Reading and Writing Workshop
The Future of Poetry
Focus: Exploring how poetry continues to evolve in the digital age and how poets share their work with the world.
Session 1: Poetry in the Digital Age
Objectives:
A foundational imagist poem that reflects the minimalist and image-based aesthetic now popular in digital poetry spaces.
🔗 https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/49735/pg49735-images.html#Page_224
(Source: Spring and All, 1923)
Activities:
Session 2: Publishing Your Poetry
Objectives:
A widely published and engraved poem that illustrates how poetry becomes part of public discourse and national symbolism.
🔗 https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/12788/pg12788-images.html#THE_NEW_COLOSSUS
(Source: The Poems of Emma Lazarus, Volume 1, 1888)
Activities:
Optional Session 3: The Poet as Creator and Curator
Objectives:
Whitman’s work models poetic self-expression, authorial presence, and a timeless approach to publishing and curating poetic identity.
🔗 https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/1322/pg1322-images.html#link2H_4_0001
(Source: Leaves of Grass, 1855)
Activities:
Focus: Exploring how poetry continues to evolve in the digital age and how poets share their work with the world.
Session 1: Poetry in the Digital Age
Objectives:
- Examine how poetry adapts to new digital forms (e.g., Instapoetry, online zines, spoken word on YouTube).
- Explore how brevity, imagery, and minimalist structure appeal to digital audiences.
- Practice writing poetry inspired by the aesthetics of modern digital platforms.
A foundational imagist poem that reflects the minimalist and image-based aesthetic now popular in digital poetry spaces.
🔗 https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/49735/pg49735-images.html#Page_224
(Source: Spring and All, 1923)
Activities:
- Read and annotate the poem, focusing on its imagery and line breaks.
- Discuss how this poem might “go viral” or be shared online today.
- Writing Prompt: Compose your own short, image-driven poem suitable for a social media post (Twitter, Instagram, TikTok poetry voiceover).
- Extension: Create a visual version of your poem using Canva, Slides, or paper and post or present it digitally.
Session 2: Publishing Your Poetry
Objectives:
- Understand historical and modern pathways for poetry publication.
- Explore how poems can carry cultural or national identity through public circulation.
- Reflect on how poets today can share work through both traditional and digital platforms.
A widely published and engraved poem that illustrates how poetry becomes part of public discourse and national symbolism.
🔗 https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/12788/pg12788-images.html#THE_NEW_COLOSSUS
(Source: The Poems of Emma Lazarus, Volume 1, 1888)
Activities:
- Read and annotate the poem. Explore its form and public placement on the Statue of Liberty.
- Discuss the meaning of publication: What does it mean to have a poem engraved, shared, reposted?
- Writing Prompt: Write a poem that you would want displayed in a public space (monument, billboard, city wall, or homepage).
- Explore: How would you publish it today? Brainstorm traditional (literary magazines, contests) and modern (blogs, TikTok, self-publishing) avenues.
Optional Session 3: The Poet as Creator and Curator
Objectives:
- Reflect on the poet’s evolving identity in a participatory, digital culture.
- Understand poetry as both personal expression and public curation.
- Experiment with remix, collage, or erasure poetry as a form of digital-era creativity.
Whitman’s work models poetic self-expression, authorial presence, and a timeless approach to publishing and curating poetic identity.
🔗 https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/1322/pg1322-images.html#link2H_4_0001
(Source: Leaves of Grass, 1855)
Activities:
- Read Section 1 and discuss how Whitman constructs the voice of the poet.
- Explore: How does Whitman see himself in relation to the world? How might that translate to the modern “poet online”?
- Writing Prompt: Create a remix or erasure poem using public domain lines from Whitman or another classic poet. Share your new creation in visual or digital format.
- Discuss ethical sharing: What does it mean to share or sample work in a respectful, legal, and creative way?