Word Count: 750-1000 words + references

Note: Questions, poems and poets used for this short paper may not be used in Assessment 2 - Essay or Assessment 3 - Poetry Journal.

This short paper will give you the opportunity to demonstrate the poetry analysis techniques that you have developed so far in the unit and received feedback to assist you with your next assessment.

Topic: Choose one of the weekly Discussion Questions from the weekly unit modules as the topic for your short paper. The analysis of the poem/s you choose must reflect an understanding of analytical techniques used in John Stephen's Reading the signs, chapters 5 & 6. This text is available in the e-Reading List on the Unit Moodle site.

Task Description: You should adopt the academic essay technique for this short paper. You are required to perform poetry analysis in answering your chosen topic question, and provide direct evidence from the poem/s.

Please see unit Moodle site for more specific details about this assessment item.

The short paper will be assessed using the following criteria:

• The way in which the analysis of the poetry reflects an understanding of analytical techniques used in John Stephen's Reading the signs, chapters 5 & 6;
• The proper formatting of the prose and references according to the Harvard (author-date) referencing style;
• Clarity of expression and presentation (including spelling and grammar).

Word Count: 1500-2000 words + references

Note: Poems and poets used for the Short Paper - Assessment 1 - may not be used in this essay):

This essay will give you the opportunity to demonstrate the advanced poetry analysis techniques that you have developed in the unit.

Topic:

Choose one of the following topics for your essay and respond using a selection of poems (no less than 4, no more than 8):

• Two of the characteristics of Romanticism are a preoccupation with nature, both for its own sake and as a metaphor for some kind of divine essence; and a fascination with the past, particularly mysticism, myths, and legends. Explore, compare, and contrast the treatment of these characteristics in the poetry of a cross section of Romantic poets/poetry.
• John Stephens (1992) states that 'One of the main concerns of lyric poetry is to explore the complexities of the relationship between the subjective self and the otherness of the world, and poems about landscape have been a common site in which to carry out this exploration' (Reading the signs, p. 102). Working with a selection of lyric poetry, explore the significance of Stephens' comment.
• Michael Coyle (2014) argues that 'Popular culture is part of what made modernist poetry radical in that it changes the relation of art to the real: it is radical in the literal sense, affecting artistic production at is very roots' ('Popular Culture' in A companion to modernist poetry, pp. 81-94). Working with a cross section of Modernist poets, discuss the ways in which the emergent dominance of popular culture has made way for the profound experimentation so characteristic of modernist poetry.
• Anthony Easthope argues that 'what makes poetry poetry is what makes poetry ideological' (Poetry as discourse 1983, p. 22). Examine this statement comparing and contrasting the works of two poets from different periods/styles.
• Margaret Ferguson states that poetic syntax ‘is a slippery and even in some ways a contradictory topic, for while we are thinking about syntax as an orderly arrangement of verbal elements according to the conventions of a particular language, we also need to be thinking about poetic syntax as the making of a significant disorder within a language’. (The Norton Anthology of Poetry, 2005, p. 2052). Explore the implications of this comment in the context of a selection of poetry.

Task Description:

You are required to:

• perform advanced poetry analysis in answering your chosen topic question
• provide direct evidence from the poem/s
• use secondary material to support both your argument and analysis
• Please refer to the unit Moodle site for specific detail and further information.

The essay will be assessed using the following criteria:

• The relevance, insight and depth of analysis of both direct evidence from the poems and associated issues;
• The extent to which the Essay demonstrates clear critical thinking skills through the clarity of arguments made and the effective use of secondary material to support both argument and analysis (no less than 5 credible, scholarly, secondary sources);
• The extent to which the Essay demonstrates advanced poetry reading skills;
• The proper acknowledgement of all in-text sources and reference list using the Harvard (author-date) referencing style; and,
• The extent to which the essay is carefully edited for presentation (expression, spelling and grammar) and overall clarity.

Word count: 3000 words + references

Note: Do not use a question you have used or intend to use in your Short Paper for Assessment 1

Students are expected to keep a Poetry Blog during the term, giving you the opportunity to receive peer feedback on your entries. As the Blog is worth 50% of the overall mark, a strong demonstration of poetry analysis techniques is expected.

Topic:

Choose one of the weekly Discussion Questions from the weekly Moodle modules as the topic for each blog entry. You will also find these questions in the side bar on the weekly Poetry Blog platforms (do not use the questions from the Discussion Board).

Task Description:

This assessment item has two parts:

1) This will require reading the set poems (and others) each week and making entries using the weekly Poetry Blog platforms on the Moodle site that reflect your interpretation/analysis of the poems and of any secondary sources.

You are expected to submit a total of six (6) weekly entries to the Poetry Blog over the course of the nine week period from Week 3 to Week 11. The choice of weeks is yours to allow you to schedule them around your other assessment due dates.

Each topic section of the Moodle site includes a Poetry Blog platform for the respective weekly topics. These can also be accessed in the Assessment menu.

For each of the six (6) weeks you MUST:

1. address ONE of the discussion questions listed for that week, and in answering the question discuss 1-2 poems to demonstrate your poetry analysis skills and;
2. comment on at least ONE blog post, per week, posted by another student showing your critical engagement with the content

Note: Marks apply for submitting the 6 weekly blog entries on a timely basis. (Do not submit all in one hit)

2) You must then collate your 6 weekly blog entries plus comments in a single Word document and submit to Moodle/Turnitin using the unit’s submission platform by the due date in Week 12. Prior to submission, you are permitted to edit your entries based on any feedback you have received on the Blog platform.

Word limit: Each entry should be approximately 500 words in total including your response to another student's post (which only needs to be short). Be aware that the generally accepted consensus in this unit is a variation of +/- 10%. Reference lists should be included separately for each entry and are not included in the word count.

Please refer to the unit Moodle site for specific detail and further information.

The Poetry Blog will be assessed using the following criteria: 

• The extent to which each of the six (6) blog entries represents an organised, weekly, and genuine attempt to develop an in depth understanding of the poems and associated issues on a weekly basis over the course of the term (avoid completing all the blog entries in one 'hit');
• The extent to which the Poetry Blog as a whole demonstrates clear poetry analysis skills, through the clarity and depth of an engagement with the poem(s), and through the effective use of secondary material to support this analysis;
• The submission comments on 6 blog posts posted by other students (one per week) showing evidence of clarity and critical depth of engagement with the content;
• The extent to which each blog entry properly acknowledges all sources using the Harvard (author-date) referencing style; and,
• The extent to which the blog is carefully edited for presentation (expression, spelling and grammar) and overall clarity.