Introductory Poetry Workshop: A Circle Within a Circle Within a Circle
ENGLISH CMPC
Subject & Catalog Number
Course Information
Description
In this workshop-based class, students will explore and put to use the various, crucial components of poem writing, such as image, metaphor, line, form, aboutness, voice, sound, and, above all, emotional and intellectual endlessness and possibility. The balance, interconnectedness, and alliance that these parts achieve are the mark of a poem written with as much intention as instinct. Practicing different formal exercises and with observation of craft, students will write and turn in a poem every two weeks and will be workshopped four or five times over the semester. We will read poems and craft essays by poets such as Emily Dickinson, Adrienne Rich, Amiri Baraka, Mary Ruefle, Jean Valentine, Ocean Vuong, Tracy K. Smith, James Tate, Michael Prior, Josh Bell, Layli Long Soldier, Ada Limón, Kaveh Akbar, Megan Fernandes, among many others.
Class Notes
Admission by application only. For information on specific application requirements and instructions, please see the full course listing on the English Department website.
DEADLINE: For all Fall 2026 workshops, applications will open by Monday, March 23 and are due via Submittable by 11:59pm on Sunday, April 5. Students will be notified of admissions decisions by 4:00pm ET on Thursday, April 9, and must accept/claim their seats within 24 hours. Workshops will meet the first week of classes.
Available for Harvard Cross Registration
