Ode Mode: Poetry Class
(In Person at Left Margin LIT)
Dates: 2 Saturdays, February 1 and 15
Time: 10am - 12pm
Instructor: David Roderick
Ages: Adult
Genre: Poetry
Price: $195
Considering our current circumstance, we could probably all use a little more praise in our lives, moments in which we take time to honor something that holds value for us.
The ode is an excellent poetic vehicle for such an endeavor, as it uses intense feeling and elevated language to praise a subject. Historically, the ode has proven to be extremely resilient and versatile. The form was used to honor gods, patrons, and kings in ancient Greece. The English Romantic poets aimed odic expression toward themes of nature and beauty. Chilean poet Pablo Neruda’s Odas elementales (Elemental Odes) were likely a watershed moment for the tradition. He directed poetic praise toward everyday items: an onion, a lemon, an artichoke, salt. In contemporary American poetry, the ode form addresses subjects that are personal or public, heavenly or mundane.
During our first class meeting, we’ll study various approaches to the ode in Western literature, from Pindar all the way to contemporary poets like Joy Harjo and Yusef Komunyakaa. Then we’ll turn toward writing odes of our own, which we’ll discuss in a workshop format during our second meeting together.
About the Instructor:
David Roderick’s first book of poems, Blue Colonial, won the APR/Honickman Prize and was published by Copper Canyon Press in 2006. The Pitt Poetry Series published his second collection, The Americans, in 2014.
David’s writing has been awarded an NEA Creative Writing Fellowship, a Wallace Stegner Fellowship at Stanford University, the Amy Lowell Traveling Scholarship, the James Boatwright III Prize from Shenandoah, the Julie Suk Award, and the Campbell Corner Poetry Prize. He has taught creative writing and literature classes at Stanford, the University of San Francisco, San Francisco State University, the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, and most recently at the MFA Writing Program at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, where he was an Associate Professor in Creative Writing.
Click here to learn more about David.
LEFT MARGIN LIT'S CANCELLATION/REFUND POLICY:
If you find that you can't take a class for which you registered, you may request a refund, less a $25 administrative fee, at least 48 hours prior to the start of the first class session. If a class doesn't reach its minimum enrollment, it will be cancelled, and all students will receive full refunds.
