Have we outlived epic poetry? Karen Swallow Prior points to today’s epic literature and the communal creation of a new epic poem as evidence it’s still around.
About Shakespeare: Poet and Playwright
Those who write about Shakespeare often miss that his work pulls from humble origins and great achievements to reflect the universals of the human condition. Both his life and his works mirror the highs and lows of the age and its people.
Poetry Classroom: A Valediction—Forbidding Mourning
Not exactly what one expects in classical love poetry, to be sure. But hold your horses for this one, because I think this is the greatest love poem ever written.
Poetry Classroom: Nymph’s Reply to the Shepherd
Welcome to this month’s poetry classroom, with author and literature professor Karen Swallow Prior. Now discussing The Nymph’s Reply to the Shepherd.
Poetry Classroom: Passionate Shepherd to his Love
Even if you have not read Christopher Marlowe’s famous poem, “The Passionate Shepherd to his Love, ” you probably know its poetry anyway. Really.
How to Host a Successful Book Launch
Karen Swallow Prior, recently published author of Booked: Literature in the Soul of Me, shares her tips for hosting a successful book launch.
Poetry Classroom: Sonnet 18 by William Shakespeare (1609)
In this month’s poetry classroom, author and literature professor Karen Swallow Prior will be treating us to a discussion of classic love poetry—beginning with Shakespeare.
Patchwork: A Story
Our theme for July is The Cento—a put-together poem, a patchwork if you will, of words from others. What follows is not a Cento and will not tell you what a Cento is, but we’re okay with that. We tell our writers to “be creative, ” and that’s what Karen Swallow Prior has been by […]
The Poetry of the Tree
Karen Swallow Prior considers the poetry of the tree, from Joyce Kilmer’s ‘Trees’ to ‘The Dream of the Rood.’
Hard Candy, Like Poems
Poetry can be hard. Hard to read and hard to write. But this doesn’t mean it can’t be fun. And enlightening at the same time. Kind of like candy for the mind.
A Sonnet’s Unlikely Resolution: John Milton On His Blindness
One of the greatest poets who ever lived worries that his poetry is not good enough.
Why Poetry, My Love?
Why poetry? If you’ve experienced the power of a word, you’ve experienced the power of poetry.
Saturday Night Date with a Sonnet
The rules of a sonnet, it turns out, set us free to explore.