote in?

Gertrude Stein

• intro to author, “The Making of Americans,” and “Tender Buttons”

1. Who was Stein?
2. In the “Making of Americans,” what does she tell us makes Americans? In your own words, what forces or influences is she talking about? Identify at least two.
3. “Tender Buttons”: Stein was surrounded by painters of the time, and she also had a relationship with Hemingway, a very matter of fact, it is what is, minimalist writer. With those things in mind, what about this poem is painterly? Quote one very image-making line.
4. What about this poem is realistic, stripped down as opposed to flowery/symbolic or figurative writing? Quote one line. (Help quoting poems: click here.) (Links to an external site.)

Essay: WWI and Its Aftermath

1. In your own words, what was the effect of WWI on literature?

Robert Frost

• intro to author and any two poems you choose

1. Who was Frost?
2. For each poem you picked, tell me the name of it, your reaction to the poem (like, dislike, confused by, love, connect to?) and why.
3. Pick one line from the poem that stands out and why you picked it.

Wallace Stevens

• intro to author and any two poems you choose

1. Who was Stevens?
2. For each poem you picked, tell me the name of it, your reaction to the poem (like, dislike, confused by, love, connect to?) and why.
3. Pick one line from the poem that stands out and why you picked it.

William Carlos Williams

• intro to author and any two poems you choose

1. Who was Williams?
2. For each poem you picked, tell me the name of it, your reaction to the poem (like, dislike, confused by, love, connect to?) and why.
3. Pick one line from the poem that stands out and why you picked it.

Ezra Pound

• intro to author and any two poems you choose

1. Any reactions are fine. He’s a controversial figure. Summarize/respond to the works you picked in any way you like. Name them though, so I know what you read.

Your study guide, posted as an assignment, is due 2/8, 6pm 70 points