Reading and Writing the Lyric Essay (LIT4166.01)

Mark Wunderlich

The lyric essay is a term given to work that is both poetic and discursive and that defies clear categorization. In these hybrid forms, the essayist may begin breaking into lines of verse, or poet may engage in a lengthier argument too rangy for the confines of a syllable count. In this course we will read Whitman’s Specimen Days, Dickinson’s letters, short essays by Virginia Woolf, Joan Didion, Julio Cortazar, Anne Carson, Jean Toomer and a score of other very contemporary writers whose work is uncomfortable with typical genre labels. Students will write their own hybrid forms and will write critically in creative forms. Corequisites: Please note that students enrolled in this course are required to attend Poetry at Bennington and Literature Evening events on Wednesday nights at 7:00 PM.

Prerequisites: Students should submit up to five pages of poetry or prose (critical or creative) to MWunderlich@bennington.edu by Monday, November 19. Please write Lyric Essay in the email heading. Class lists will be posted outside the Literature office on Monday, November 26.
Credits: 4
W 2:10pm - 6:00pm
Maximum Enrollment: 15
Course Frequency:
This course is categorized as 4000, All courses, Areas of Study, Four Credit, Literature, Mark Wunderlich, Wednesday Afternoons.