Donne and the Metaphysicals
TW 5:30 - 7:30
Karpen Hall 103
Asheville
This fast course will look at the tradition established by
John Donne, George Herbert, and the other "metaphysical"
poets. We will also look at some work from the Cavalier tradition.
Grade Assessment
- Attentendance / participation 20%
- Final paper 40%
- Final exam 40%
Possible Research Topics
- Patronage
- Jacobean and Caroline Politics
- Religion
Baroque Art, Architecture, or Music
- Gender, literary misogyny, and sexuality
- education
- cosmology and science
- A critical approach to a single author, e.g.:
- a feminist reading of Donne, Herbert, or Vaughan,
or one of the metaphysicals.
- a new historical reading of any author, such as Herrick,
Jonson, or Traherne
- a look at the issues of patronage, hetero- and homoerotic
imagery in one poet
- an exploration of paradox in one writer's work
- a reading of one writer's work in terms of contemporary
politics (their contemporary, not ours)
- an examination of meditation techniques in one metaphysical
poet
- issues of social class in one poet
- An investigation of science images (e.g. cosmology,
navigation, medical) in one poet
- An investigation of the political use of masque
- An investigation of one aspect of philosophy or religion
in one poet
- A comparison of two interesting figures, e.g.
- two metaphysical poets with different backgrounds,
such as Herbert and Traherne
- two metaphysical poets with different attitudes toward
the body (e.g. Donne and Crashaw)
- a comparison of an English metaphysical poet with
an American (e.g. Taylor or Bradstreet, or Michael Wigglesworth)
- a comparison of a male poet with a female (see Kissing
the Rod--examples are Aphra Behn and Rachel Speght)
- A comparison of a 17th century religious poet with
a 20th century poet, such as T.S. Eliot, Anne Sexton,
or Timothy Liu
- A comparison of one poet and one visual or musical
artist (presupposes you have some grounding in art history
or musical appreciation)
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