Slanted Truths: The Gay Science as Nietzsche's Ars Poetica

This essay derives its focus on poetry from the subtitle of Die Fröhliche Wissenschaft: “la gaya scienza.” Nietzsche appropriated this phrase from the phrase “gai saber” used by the Provençal knight-poets (or troubadours) of the eleventh through thirteenth centuries — the first lyric poets of the European languages — to designate their Ars Poetica or “art of poetry.” I will begin with an exploration of Nietzsche’s treatment of poets and poetry as a subject matter, closely analyzing his six aphorisms which deal explicitly with poets and poetry. Having considered The Gay Science as a text about poetry, I will then briefly explore three further ways in which The Gay Science can be thought of as itself a kind of poetry. The result of these analyses is an understanding of Nietzsche’s own understanding of philosophy (and of the best way to live) as also a form of poetry

The Cultural Translation of Battlers Poetry (Dagong shige)

Contemporary mainland-Chinese poetry displays a great deal of diversity and dynamism. Battlers poetry (dagong shige)—writing by members of the underclass of domestic migrant workers—is a relatively recent arrival. This essay delves into the discourse surrounding battlers poetry and its interactions with other poetry “departments,” particularly that of avant-garde poetry. It does so from the perspective of cultural translation. I argue that this is especially helpful for understanding the dynamics of battlers poetry, and of “poetry” at large as a discursive space in China today. The essay offers a discussion of translated people, texts in transit, commentary as conflict and battlers poetry’s representation outside China. In closing, it asks how this poetry might affect the genre’s habitual conceptualizations

Understanding Poetry Through the Use of Cooperative Learning Model

This study describes the learning process of inner and physical structure of poetry understanding through the use of Student Team Achievement and Division (STAD) and Cooperative Integrated Reading and Composition (CIRC) cooperative learning models. In addition to the cooperative learning models, literary reading interest is also used as a consideration in the learning process of poetry understanding. This experimental study involved 63 samples from a total of 124 people. Samples were randomly selected and assigned into two experimental groups. The experimental group I, with a total of 33 subjects, was treated with the STAD model, while the experimental group II, with a total of 30 subjects, was treated with the CIRC model. The subjects in the two experimental groups were assigned to complete a literary reading interest questionnaire. After the treatment, a poetry understanding test was given to the subjects in the two groups. A t-test was subsequently used to examine the students learning outcome, by considering their interest in literary reading. The results of data analysis showed no significant differences in the application of cooperative learning models in poetry understanding. Both students with high and low literary reading interest found the learning models helpful in improving their performance in the understanding inner and physical structure of poetry. Students with low literary reading interest were motivated in the learning process as a result of the teamwork in completing the poetry understanding tasks

[Review of] Ken Goodwin. Understanding African Poetry: A Study of Ten Poets

Understanding African Poetry is a valuable asset to anyone interested in African anglophone poetry. Goodwin offers textual analysis, evaluation, and supplementary contextual information on each of the ten poets he chose to discuss. Much of the analysis shows a keen insight and the contextual commentary is quite informative. However, Goodwin\u27s evaluation reflects his bias towards British and white American concepts of what constitutes good poetry

Dimensional understanding of poetry

Integrated literary ana! ysis departsfrom the poetic text. A ndyet this hy no means implies the isolation of the poem, excluding all external references like time and belief. It is only by means o f a structural approach in which form, content and contextual relevance cohere, that the valencial potential of a text is unfolded. In this article one particular poem ‘Der Rngel. Advent’ by Reinhold Schneider has been utilized to show how the analytic consideration of the aspects of time and beliefs, reveals the total richness, the depth and dimension in the poem

Understanding Poetry: 5th Grade Introduction to Writing Poetry

This unit introduces 5th grade students to 5 primary poetic forms: haiku, limerick, cinquain, narrative poetry, and free verse. This unit includes a brief review of similes and metaphors and can likely be adapted for younger or older students. This poetry unit is projected to take 13-14 class days, but it can be extended or reduced depending on the needs of the class. The final performance task is writing a poem that will be performed in a poetry slam

Joseph Skipsey, the 'peasant poet', and an unpublished letter from W. B. Yeats

This article examines an unpublished letter from Yeats to the ‘pitman-poet’ Joseph Skipsey, which gives new insight into the early career of Yeats and a deeper understanding of the possibilities and capabilities of the Victorian working-classes. It argues that, in Skipsey, Yeats found an English equivalent to the Irish peasant poet, a figure whose life and poetry was central to Yeats’s vision of Ireland and his nation’s literary revival. The article contends that, following the discovery of a letter from Yeats, Skipsey’s poetry and influence should be considered outside the bounds of the Pre-Raphaelite clique within which he is usually located