English 232mp. Metaphysical Poetry: The Seventeenth-Century Lyric and Beyond

Instructor: Gordon Teskey
Monday, 3:45-5:45 pm | Location: TBD

In an age of scientific and political revolution, how do poets respond when common beliefs about God, humans, cosmic and social order, consciousness, and gender have been taken away? Modern poetry starts in the seventeenth century when poets, notably women poets, seek new grounds for poetic expression. Poets to be read include the familiar ones - Donne, Herbert, Marvell, Vaughan, and Traherne - plus Jonson, Lanier, Philips, and Cavendish, ending with Milton's "Lycidas." The art of criticism will be a central theme.

Space permitting, this course is open to qualified undergraduates. Undergraduates, please contact Prof. Teskey before classes begin if you would like to take the course.