ENG 313 Crafting Identity in Poetry & Spoken Word
“I keep thinking how my life would have been changed if I’d known earlier about this second throat, this poetry, this alternate way of processing my life. I want people to look at me and say, ‘I can do that.’ I want them to see that words can be fists, flowers, tears, screams, prayers, and apologies.”
— Patricia Smith, four-time National Poetry Slam champ
Course Description
Poetry. Spoken word. Poetry. Spoken word. Poetry. Spoken word. Poetry. Spoken word.
In this class, the page and stage are connected platforms. We will not study, discuss or create poetry in the mindset that what is written is more important or more rigorous than what is embodied, recited, and performed. Oral traditions are not past-tense; they are alive and dynamic, continuing on today as spoken word, mele, rap, testimony, podcasts, radio, amplified poetry, and audio essays. The skills required for spoken word – memorization, improvisation, reading a room, or channeling what Lorca calls duende – are things that cannot be learned if exclusively writing for the page.
Our specific section of 313 is committed to poetry and spoken word. In other words, we commit to poetry written for the page and the stage, both broadly interpreted. This course will center poets and poetic works that are socially engaged and performance-oriented. This course is designed to enable you to meet your learning objectives through a multimedia combination of reading assignments, writing assignments, performance opportunities, and regular discussion posts.
Whether you are a beginning or practiced writer, this course will allow you to develop your creative writing and oral communication skills, explore your voice, and participate in a creative community with regular and reliable feedback. In this course, we strive to cultivate emotional intelligence, accountability patterns, and writing practices that will enrich your advanced study in poetry and spoken word or your other pursuits in creative community and leadership.
$0 Textbook Costs
All readings will be made available as hyperlinks or PDFs on Laulima.
Possible Assignments
Five original drafts of poems
Contributions to Laulima forum (five source posts, five response posts, one co-leader post)
Midterm: one-on-one rehearsal and discussion of spoken word poem with instructor
End-of-semester hōʻike of a single poem