Reviving a Fallen Empire: A Defense for Using a Genre Approach in Dramatic Poetry

by Adam Brechner

The Problem

As the American educational system moves into the 21st century, one of the biggest concerns of educators is the decreased proficiency in student writing. For many reasons cited in numerous studies, American children are reading and writing less frequently than previous generations. The ELA section of New York States’ standardized tests assesses the reading and writing skills of students. They are expected to comprehend and analyze themes, controlling ideas, and language devices in numerous forms of texts. Students are also expected to write in a manner that displays the following: the ability to create a properly structured essay, which follows the instructed prompts; the ability to create grammatically correct sentences; and a mastery of the English language exhibited by a diverse and an advanced vocabulary.

Due to the increased importance placed on these standardized tests, teachers use a larger part of the curriculum in preparation for them. An important aspect of a modern educator’s expectations for the school year is a high pass rate on these tests. With this new emphasis within the ELA pedagogical community, attention has been taken away from the literature and writing aspects of the field. Guessing that the right answer to question 34 is “B” seems to be of much more importance than discussing the theme of disillusionment in J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye. Teachers need to incorporate contextual methods to aid students’ performance on standardized tests.

The Solution

The answer to this perplexing problem is found in the whole-class genre study. This approach will not only improve the quality of student writing, but it will foster an appreciation of literature in more students. The genre study will improve the ELA curriculum in a few key ways. First, teachers will avoid the common mistake of assigning nondescript “pieces,” which tend to bore students (Bomer). Writing in a specific genre creates a direct focus for the student in an inspired setting. Second, students learn the craft of writing by reading models and detailing the step-by-step process of creating a text in that genre. The focus of teaching writing has stressed the importance of topic and thesis to such a large extent, that style and creativity have suffered. As Lucy Calkins suggests, “If the focus is always on the topic…when will children inquire about line breaks, meter, and repetition in poetry, or about developing a character and staging a story in fiction” (357). Third, by researching a number of genres in-depth, students are exposed to a more diverse vocabulary. The language use in a feature article is radically different from the word choices found in a lyrical poem. Students discover radically different vocabularies in short stories compared to plays. Fourth, students are acculturated into their society through the extensive study of a genre. Cooper states that genres have a social and communal function, which benefit the community (1999). Many professionals, such as doctors, lawyers, and policemen rely on specific genres as an important aspect of their jobs. Newspaper articles, advertisements, and novels are only a few of the genres that people use everyday for information or entertainment.

The whole-class genre study, however, does have some limitations. First, this approach demands a great deal of time from the curriculum. Bomer offers three examples or curricula which exhibit that he is only able to teach three to four different genres in a year. Using this method, many vitally important genres would be ignored. Teachers from all grade levels would need to coordinate their curricula for this approach to succeed. Also, it is inevitable, no matter how creative and inspiring the teacher may be, that certain students are going to be apathetic towards a specific genre. A six to eight week lesson plan could become tortuous for these students, if not guided properly.

This study will focus on genre from the perspective of the literary theorists, who study the features of a text and how the reader recognizes a particular type of discourse. Literary theorists are also interested in new genres and how they change over time, which will be discussed in this paper. Rhetorical theorists are interested in a genre’s role as a socially active text, which affects the way it is interpreted in a society and the manner in which a discourse can change in a particular society in the future (Jolliffe).

Genre-Dramatic Poetry

ELA teacher reluctance to include poetry in the classroom has been adroitly reported by researchers (Brechner). Antiquated teaching styles that create a passive and disinterested class are largely to blame. Whether this phenomenon is due to teachers’ dislikes of the genre or their belief that their students possess a distain for poetry, this venerable form of writing is largely ignored in the school system. Many teachers are formulating new methods to create student interest in poetry. The whole-class genre study is one such method which would not only foster the love of poetry in students, but also improve their writing and test-taking skills.

This study will focus on the genre of dramatic poetry, which is perhaps the oldest form of literature. Before written language came into existence, early man relied on oral communication. The earliest religious songs, stories, and chants were all in poetic form. Verses of rhymed poetry were easier to remember and recite. Once the ability to write was attained, literature was mostly poetic in form because it derived from a much older spoken tradition (Preminger 200).

The genre of dramatic poetry has experienced a plethora of changes over its extensive history. An exhaustive report regarding this topic would be unnecessary. In brief, dramatic poetry is one of the two genres, including narrative poetry that was posited by Aristotle. This style of verse incorporates mimesis, or an imitation of reality, which the actors carry out on the stage (Drake 229). Many of the Greek tragedies and comedies, written in dramatic verse that entertained an empire for centuries, have survived. Many repertory companies throughout the world continue to stage these classics today. The Elizabethan period spawned a legend in Shakespeare and numerous other poets attempted to match his greatness. This period witnessed the most prolific number of great plays written in poetic verse than any other time in history. By the latter stages of the 19th century, the majority of plays were written in dramatic verse. Very few plays written in poetic verse since the beginning of the 20th century have succeeded commercially or critically. As a result of the post-modern era in literature, realism has been the dominant trend regarding play writing. Simply stated, modern society does not have enough people who discourse in dramatic verse.

A modern sub-genre of dramatic poetry is the dramatic monologue. Brought to popularity in the mid 19th century by Robert Browning, this genre has been a popular form with many modern poets. A dramatic monologue is a poem in which a single speaker takes on the identity of some other person who is not the poet and delivers the piece at a critical moment in time. The speaker has a listener within the poem, but the reader is also a listener, and we learn about the speaker's character from what the speaker says.

Rationale for Using the Dramatic Monologue in a Whole-Class Genre Approach

For many centuries, poetry was the dominant form of literature in the world. Throughout Europe, dramatic plays remained one of the most popular forms of entertainment. From the early 18th century to the early 20th century, poetry books were a great commercial success. People waited for hours outside bookstores to purchase new releases of Rudyard Kipling poetry books, which would sell out in less than an hour. Poets were the rock stars of their generations. The wild romantic exploits of poets, such as Lord George Gordon Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley, were the inspiration for many articles in the bawdy British newspapers.

In a more simplistic viewpoint, poetry is the original genre. All other genres in some way are descendents of the dramatic poem. At the beginning of World History classes, the teacher informs the students about the earliest known civilizations. English teachers need to explain the origins of literature to their students.

Poetry continues to be a thriving genre in the modern world. Thousands of collections of poetry are published and sold each year. Poetry slams-live performances featuring poets who dramatically perform their work- have become a popular form of entertainment for poetry enthusiasts. Many poets specialize in slam poetry, which places a modern edge on an ancient genre.

A genre study on dramatic poetry can yield a number of positive effects for secondary school students, which will help them to improve their writing in all genres. First, students will learn how to properly use language devices and poetic conventions. By looking through a powerful lens at the craft of writing poetry, students will learn to write with a distinct voice and a creative flair. Students have been writing with a mechanical style for too long. Second, students will be exposed to a much different vocabulary when immersed in the world of poets. Young writers will learn how to choose synonyms for complexity, sound, and tone. They will learn the importance of word choice in their writing and develop a curiosity for undiscovered language. Third, students will learn how to develop a theme in their writing. Poets often focus on a very specific theme in a short amount of space. Student writing has a tendency to wander and lose focus of the thesis. Poetry often demands that the reader focus on a very specific theme in a condensed piece.

Defining the Dramatic Monologue

Due to the large number of literary forms that resemble the dramatic monologue, it is important to establish a specific definition. The narrative, ode, meditation, soliloquy, lament, and clownish harangue all slightly resemble and have characteristics of a dramatic monologue. Key aspects of the genre that distinguish it from the other forms of poetry include the following:

1. The poet uses a single speaker who is not the poet. The poet can use a famous historical or literary figure as in Alfred Lord Tennyson’s “Ulysses,” or the poet can choose an anonymous figure as in Christina Rosetti’s “After Death.” The poet may reveal certain personal, social, or political beliefs through the dialogue of the speaker. Tennsyon’s piece focuses on the wandering hero, who seeks his former life of adventure:

It little profits that an idle king,
By this still hearth, among these barren crags,
Match'd with an aged wife, I mete and dole
Unequal laws unto a savage race,
That hoard, and sleep, and feed, and know not me.

2. The poem contains a specific or implied listener in the poem whom the speaker is addressing. In Robert Browning’s “My Last Duchess,” the duke of Ferrara addresses an agent of the count of Tyrol to negotiate a marriage. In T.S. Eliot’s “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock,” the speaker addresses an ambiguous “you” who Eliot later explained represented a male associate of the speaker. The listener rarely plays an important role in the poem. She is merely a vessel for the speaker to reveal or confess some important piece of information. At the beginning of Eliot’s poem, J. Alfred states,

Let us go then, you and I,
When the evening is spread out against the sky
Like a patient etherised upon a table;
Let us go, through certain half-deserted streets,
The muttering retreats
Of restless nights in one-night cheap hotels
And sawdust restaurants with oyster-shells:
Streets that follow like a tedious argument
Of insidious intent
To lead you to an overwhelming question...
Oh, do not ask, "What is it?"
Let us go and make our visit.

 

3. The reader takes the part of the silent listener. Along with the person in the poem, the poet writes the piece with the reader as an important listener. The poet attempts to create an intimate connection to the reader to bring her into the world of the poem. Through this personal connection, the reader feels that the speaker is directing the speech to her. The piece leaves the reader with many questions and ideas to contemplate. At the end of Browning’s “Porphyria’s Lover,” the speaker leaves the reader with a moral and spiritual dilemma to contemplate:

Her head, which droops upon it still:
The smiling rosy little head,
So glad it has its utmost will,
That all it scorned at once is fled,
And l, its love, am gained instead!
Porphyria's love: she guessed not how
Her darling one wish would be heard.
And thus we sit together now,
And all night long we have not stirred,
And yet God has not said a word!

 

4. Through the dramatic monologue’s dialogue, the speaker may unintentionally reveal certain aspects of her character. Through specific vague or ambiguous phrases or more overt suggestions, the speaker discloses certain features of her personality or past that may not have been so apparent on the surface. In “My Last Duchess,” the duke is trying to convince the agent that he is a suitable husband for his master’s daughter. Through his horrific story of greed, jealousy, and obsession, the duke reveals that he would be an awful choice as a suitor as seen in this passage:

She had
A heart - how shall I say? - too soon made glad,
Too easily impressed: she liked whate'er
She looked on, and her looks went everywhere.
Sir, 't was all one! My favour at her breast,
The dropping of the daylight in the West,
The bough of cherries some officious fool
Broke in the orchard for her, the white mule
She rode with round the terrace -all and each
Would draw from her alike the approving speech,
Or blush,at least. She thanked men - good! but thanked
Somehow - I know not how - as if she ranked
My gift of a nine-hundred-years-old name
With anybody's gift. Who'd stoop to blame
This sort of trifling? Even had you skill
In speech - (which I have not) - to make your will
Quite clear to such a one, and say, "Just this
Or that in you disgusts me; here you miss
Or there exceed the mark"- and if she let
Herself be lessoned so, nor plainly set [40]
Her wits to yours, forsooth, and made excuse
- E'en then would be some stooping; and I choose
Never to stoop. Oh sir, she smiled, no doubt,
Whene'er I passed her; but who passed without
Much the same smile? This grew; I gave commands;
Then all smiles stopped together.

5. Through the dialogue of the speaker, the poet addresses a social, moral, or political issue or problem. This feature of the dramatic monologue is an extension of the purpose of the dramatic play, which was directed at the public. The purpose of poetry was to have a public impact, to affect events, and to change people's minds. Poets were thought of as philosophers and the keepers of knowledge. The dramatic monologue continues this tradition as a moral guidepost and informs the reader about a negative aspect of society. Icarus’ lover laments the fact that she devoted her entire life to the foolish man instead of seeking her own experiences in Muriel Rukeyser’s “Waiting for Icarus”:

I remember she added: Women who love such are the worst of all
I have been waiting all day, or perhaps longer.
I would have liked to try those wings myself.
It would have been better than this.

It is important to examine a few of the more popular genres that are similar to the dramatic monologue, but differ in a few key ways.

1. Soliloquy- This poetic form focuses on a single speaker, like the monologue, but in a soliloquy, the speaker “talks to himself as though thinking aloud, yet unable to be heard by an audience” (Starky 86). The speaker’s speech is his own thoughts, heard by his ears only. In Hamlet’s famous speech, he contemplates life and depth, without any intended listener. In this soliloquy from Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the tortured husband enters the dining room in his castle and starts:

If it were done when 'tis done, then 'twere well
It were done quickly: if the assassination
Could trammel up the consequence, and catch
With his surcease success; that but this blow
Might be the be-all and the end-all here,
But here, upon this bank and shoal of time,
We'ld jump the life to come. But in these cases
We still have judgment here; that we but teach
Bloody instructions, which, being taught, return
To plague the inventor: this even-handed justice
Commends the ingredients of our poison'd chalice
To our own lips.

The speech represents his thoughts to himself. He has no audience or listener.

2. Ode- a poem expressing the poet’s thoughts and feelings about a particular person or subject, usually addressed to that person or subject. An ode does not have an assigned speaker or listener. Here is an excerpt from John Keats’ “Ode on a Grecian Urn”:

Heard melodies are sweet, but those unheard
Are sweeter; therefore, ye soft pipes, play on;
Not to the sensual ear, but, more endear'd,
Pipe to the spirit ditties of no tone:
Fair youth, beneath the trees, thou canst not leave
Thy song, nor ever can those trees be bare;
Bold Lover, never, never canst thou kiss,
Though winning near the goal yet, do not grieve;
She cannot fade, though thou hast not thy bliss,
For ever wilt thou love, and she be fair!

Keats’ addresses the art located on the urn, as opposed to a specific speaker.

3. Lament- a type of poem that is not a narrative, which focuses on a speaker’s regret, sorrow, or concern for a personal loss. A lament does not have a specific listener and the speaker’s grief is the central focus of the poem. The following is the first stanza from Walt Whitman’s “Oh Captain! My Captain!”:

O Captain! My Captain! our fearful trip is done;
The ship has weather'd every rack, the prize we sought is won;
The port is near, the bells I hear, the people all exulting,
While follow eyes the steady keel, the vessel grim and daring:
But O heart! heart! heart!
O the bleeding drops of red,
Where on the deck my Captain lies,
Fallen cold and dead.

Whitman initially addresses President Lincoln who died and later mentions that his captain is dead. He does not address a single listener. The poem focuses on his mourning of the dead President, like an elegy.

4. Narrative- a poem told in a chronological story in the poet’s voice. The dramatic monologue usually does not contain a lengthy story like the narrative poem. There may be a story within the dialogue, but it is much shorter than a narrative poem and the action is less important than the major issue or problem. Here is a passage from an example of a narrative poem from Raymond Carver titled “Your Dog Dies”:

it gets run over by a van.
you find it at the side of the road
and bury it.
you feel bad about it.
you feel bad personally,
but you feel bad for your daughter
because it was her pet,
and she loved it so.
she used to croon to it
and let it sleep in her bed.
you write a poem about it.
you call it a poem for your daughter,
about the dog getting run over by a van
and how you looked after it,
took it out into the woods
and buried it deep, deep,
and that poem turns out so good.

Carver tells the story in a chronological fashion without a specific listener. The action in the poem is more important than the speaker’s voice.

Student understanding of these vital differences in genre will help them to create an effective dramatic monologue. Not only will students be exposed to a greater variety of poetic forms, but they will also learn how to follow specific guidelines to accomplish their writing tasks.

Pursuing a Genre Study on Dramatic Poetry

Using the genre approach for teaching the writing of poetry is not a task completed in haste. In describing her use of the genre study in poetry, Atwell states that each poem the students wrote “evolved in a setting where kids went inside poetry every day-read it, talked about it, learned how it works…Each poem grew from a moment, a need, an itch, and a sense that only this genre could scratch it. And each poem went through multiple drafts and revisions before the poet said yes” (454). As a genre that many students may not be familiar with due to the lack of previous training, the dramatic monologue necessitates a higher level of detail and preparation.

The following is a series of steps for teaching a genre study on dramatic poetry for an eleventh grade class. A synthesis of ideas from a few teachers and researchers aided in the creation of this lesson. This study assumes that students already have a base knowledge of how fictional conventions and literary techniques work in fiction. First, an overview of the order of events for the genre study is listed.

1. Introduction. The first class serves as a refresher for the students to access their prior knowledge. The teacher briefly lists many of the terms that they should have a firm understanding of such as meter, rhyme, setting, tone, stanza, and imagery. If a large majority of the class does not know these terms well, it is necessary to provide a longer introduction. Next, one class is devoted to an introduction to the history of dramatic poetry and the dramatic monologue. A handout with definitions and genres of poetry that are similar is passed out to the class.

2. Literature Circle Task. This activity will allow students to actively read a few dramatic monologues to record the characteristics of the genre. This process will help to foster a sense of community in the class and reinforce the specific elements of a dramatic monologue.

3. Read Keystone Texts. The class will read ten dramatic monologues which are some of the most highly acclaimed examples of this genre. Students will take notes on every text in their journals to help them write their pieces.

4. Students Find Models. Using the list of provided sources students will bring their own choices of dramatic monologues that the class will analyze. Students will add these texts to their journals for future reference. The class will determine as a group whether the poems can be classified as a dramatic monologue.

5. Journaling for Ideas. As stated in number 2 of this full list, Developing Speakers and Problems/Issues for Poems, students will use any method they choose for developing a speaker and an issue for their pieces. They can consult with teachers from other disciplines, use the Internet to find inspiration, or read more poetry for ideas. Students will be prompted to record as many ideas as possible. In this stage, quantity is more important than quality. The most outrageous or mundane ideas can turn into great works over time.

6. Imagery Mini-lesson. This is an ideal time to offer a mini-lesson on imagery. As the most important literary device used in poetry, it is essential that students understand how to incorporate this into their work.

7. First Draft. Students are now ready to write the first draft of their poem. They have the requisite knowledge of the genre and imagery to create a rough draft. Students will be given at least three days to write this first piece. This will allow them to finish any research that they needed for their piece. The teacher will hand out the Dramatic Monologue Assignment sheet which details the necessary requirements. Students will also receive the rubric so that they are aware of the grading policy.

8. Peer Review. Students will have an entire period and homework time to complete their peer reviews. The teacher will carefully explain the questions on the sheet so that the students completely understand the assignment. They will understand that it is essential that they handle this task with maturity, honesty, and clarity. The peer review grade will comprise a large part of their overall assessment.
9. Detail Mini-lesson. Now that the first drafts are complete and the peer reviews are returned, the perfect time for the detail mini-lesson is presented. This activity will serve as the perfect tool for revision. This mini-lesson should enable students to vastly improve their poems, which they will have a sufficient amount of time to accomplish

10. Second Draft. With peer review and detail instructions in hand, students are ready to write their second drafts. The teacher will look for a large number of changes in this draft which exhibit a willingness to edit their papers, an acknowledgement of their peers’ suggestions, and an adequate level of knowledge of the information provided in the mini-lessons. The teacher will only offer minor suggestions for their last draft including any awkward or wrong word choices.

11. Teacher-Student Conferences. This activity will give the student an opportunity to discuss their poems in a private setting. Major thematic concerns or small word choice issues could be discusses if necessary. If the class possesses many shy students who do not prefer to discuss their work in the class setting, this could be a very beneficial activity.

12. Title Mini-lesson. With a nearly completed poem, the last step is creating an effective and engaging title. This aspect of the genre is one of the most difficult for students to understand. This mini-lesson will show students the numerous functions of a title.

13. Final Draft. The students have created their masterpieces. The teacher will grade their works based on the rubric. The teacher will also examine the difference between the first and last drafts and examine the progress that the student made.

14. Publishing. Number six of this list, Publishing, details the number of ways that students can publish their work. Publishing is an effective motivation tool because it “influences the class’s attitude toward the writing process at all stages but especially during the prewriting and revising stages” (Soven 52). Students will work harder when they know that their finished product will be viewed by others.

15. Regents review. Perhaps the least enjoyable part of the genre study for teacher and students, the Regents review is an essential part of the curriculum. Students have to know how to apply their newly gained knowledge to the questions that they will be asked on the standardized tests. This section is covered in greater detail in number eight of this list, Lesson on Regents Poem Comprehension.

16. Reflection. Students need to be made aware of the significant work that they have accomplished. They are now members of an elite group of literary craftsmen. The sheet provided for them, provided in number seven of this list, offers them the opportunity to reflect on their accomplishments and place their knowledge in a larger context.

 

A Word on the Teacher as Learner

Students will thrive off a teacher’s energy when a class is studying a particular topic. If the teacher is passionate about a particular lesson plan, then the students will be more enthusiastic as well. Likewise, if a teacher abhors the subject matter, then the students will sense her apathy and the study will suffer. If a teacher truly deplores the genre, it is probably advisable that the genre be avoided.

The constructionist approach states that students need to explore a topic to build knowledge of their own. Using this technique, it is crucial to understand that the teacher does not have to possess all of the correct “answers” regarding poetry. Every interpretation of a poem is valid, provided that the interpreter can offer a logical rationale. Allow students to bring poems to class that they have discovered and enjoyed. Bomer states that “having students search for model texts not only ensures that our choice of genre will indeed be authentic, but it also demonstrates that authenticity , in effect saying to the students, This isn’t just a school thing; this is the real thing. You can find this in your world” (124). A list of places where students can find dramatic poems can be found is provided in a handout. Project their poems for the entire class to view and analyze. This technique is especially helpful if the teacher has never seen the poem. In this manner, the whole class is analyzing a poem for the first time. The students will know that the teacher is not the expert of this poem and may feel freer to offer their opinions.

Finally, the teacher should experience the genre study in the same manner as the students. The teacher should complete all of the assignments and explain the writing process that she uses to write her poems. This technique is especially helpful in the editing and revision stages. This process will exhibit that the writing process is not an unattainable goal for them. Students will witness the physical process of writing and rewriting and understand that improvements are made over a length of time.

1. Introducing the Genre

An important aspect of this study is to acquaint students with the genre in a non-threatening setting where they do not feel pressured to unlock the meaning of a poem. Students need to be eased into the genre by reading models to which they can relate. Many educators such as Atwell believe that students should be exposed to fun poets in the initial stages, like Shel Silverstein. For this age level, the subject matter in the dramatic monologues, and the amount of time needed for this unit, however, this approach would not work.

An important introductory task is to have the students read a few examples of the genre before they are given definitions and characteristics to record in their notebooks. Calkins’ goal at the beginning of her lesson is to “find an example of [the genre] that ‘knocks my socks off.’ I’d read that example aloud and hope that it would make a powerful response in students’ lives…and draw [them] under the genre’s spell” (364). The first poem that the teacher reads aloud is Ai’s “Riot Act, April 29, 1992,” due to its accessibility in theme and vocabulary. Students can relate to the text’s modern language and use of allusion. The teacher reads the text so that the students can hear the proper inflections and pronunciations, which greatly aid students’ understanding of the poem. This poem is included in the packet of touchstone texts that the class will receive. A list of these texts is provided in a later section. After the reading, the students are asked to take out their journals and respond to the following prompts: How did the poem make you feel? What did this situation remind you of in your own life?

The second part of the introductory phase focuses on a collaborative group project where the students are asked to analyze the characteristics of a dramatic monologue. The students will work in four groups to analyze one of the following dramatic monologues: “Porphyria’s Lover,” “After Death,” “Waiting for Icarus,” and “”My Last Duchess.” After the teacher reads the poems aloud, students record their personal responses in their journals. Then, the teacher assigns one poem to each of the four groups to analyze. Finally, each group will report their findings, which will be recorded by the entire class. This activity helps build a literary community as they learn the genre through their own collaborative effort. This activity is the antithesis of the teacher-centered behaviorist approach where the educator performs all the work and the students simply observe. Active learning is one of the tenets of the constructivist approach to teaching. The literature circle task sheet is provided below.

After this task, the teacher will give the students a brief definition of dramatic poetry, the dramatic monologue, and a brief list of the ways in which dramatic poetry differs from other forms of poetry. The students will record this information in their notebooks for reference throughout the unit. This brief lecture will fill in any gaps in the students’ notes that were missed after the completion of the group work.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Literature Circle Task

Step 1. In groups of three, analyze your assigned dramatic monologue. Refer to your notes that were taken in the first poetry introductory class for specific terms, if needed. Specifically, note the following aspects:
• How the poem is constructed-rhyme, meter, stanza…
• Use of figurative language- figures of speech, such as simile, hyperbole, metaphor, symbolism and personification to form imagery, note parts of speech of significant words.
• List any poetic devices or fictional conventions
• Identify the speaker. Is it someone specific? Historical? Anonymous? Name?

Step 2. Select a stenographer and a presenter to report the group’s work to the class.

Step 3. Identify the main social, personal, or political issue or problem that the speaker is relaying in the poem. What is the tone of the speaker’s voice? What is the poet trying to express through the speaker? What conclusion(s) can you as readers make after reading the poem?

Step 4. Each group will report its findings to the rest of the class. The class will complete two lists based on the groups’ work. One list will contain similarities found in the poems and the other list will contain important differences. While dramatic monologues do have many elements in common, each poet incorporates a different style into their work.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

An Introduction to Dramatic Poetry

What is Dramatic Poetry?
Dramatic poetry uses the discourse of the characters that are involved in a text to tell a story or portray a situation. One of the two genres, including narrative poetry that was posited by Aristotle, dramatic poetry incorporates mimesis, or imitation of reality. A dramatic play contains dialogue that possesses many poetic elements, such as a rhyme scheme, meter, and poetic diction. One type of dramatic verse is found in plays written for the theatre. From the earliest examples of dramatic texts written over 2,000 years ago until relatively recently, all theatrical works in the Western tradition were written in verse. Throughout history, dramatic plays were directed to the general population. Greek dramas and comedies, the works of Shakespeare, and other Elizabethan plays were all written to have a profound public impact, to affect the future, and to change people's attitudes. These plays often confronted their audiences with a social or moral issue, which were not discussed in a social setting. Contemporary writers have eschewed this genre as very few poetic dramas have been written in the modern age.

What is the Dramatic Monologue?
The dramatic monologue, a modern derivative of dramatic poetry, became a popular art form in the early 19th century. This poetic form focuses on a single speaker who takes on the identity of a person who is not the poet and utters the piece at a critical moment in time. The speaker is addressing someone within the poem, but the reader is also a listener, and the reader learns about the speaker's character from the dialogue. The speaker can unintentionally reveal certain aspects of her character through subtle hints. Like dramatic poetry, the dramatic monologue often focuses on a specific social or political problem that exists in the intended audience’s society.

Easy Reference List of Characteristics

1. Single speaker who is not the poet.
2. Implied listener whom the speaker is addressing
3. Reader acts as silent listener. Reader left with questions to contemplate.
4. Speaker intentionally or unintentionally reveals important aspect of her character.
5. Poet addresses a social, moral, or political problem or issue.

How Does Dramatic Poetry Differ From other forms of Poetry and Drama?
• Narrative poetry: Quite simply, a narrative poem tells a story. The speaker in a dramatic monologue does not usually tell a story which focus on a strict chronological frame. The focus in a dramatic poem is on the experience, mood, and affect on the reader, as opposed to the importance of the chronology of a narrative poem.
• Lyric poetry: The dominant form of modern poetry which expresses the feelings and emotions of the poet. Originally accompanied by a lyre, the lyric poem is comprised of melodious sounds from the poet’s use of rhyme or rhythm.
• Dramatic Prose: The style of writing that has dominated modern plays for a number of years. Unlike dramatic poetry, this style uses the style of speech that everyday people would utter. Dramatic prose does not incorporate rhyme and meter or other poetic conventions.

How can you tell the difference between a soliloquy and a dramatic monologue?

This is the beginning of the most famous soliloquy in the history of literature:

To be, or not to be: that is the question:
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing end them? To die: to sleep;
No more; and by a sleep to say we end
The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to, 'tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wish'd. To die, to sleep;
To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there's the rub;

From Shakespeare’s Hamlet

Now compare this soliloquy to the beginning of a dramatic monologue:

Let us go then, you and I,
When the evening is spread out against the sky
Like a patient etherised upon a table;
Let us go, through certain half-deserted streets,
The muttering retreats
Of restless nights in one-night cheap hotels
And sawdust restaurants with oyster-shells:
Streets that follow like a tedious argument
Of insidious intent
To lead you to an overwhelming question...
Oh, do not ask, "What is it?"
Let us go and make our visit.

From T.S. Eliot’s The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock

How do these two poetic forms differ? How are they alike?

Exploring the Genre:

Find your own example of a dramatic monologue that you enjoy and share the piece with the class. Be sure that the poem contains all of the necessary characteristics of a dramatic monologue.

Examples of Dramatic Poetry

Here’s where to look for examples of dramatic poetry.
Books:
• Most of Shakespeare’s work is written in dramatic poetry.
• Anthologies of Greek tragedies.
• Anthologies of Elizabethan plays.
• The majority of Robert Browning books contain dramatic monologues.

Websites:
• http://www.victorianweb.org/ features a number of dramatic monologues, as well as background information on the poets.
• http://www.poets.org/index.cfm focuses on a few poets and their works.
• http://eserver.org/poetry/ has a list of poets and their work. A few have written dramatic monologues.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. Establishing Touchstone Texts

The following collection of poems will be used as models for the class to serve as quintessential models of the genre. All four were picked for very specific reasons. Eliot’s piece is considered by literary scholars to be the impetus for the modern poetry movement. This poem is an extensive text which contains many thematic and stylistic innovations. The inclusion of Browning is a necessity, due to his mastery and creation of the genre. Rosetti’s piece was chosen for comparison to the Browning piece in that the poem offers two opposing views of death. Ai’s piece presents a modern perspective on the dramatic monologue. The poem uses contemporary language and a socially relevant theme for modern America. Obviously, these poems offer two male and two female perspectives, as well as a minority viewpoint. Six other texts that can be used as touchstone texts are Robert Browning’s “My Last Duchess” and “The Bishop Orders his Tomb at Saint Praxed's Church,” Muriel Rukeyser’s “Waiting for Icarus,” Alfred Lord Tennyson’s “Ulysses,” Charlotte Mew’s “The Farmer’s Bride,” and Thomas Hardy’s “The Man He Killed.”
The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T.S.Eliot
S'io credessi che mia risposta fosse
a persona che mai tornasse al mondo,
questa fiamma staria senza piu scosse.
Ma per cio che giammai di questo fondo
non torno vivo alcun, s'i'odo il vero,
senza tema d'infamia ti rispondo.

Let us go then, you and I,
When the evening is spread out against the sky
Like a patient etherised upon a table;
Let us go, through certain half-deserted streets,
The muttering retreats
Of restless nights in one-night cheap hotels
And sawdust restaurants with oyster-shells:
Streets that follow like a tedious argument
Of insidious intent
To lead you to an overwhelming question...
Oh, do not ask, "What is it?"
Let us go and make our visit.

In the room the women come and go
Talking of Michelangelo.

The yellow fog that rubs its back upon the window-panes,
The yellow smoke that rubs its muzzle on the window-panes,
Licked its tongue into the corners of the evening,
Lingered upon the pools that stand in drains,
Let fall upon its back the soot that falls from chimneys,
Slipped by the terrace, made a sudden leap,
And seeing that it was a soft October night,
Curled once about the house, and fell asleep.

And indeed there will be time
For the yellow smoke that slides along the street
Rubbing its back upon the window-panes;
There will be time, there will be time
To prepare a face to meet the faces that you meet;
There will be time to murder and create,
And time for all the works and days of hands
That lift and drop a question on your plate;
Time for you and time for me,
And time yet for a hundred indecisions,
And for a hundred visions and revisions,
Before the taking of a toast and tea.

In the room the women come and go
Talking of Michelangelo.

And indeed there will be time
To wonder, "Do I dare?" and, "Do I dare?"
Time to turn back and descend the stair,
With a bald spot in the middle of my hair--
(They will say: "How his hair is growing thin!")
My morning coat, my collar mounting firmly to the chin,
My necktie rich and modest, but asserted by a simple pin--
(They will say: "But how his arms and legs are thin!")
Do I dare
Disturb the universe?
In a minute there is time
For decisions and revisions which a minute will reverse.

For I have known them all already, known them all--
Have known the evenings, mornings, afternoons,
I have measured out my life with coffee spoons;
I know the voices dying with a dying fall
Beneath the music from a farther room.
So how should I presume?

And I have known the eyes already, known them all--
The eyes that fix you in a formulated phrase,
And when I am formulated, sprawling on a pin,
When I am pinned and wriggling on the wall,
Then how should I begin
To spit out all the butt-ends of my days and ways?
And how should I presume?

And I have known the arms already, known them all--
Arms that are braceleted and white and bare
(But in the lamplight, downed with light brown hair!)
Is it perfume from a dress
That makes me so digress?
Arms that lie along a table, or wrap about a shawl.
And should I then presume?
And how should I begin?
_ _ _ _ _
Shall I say, I have gone at dusk through narrow streets
And watched the smoke that rises from the pipes
Of lonely men in shirt-sleeves, leaning out of windows?...

I should have been a pair of ragged claws
Scuttling across the floors of silent seas.

_ _ _ _ _

And the afternoon, the evening, sleeps so peacefully!
Smoothed by long fingers,
Asleep...tired...or it malingers,
Stretched on the floor, here beside you and me.
Should I, after tea and cakes and ices,
Have the strength to force the moment to its crisis?
But though I have wept and fasted, wept and prayed,
Though I have seen my head (grown slightly bald) brought in
upon a platter,
I am no prophet--and here's no great matter;
I have seen the moment of my greatness flicker,
And I have seen the eternal Footman hold my coat, and snicker,
And in short, I was afraid.

And would it have been worth it, after all,
After the cups, the marmalade, the tea,
Among the porcelain, among some talk of you and me,
Would it have been worth while,
To have bitten off the matter with a smile,
To have squeezed the universe into a ball
To roll it towards some overwhelming question,
To say: "I am Lazarus, come from the dead,
Come back to tell you all, I shall tell you all"--
If one, settling a pillow by her head,
Should say: "That is not what I meant at all.
That is not it, at all."

And would it have been worth it, after all,
Would it have been worth while,
After the sunsets and the dooryards and the sprinkled streets,
After the novels, after the teacups, after the skirts that trail along
the floor--
And this, and so much more?--
It is impossible to say just what I mean!
But as if a magic lantern threw the nerves in patterns on a
screen:
Would it have been worth while
If one, settling a pillow or throwing off a shawl,
And turning toward the window, should say:
"That is not it at all,
That is not what I meant, at all."

_ _ _ _ _

No! I am not Prince Hamlet, nor was meant to be;
Am an attendant lord, one that will do
To swell a progress, start a scene or two,
Advise the prince; no doubt, an easy tool,
Deferential, glad to be of use,
Politic, cautious, and meticulous;
Full of high sentence, but a bit obtuse;
At times, indeed, almost ridiculous--
Almost, at times, the Fool.

I grow old...I grow old...
I shall wear the bottoms of my trousers rolled.

Shall I part my hair behind? Do I dare to eat a peach?
I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach.
I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each.

I do not think that they will sing for me.

I have seen them riding seaward on the waves
Combing the white hair of the waves blown back
When the wind blows the water white and black.

We have lingered in the chambers of the sea
By sea-girls wreathed with seaweed red and brown
Till human voices wake us, and we drown.

Porphyria's Lover by Robert Browning

The rain set early in tonight,
The sullen wind was soon awake,
It tore the elm-tops down for spite,
And did its worst to vex the lake:
I listened with heart fit to break.
When glided in Porphyria; straight
She shut the cold out and the storm,
And kneeled and made the cheerless grate
Blaze up, and all the cottage warm;
Which done, she rose, and from her form
Withdrew the dripping cloak and shawl,
And laid her soiled gloves by, untied
Her hat and let the damp hair fall,
And, last, she sat down by my side
And called me. When no voice replied,
She put my arm about her waist,
And made her smooth white shoulder bare,
And all her yellow hair displaced,
And, stooping, made my cheek lie there,
And spread, o'er all, her yellow hair,
Murmuring how she loved me -- she
Too weak, for all her heart's endeavor,
To set its struggling passion free
From pride, and vainer ties dissever,
And give herself to me forever.
But passion sometimes would prevail,
Nor could tonight's gay feast restrain
A sudden thought of one so pale
For love of her, and all in vain:
So, she was come through wind and rain.
Be sure I looked up at her eyes
Happy and proud; at last l knew
Porphyria worshiped me: surprise
Made my heart swell, and still it grew
While l debated what to do.
That moment she was mine, mine, fair,
Perfectly pure and good: I found
A thing to do, and all her hair
In one long yellow string l wound
Three times her little throat around,
And strangled her. No pain felt she;
l am quite sure she felt no pain.
As a shut bud that holds a bee,
l warily oped her lids: again
Laughed the blue eyes without a stain.
And l untightened next the tress
About her neck; her cheek once more
Blushed bright beneath my burning kiss:
l propped her head up as before,
Only, this time my shoulder bore
Her head, which droops upon it still:
The smiling rosy little head,
So glad it has its utmost will,
That all it scorned at once is fled,
And l, its love, am gained instead!
Porphyria's love: she guessed not how
Her darling one wish would be heard.
And thus we sit together now,
And all night long we have not stirred,
And yet God has not said a word!

After Death by Christina Rossetti
The curtains were half drawn; the floor was swept
And strewn with rushes; rosemary and may
Lay thick upon the bed on which I lay,
Where, through the lattice, ivy-shadows crept.
He leaned above me, thinking that I slept
And could not hear him; but I heard him say,
"Poor child, poor child"; and as he turned away
Came a deep silence, and I knew he wept.
He did not touch the shroud, or raise the fold
That hid my face, or take my hand in his,
Or ruffle the smooth pillows for my head.
He did not love me living; but once dead
He pitied me; and very sweet it is
To know he still is warm though I am cold.
Riot Act, April 29, 1992 by Ai

I'm going out and get something.
I don't know what.
I don't care.
Whatever's out there, I'm going to get it.
Look in those shop windows at boxes
and boxes of Reeboks and Nikes
to make me fly through the air
like Michael Jordan
like Magic.
While I'm up there, I see Spike Lee.
Looks like he's flying too
straight through the glass
that separates me
from the virtual reality
I watch everyday on TV.
I know the difference between
what it is and what it isn't.
Just because I can't touch it
doesn't mean it isn't real.
All I have to do is smash the screen,
reach in and take what I want.
Break out of prison.
South Central homey's newly risen
from the night of living dead,
but this time he lives,
he gets to give the zombies
a taste of their own medicine.
Open wide and let me in,
or else I'll set your world on fire,
but you pretend that you don't hear.
You haven't heard the word is coming down
like the hammer of the gun
of this black son, locked out of this big house,
while massa looks out the window and sees only smoke.
Massa doesn't see anything else,
not because he can't,
but because he won't.
He'd rather hear me talking about mo' money,
mo' honeys and gold chains
and see me carrying my favorite things
from looted stores
than admit that underneath my Raider's cap,
the aftermath is staring back
unblinking through the camera's lens,
courtesy of CNN,
my arms loaded with boxes of shoes
that I will sell at the swap meet
to make a few cents on the declining dollar.
And if I destroy myself
and my neighborhood
"ain't nobody's business, if I do,"
but the police are knocking hard
at my door
and before I can open it,
they break it down
and drag me in the yard.
They take me in to be processed and charged,
to await trial,
while Americans forget
the day the wealth finally trickled down
to the rest of us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. Developing Speakers and Problems/Issues for Poems

One of the most difficult problems that students in the dramatic poetry genre study will face is their choice of speaker and issue for their poems. Students need creative forums where they can muse about possible choices. The most appropriate method for students to develop ideas is the use of a creative writing journal. First, the teacher models his journaling technique on the projector. He records a specific person’s name, that person’s physical, psychological, and social descriptions, and a possible problem or issue for that person to discuss. 20In the first two weeks of the genre study, students are asked to write down specific people that they find interesting. Students can consult with their history teachers to discuss a historical figure that interests them. Finding someone who wrote journal, memoirs, or speeches, such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. would be ideal due to the personal writing that offers the poet specific insight into the person’s character. Students can also use their history class to choose a specific problem or issue for their poem. They can choose another country or time that their poem will focus on. All of their ideas will be entered into their journals. This information will be detailed in number three, the dramatic monologue assignment.

For inspiration, Calkins states that her class will “reread lots of old notebook entries looking for seed ideas, and we’ll live with our notebooks, collecting new entries, new seed ideas…If we’re living toward writing poems, we’ll gather images, wonderful words, lines for poems, responses to poetry, and notes on poetry” (365). The journals will be a source for referencing concepts, ideas, and models. Journals are also an effective tool throughout the writing process. Bomer states that his students use their journals to “plan out how the poem might go-making several outlines, trying out different leads, experimenting with the perspective from which they will tell their material” (129).

 

4. Dramatic Monologue Assignment

A full dramatic monologue writing assignment and an attached rubric are provided that students will receive which details the requirements needed to complete the project and the specific grading formula.

 

 

 

Dramatic Monologue Assignment

This is your opportunity to become a poet. Your assignment is to write a dramatic monologue of your own, using the newfound knowledge about the genre that we have discussed in class. You must carefully choose your speaker for the poem. You can pick a famous historical figure that you feel particularly emotionally charged about. Your speaker can be an anonymous person whom has experienced some event that dramatically affected on him or her. The speaker can also be someone that you know. Most importantly, your poem needs to focus on a specific moral, social, or political problem in society, such as racism, pollution, or war. Be sure to use some of the poetic devices, such as alliteration, personification, and metaphor that we listed in the first poetry class. Do not panic! You are not expected to compose a piece worthy of a laureate. You do, however, need to be creative and thoughtful. Pick a topic that is important to you and give your speaker an interesting and intriguing voice.

Your dramatic poem should:

_ Have a single speaker with a unique creative voice, who is not the poet.
_ Exhibit an implied listener whom the speaker is addressing.
_ Leave the Reader with questions to contemplate.
_ Have your speaker intentionally or unintentionally reveals important aspect of his or her character.
_ Addresses a social, moral, or political problem or issue.
_ Be at least 20 lines long, single-spaced.
_ Have an interesting, thought provoking title.
_ Possess at least two different poetic devices, used correctly and artistically.
_ Use a wide variety of vocabulary words for imagery and/or setting. (We will work on this aspect in the revising stage).
_ Have a distinct form used throughout, i.e. rhyme scheme or stanza structure, no free verse allowed here.

Due dates:
Draft 1 is due______________
Peer Review is due__________
Draft 2 is due______________
Final Draft is due___________

 

 

 

Rubric for the Dramatic Poem

The following rubric will be used to grade your piece. As you meander through the processes of creating your masterpiece, use the rubric to determine how you are progressing. Find as many reviewers as possible to allow for numerous revisions. Advise and opinions from others are priceless.

6= Complete Understanding, Clear focus, Fully Developed
5= Consistent Understanding, Thorough, A Few Minor Flaws
4= Basic Understanding, Minor Flaws More Evident
3= Flawed Understanding, Some Major Flaws
2= Vague or Inaccurate Understanding with Major Flaws
1=No Understanding or No Attempt Made

Form:

1. Poem has a strong and creative title that offers some
incite towards the theme of the work. 1 2 3 4 5 6 X 2=___

2. Poet uses a particular rhyme scheme or set
sentence structure (long-short), not free verse. 1 2 3 4 5 6 X2=___

3. Poet includes at least two (ideally more) different poetic
devices and exhibits a sufficient understanding of their use. 1 2 3 4 5 6 X2=___

Out of a total of 30 Points=____

Content:

1. Poem has a clear speaker whose identity is established. The
speaker reveals their character through their speech. 1 2 3 4 5 6 X2=___

2. A specific issue or problem is reveled by the character and
is developed throughout the poem 1 2 3 4 5 6 X2=___

3. Poet accounts for the reader as a listener. The poem engages
the listener to think about the issue and form a conclusion 1 2 3 4 5 6 X2=___

Out of a total of 36 Points=____
Originality:

1. Poet uses a wide variety of vocabulary words. Their word
choice shows thought, revision, and creativity. 1 2 3 4 5 6=____

2. Poem exhibits a unique and creative flair. The poet attempted
to alter a style of another poet or created a totally new style of
their own. The poet made an impressive attempt to peak the
interest of the reader. 1 2 3 4 5 6=____

Out of a total of 12 Points=____

Grant total=____

Note: Poems under the requisite 20 lines or not exhibiting the characteristics of a dramatic monologue will not be graded!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5. Mini-lessons on Improving Poetic Writing Skills

No poet is ever born a great poet. This delicate craft often takes years to acquire a high level of competency. Teachers will certainly face a difficult task to create a class full of laureates in a six to eight week session. While the goal is not to create a perfectly rounded poet in such a short period of time, students can learn a number of essential skills that will help them to write a better poem. A series of specific mini-lessons focusing on specific writing techniques can vastly improve student writing.

Undoubtedly, imagery is the most important poetic tool that is available to the poet. Imagery creates a visual scene of the poem’s actions and setting. Without imagery, a poem is a series of words that cannot connect with a reader. Therefore, two mini-lessons on imagery, which present two different pedagogical techniques for teaching this convention, are provided. One lesson directs the students to document and analyze imagery in a dramatic monologue. This lesson is so vital to the poem writing process, that it is advised that the class take as much time learning this concept as is necessary. A good poem cannot be written without memorable images. The second lesson focuses on hypertext imagery to allow students to visualize a poem’s imagery on a computer screen.

Depending on how much time the teacher allots for this genre study, a seemingly infinite number of mini-lessons could be conducted which focus on other poetic devices and elements. The following devices could form the basis for a mini-lesson: alliteration, allusion, anachronism, assonance, apostrophe, dialect, exaggeration, irony, metaphor, onomatopoeia, personification, refrain, and symbolism. Students may know some of these concepts, but not in great detail, while other devices, such as the apostrophe, would be foreign to them. Poetic elements such as diction, meter, rhyme, stanzas, tone, style, and narrator could also form a mini-lesson. This background information, while helpful, would take a lengthy amount of time to teach. The teacher must choose which devices and elements she feels are most pertinent.

Writing in any genre is dependent on the details. Some genres are concerned with providing “just the facts”, but those facts cannot be effectively disseminated without details. Readers of any text want to be absorbed into the piece so that they can relate and envision the scene that the writer is creating. Therefore, a mini-lesson on detail creation is offered in this study. Students need to learn how to “show” and not “tell”. No great writer creates an adequate amount of detail in the first draft. This mini-lesson will show the students how to create a more vivid description for the reader. Students will improve their writing in other genres through this mini-lesson.

One of the most difficult concepts to teach students is the multiple uses for a poem’s title. Students predominantly use titles in any genre of writing that directly inform the reader about the topic of the text. While this usage might be adequate, if not a bit boring, for other genres, students need to understand that the title of a poem can be just as crucial, if not more important, than the text itself. Starkey states that

Beginning poets often shy away from titling their poems. Some feel that no title
can sufficiently summarize what happens in the poem itself. Others believe that
a poem should be able to stand on its own without a title to prop it up. Still
others are convinced that they have no talent for titles. (219)

Students need to learn the factors that make a specific title effective. Innocuous titles such as “My Friend” and “Sad” lower the reader’s expectations, while “Untitled” exhibits a lack of commitment. Students will examine titles for all of the keystone texts and record what they interpret as the poets’ rationale for their titles. They will observe that writers use titles for different effects on the reader. Students will be able to give their poems a title worthy of their creation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mini-Lesson #1

Mini-lesson topic

Analyzing imagery in a dramatic monologue.

Short-Range Objectives

Students will use listening, reading, speaking, and writing to reinforce their knowledge of imagery.

Context

The eleventh grade class is continuing their genre study, focusing on the use of imagery in poems for a second day. As the most important poetic device, it is essential that students become comfortable in recognizing imagery, which will allow them to create images in their own poems. A second lesson on imagery also gives the students an opportunity to closely analyze how a different poet uses imagery in a text. Today, students will actively read T.S. Eliot’s “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” to identify his use of imagery.

Pedagogy

First, the teacher asks a few questions to ensure that the class clearly remembers the definition and purpose of imagery. Second, the teacher reads the poem aloud, while the students follow along with the blown up passage. Third, the students record a personal response to the poem in their journals. Fourth, they should record the lines where Eliot effectively uses imagery to create a visual scene in their heads. Then, the teacher conducts a Socratic seminar where the students present the passages which contain striking images in order within the poem. The teacher reads his notes to ensure that the students identified the most important images. Here is a brief list of some examples that should be stressed:

- Like a patient etherised upon a table;

- And sawdust restaurants with oyster-shells

- The yellow fog that rubs its back upon the window-panes,
The yellow smoke that rubs its muzzle on the window-panes

- And when I am formulated, sprawling on a pin,
When I am pinned and wriggling on the wall

- I should have been a pair of ragged claws
Scuttling across the floors of silent seas

- After the cups, the marmalade, the tea,
Among the porcelain, among some talk of you and me

- We have lingered in the chambers of the sea
By sea-girls wreathed with seaweed red and brown
Till human voices wake us, and we drown

Assessment

Students are graded based on their participation in the Socratic seminar. They each need to identify at least two examples of imagery and be able to offer some insight as to the poet’s intentions. Student responses must exhibit insight and reflection. They also have to complete a homework assignment where they incorporate two new images into their works in progress, using descriptive language.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mini-Lesson #2

Mini-Lesson Topic

Using a poem written in hypertext to analyze a poet’s use of imagery.

Short-Range Objectives

Students will use listening, reading, speaking, and writing to understand how poets create mental images for the reader.

Context

The eleventh grade class is currently working on a genre study in dramatic poetry. They are learning the essential elements of the genre in order to write a dramatic monologue of their own. Today, the class will partake in a mini-lesson focusing on imagery using Robert Browning’s “Porphyria's Lover,” one of the touchstone texts. This particular poem was chosen do to its difficult theme and language, which are easier to understand with the visual representation of the poem. Browning created striking visual images to compliment his themes. The hypertext imagery exhibits the visual qualities of poems and will help students create images of their own.

Pedagogy

First, the teacher offers a personal anecdote focusing on why people rarely enjoy movies based upon books that they read. Most people complain about those movies because they had a previous “mental picture” in their minds regarding to how different characters and settings in the book are supposed to look. The teacher then brings up “The Lord of the Rings” as a movie example as well as the upcoming “Chronicles of Narnia.” Second, the teacher presents the definition of imagery, which the students copy in their notebooks. Imagery is a technique a writer uses to create a visual picture in a reader’s mind. Descriptive and figurative language is used to create imagery. Imagery involves two parties, the writer and the reader. In this manner, a text is different for each reader, allowing for many interpretations. Third, the teacher discusses the definition of hypertext. Hypertext is a computer-based text retrieval system that enables a user to access particular locations in a web page or other electronic documents by clicking on a link within a specific web page or documents. Fourth, the teacher prompts students to access the hypertext poem on the Internet. The teacher reads the poem as the students read along. For the previous night, the students read the poem and wrote their initial response to the poem in the first section of the graphic organizer. As the class moves through the different examples of hypertext, students write their reaction to each image, as prompted by the organizer. Afterwards, the students will write a small summary stating how the mini-lesson helped them to enjoy and understand the poem better.

Assessment

First, students must exhibit in their initial analysis of the poem that they provided sufficient thought towards difficult poem, or offered probing questions regarding passages that they did not understand. Second, students must participate in the discussion of the poem and complete their graphic organizers. They do not need to respond to all of the images, but students do need to make connections with some of the images and the poet’s intentions. Third, the students need to respond to how the project helped them to understand how the dramatic poem is created.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Graphic Organizer- Imagery in a Dramatic Monologue. “Porphyria’s Lover” by Robert Browning

Write a brief paragraph about your reaction to the poem. Did you like it? Was it confusing or easy to understand?
Record your reaction after viewing each hypertext image. How do these images relate to the poem?
1. 5.

2. 6.

3. 7.

4. 8.

Record your reaction to the poem after seeing these images. Did they effect your understanding or enjoyment of the poem?
Mini Lesson #3

Mini-Lesson Topic

Adding detail to create a more vibrant poem.

Short-Range Objective

Students will use listening, speaking, active reading, and writing to discover methods of adding detail to their writing. They will learn how to use more descriptive language to create a more detailed experience for the reader. This knowledge will allow students to become better writers in all genres.

Context

Students have already written a draft of their poem and are ready to start editing their pieces. One of the most important aspects of a poem is the ability to create rich and vibrant scenes for the reader by using descriptive language. This mini-lesson will give students the tools to evaluate their own work and add detail.

Pedagogy

The teacher writes a small poem with a few nondescript lines about a setting. He asks the class what they think about this piece, hoping that they express their disappointment. The teacher then asks the class how they could improve the writing and ask for assistance in improving the piece. Each line will be read to the class, followed by suggestions for improvement. The teacher explains afterwards that by giving prominent details, composed of creative adjectives, a greater number of specific nouns, and unique verbs, a poet can create a unique and memorable piece for the reader. Memorable passages are created by sentence structures and word choices that are unfamiliar, yet understandable for the reader. Then, the teacher gives the class a version of “Porphyria’s Lover” with all of the figurative language taken out, and asks the class to circle the differences in the two pieces. The students will observe how Browning creates a tension-filled scene through the use of figurative language.

Assessment

For homework, students must work on their poems and add more detail where appropriate. Their work will be graded for creativity and understanding of the concept. They will be advised to consult a thesaurus, but warned to use words that sound appropriate in their pieces. The sound of a word is almost as important as the meaning in a poem.

 

Mini-Lesson #4

Mini-Lesson Topic

Creating an Effective Title for a Dramatic Poem

Short-Range Objective

Students will use listening, hearing, speaking, and writing to analyze poet’s title choices. Students will understand the rationale for the title, enabling them to create and effective title of their own.

Context

Students have nearly completed their dramatic monologues for their final task in the genre study. This mini-lesson allows them to complete the final process, which is furnishing their piece with a title. This is a process that many students do not understand well.

Pedagogy

The teacher asks the students to take out their copies of the class’ touchstone texts of dramatic monologues. By this point, the class has already analyzed all of the poems and understands the themes, speaker, and issue of the poem. The class takes a few minutes for each poem to record the reason why the poet gave the text that particular title. The teacher only offers his opinion if the class loses its focus. Hopefully, they will be able to ascertain the following:

“Porphyria’s Lover”- ironic title due to the fact that her lover becomes her murderer. The title leads the reader to believe that the piece will be a love poem.

“Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock”- ironic title because the speaker is unable to feel or express love. The modern world has desensitized him, disabling his ability to connect with women who are a part of the society that he distains.

“My Last Duchess”- title hints at speaker’s materialization of his wife, implying that she is one in a long line of duchesses. He devalues human life and relationships. This title gives the reader a subtle hint towards the issue and the speaker.

“Ulysses”- he is such an imposing figure that his name is as important as the piece. The title also offers a hint towards the reader and the issue. Ulysses values his own life and adventures over the lives of his family and community. He is a man that cannot offer himself to others. He is only able to take from the world.

“Riot Act, April 29, 1992”- the title reads like a headline from a newspaper that the white culture would read. The speaker places a personal perspective on a minority issue which the dominant culture cannot relate. An event that is a headline to some is a bleak reality to others.

The class would examine many other titles during the class period, following the same patterns. For homework, they need to create at least three different titles for their piece, using the models as inspiration.

Assessment

The student’s titles are graded for creativity. They must exhibit a clear understanding of the role of titles in a poem.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6. Use of Peer Review

An essential aspect of the writing process is receiving the advice of others. The teacher should not be the only pair of eyes that sees the first editions in the drafting stages of a text. Students can receive wonderful benefits from a peer review session as readers and writers. By reading the texts of their peers, students are exposed to other styles and techniques of writing other than their own. The more students can review and make suggestions to another’s work, the better equipped that they will be to revise their own work.

Students, however, need explicit instructions on how to review their peers’ work. They need to be guided through the revision process, which can be intimidating for a number of reasons. Soven states that “I would agree that students are afraid to hurt their classmates’ feelings, [but] I believe that students’ lack of confidence in their ability to judge another student’s work is probably more often the reason for their vague comments rather than embarrassment” (48). With the use of a peer review question sheet, however, students are guided towards the appropriate answers and the awkwardness is lifted. Both Soven and Atwell are staunch supporters of the peer revision process.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Peer Review and Revision

Exchange your draft poem with a fellow student. Remember that this exercise is an important step in the writing process. The poet needs your feedback as to how to create a more effective poem. This review is also an important part of your grade.

Read the poem and carefully address the following questions:

1. Record your initial response to the poem.

2. What was your initial reaction to the title?

3. Does the speaker have a strong, distinct voice throughout the poem or does the poet need to add more information? What suggestions could you make to strengthen the speaker’s voice? Does the speaker intentionally or unintentionally reveal something important in the monologue?

4. Does the poet account for the reader as listener? Did you feel like the speaker was addressing you in the piece?

5. What was the specific moral problem or issue? Is it clearly defined in the piece? How is it presented?

6. Does the poet make effective use of poetic devices and fictional conventions? Cite these examples and comment on their connection to the overall piece. How could they be improved?

7. Does the poet use descriptive language, which creates a vivid mental picture in your mind or does the poet “tell” too much? Where are there opportunities in the poem to add more detail? What left you curious and wanting to know more?

8. Is the poem organized well? Is it choppy or does it contain grammatical errors? Does it flow as you read the lines? What, if anything, interferes with your reading of the piece?

9. Name one aspect of the poem that you really enjoyed. What did the poet do well? How could this aspect be repeated throughout the piece?

 

 

 

 

7. Publishing

Many students are motivated by the idea that their work will be presented to an outside audience. Every classroom has reluctant writers, who for some reason, do not like to share their work with others. Calkins states that “The characteristics of any particular genre relate to the purposes of the audiences for whom that writing is destined” (366). Writers need to know that the teacher is not the only “listener” who is going to interpret their work. Publishing offers students an extra motivating force to push them to the limits of their capabilities. The revising process will have a special meaning when students understand that their pieces will have a large audience.

Our current age offers many different opportunities to publish and perform. Many schools at various levels print literary magazines at least once per year. Depending upon how much space the publication is afforded, a schoolwide contest could be held to determine which pieces would be published. Many schools, in the face of budget crises, have adopted online publications to save on the ever-rising publishing costs. In this case, all poets would be able to publish their works. Poets would be advised to attempt to publish their pieces in one of the many online poetry websites, such as poetry.com, poetrypoem.com, and thinker.net. On these websites, people who log on to the site can voice their opinions on each piece, which could offer some valuable advice to student writers. Many of these sites also hold monthly contests where the winners receive a cash prize.

Many schools have implemented reading nights where writers of all genres can read their works. Poets are encouraged to read their poetry to the audience to give their poems a personal edge. The audio and visual representation of a poem can have a very different effect on an intended audience. Some school systems have taken their best poets to the masses and performed in public locales such as libraries, restaurants, and clubs. In towns and cities that have a thriving intellectual community, this type of opportunity can be a great benefit to the poets and the residents.

Whether or not all of the aforementioned ideas are possible for a particular school system, the opportunity for classroom publishing should not be neglected. After an exhaustive genre study that takes a month or more to complete, classroom publishing is an experience that reaffirms the communal bonds that have been developed in that time period. Students will respect their peers for the tasks that they have accomplished and their ability to improve as writers. In-class presentations, as well as a printed collection of works, are two possibilities which would leave indelible impressions on the minds of the students.

8. Reflective Lesson

Writing poetry can become a life-altering event. A special connection can be formed between a poem and the poet, which does not necessarily occur in every genre. Whether a poem’s topic is personal or not, a part of every poet is invested in her work. Due to this personal connection to the genre, an opportunity for student reflection is advised. Students should always have time at the end of a long unit to record their opinions and a list of acquired knowledge in a journal. This activity will reinforce the new concepts that the students have learned and allow them to understand the magnitude of their work.

After the final versions of their poems are handed in, the teacher will give the provided handout to the class.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Congratulations. You are a poet. Do not forget what you have learned. Use your knowledge in the future when the moment strikes. A poem can be found in the smallest living cell or in the grandeur of the universe. Read the following quotes and digest them. Write a few notes regarding their significance and offer your interpretation.

“A man, to be greatly good, must imagine intensely and comprehensively; he must put himself in the place of another and of many others; the pains and pleasures of his species must become his own. The great instrument of moral good is the imagination; and poetry administers to the effect by acting upon the cause” (40).

“But poets, or those who imagine and express this indestructible order, are not only the authors of language and of music, of the dance and architecture, and statuary, and painting; they are the institutors of laws, and the founders of civil society, and the inventors of the arts of life, and the teachers who draw into a certain propinquity with the beautiful and the true, that partial apprehension of the agencies of the invisible world which is called religion” (31).

“Poetry compels us to feel that which we perceive, and to imagine that which we know. It creates anew the universe, after it has been annihilated in our minds by the recurrence of impressions blunted by reiteration. It justifies that bold and true word of Tasso: ‘None deserves the name of creator except God and the Poet’” (75).

“Poetry turns all things to loveliness; it exalts the beauty of that which is most beautiful, and it adds beauty to that which is most deformed; it marries exultation and horror, grief and pleasure, eternity and change”(74).

“Poetry is not like reasoning, a power to be exerted according to the determination of the will. A man cannot say, ‘I will compose poetry.’ The greatest poet even cannot say it: for the mind in creation is as a fading coal which some invisible influence, like an inconsistent wind, awakens to transitory brightness” (71).

From Shelly’s A Defence of Poetry

Different groups can be assigned to comment on a specific quote or the class can participate in a Socratic seminar to discuss all of the quotes together. The teacher will provide definition for difficult words or references such as “propinquity”, “Tasso”, and “statuary”.

 

 

 

 

9. Lesson On Regents Poem Comprehension

Over time, standardized testing has changed the teacher’s role in the secondary classroom. Each year, students will be subjected to some type of testing to assure that they have achieved a sufficient level of aptitude in a specific field of study. Teachers are responsible for their students test scores and this has radically changed the curriculum. A great deal of class time is now spent in preparation for these tests. For teachers in New York schools that are labeled as “high risk”, achieving a high passing rate on these tests is a crucial aspect of the job.

Students need to be comfortable with the process of test taking. Therefore, it is important that they receive a sufficient amount of practice by taking sample tests. This process will allow them to understand the types of questions that they will be asked for the test. The genre study provided them with a sufficient level of background knowledge to successfully complete these tests. Students will be familiar with the requisite number of poetic devices and literary techniques, which were discussed and recorded in the introductory lesson, to write the essay.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Preparing for the Regents Essay

Lesson Topic

Preparing students for the controlling idea, compare and contrast essay of the ELA Regents Exam.

Short-Range Objective

After this exercise, students will be more comfortable with the process of analyzing poems and writing about them on standardized tests.

Context

The eleventh grade class completed a whole-class genre study on dramatic poetry. After this five to seven week unit, the students are knowledgeable about poetic devices and literary techniques. These students understand how a poet creates a text and its intended impact on the reader. Now, these students need to analyze to the types of questions that the Regents will ask them in regards to a specific poem. This lesson will help to improve their overall scores.

Pedagogy

Students will receive the following sheet.

Essay 1-Compare and Contrast-Regents

Choose any two poems and compose an essay of no less than two full pages, double-spaced, 12 size font, Times New Roman, on the following:

Compose your essay based on the following quote:

Loss is an inevitable part of the human experience. It is how one deals with loss which shows his or her mettle. - Anonymous philosopher

ÿ Find two poems that deal with loss and analyze this quote’s value to the pieces.
ÿ Analyze at least two poetic devices or conventions that the poet used in the poems and explain their relevance to the piece.
ÿ Focus on a main controlling idea throughout your essay, which is addressed in both pieces.
ÿ Avoid plot summary in your paper. Focus on the larger implications of the poem. What theme and societal implications is the poet trying to convey?
ÿ Use direct quotes from the texts to validate your points.
ÿ Take time and care in writing your paper. Write multiple drafts where you revise and edit your work. Most importantly, read your paper aloud. If it sounds awkward to you, it probably needs to be changed.
ÿ The paper will be graded based on the following criteria: content knowledge, validity and clarity of controlling idea, careful analysis of two poems, Standard American English usage- grammar, word choice, spelling, flow, and organization.
ÿ As always, I am available for consultation on your papers. See me earlier rather than later.

 

Assessment

The students will be graded on their homework answers. Extra participation points could be added for those students who frequently offered their analysis during the class period. The class will spend two to three days discussing the papers and formulating improved strategies for writing the assignment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Building Ties to Other Genres

Teaching dramatic poetry to secondary students can greatly benefit their writing in other genres. With the knowledge that students have gained regarding this sub-genre, they can apply many of the same rules to the other sub-genres, such as lyrical and narrative poetry. The frequent use of fictional conventions can only aid student writing in fictional genres such as the short story, memoir, or science fiction. Students will write with a new creative flair and an advanced vocabulary that they did not posses before. With the strict attention to a specific theme that poets focus on in a dramatic monologue, students’ ability to defend a thesis in an academic paper can only improve. For these numerous reasons, the use of a genre study in dramatic poetry in the high school ELA classroom is highly recommended.

Literature Suggestions for Teachers for Further Research

Adams, Priscilla. Windows and Mirrors: A Sketchbook Approach to Writing and
Reading Poetry. Durham: Carolina Academic Press, 1995.

Ciardi, John, and Miller Willliams. How does a Poem Mean? Boston: Houghton Mifflin,
1975.
Collum, Jack, and Sheryl Noeth. Poetry Everywhere. New York: Teachers & Writers
Collaborative, 1994.
Denman, Gregory. When You’ve Made it Your Own: Teaching Poetry to Young People.
Portsmouth: Heinemann, 1988.
Fletcher, Ralph. Poetry Matters: Writing Poetry from the Inside Out. New York: Harper
Trophy Books, 2002.
Heard, Georgia. Awakening the Heart: Exploring Poetry in Elementary and Middle
School. Portsmouth: Heinemann, 2002.
Hewitt, Geof. Today You Are My Favorite Poet: Writing Poems with Teenagers.
Portsmouth: Heinemann, 1998.
Johnson, David. Word Weaving: A Creative Approach to Teaching and Writing Poetry.
Urbana: National Council of Teachers of English, 1990.
Works Cited

Apol, Laura. “_What do we do if we don't do haiku?’ Seven suggestions for writers
and teachers.” English Journal, 91 (2002): 89-97. Atwell, Nancy. In the Middle: New Understandings About Writing, Reading, and
Learning. Portsmouth: Boynton/Cook, 1998.
Baines, Lawrence. “Out of the Box.” Voices From the Middle, 9 (2001): 12-22.
Barrt, Nicole. “Saying it more intensely: Using sensory experience to teach poetry
writing.” English Journal, 91(2002): 98-104.
Bomer, Randy. Time for Meaning: Crafting Literate Lives in Middle and High School.
Portsmouth: Heinemann, 1995.
Brechner, Adam. The Pupil Poetry Predicament: Creating Interest in a Disfavored
Genre. SUNY Cortland: (2004).
Burk, David. “Teaching the Terrain of Poetry.” English Journal, 81 (1992): 26-31.
Calkins, Lucy. The Art of Teaching Writing. Portsmouth: Heinemann, 1994.
Coe, R., Freedman A. Theorizing Composition: A Critical Sourcebook of Theory and
Scholarship in Contemporary Composition Studies. Ed. Mary Kennedy. Westport:
Greenwood, 1998.
Conner, Angela. “Motivating middle school students to revise and edit.” English
Journal, 90 (2000): 72-79.
Cooper, Charles. Evaluating Writing: The Role of Teachers’ Knowledge about Text,
Learning, and Culture. Urbana: National Council of Teachers of English, 1999.
Drake, B. Writing Poetry. Fort Worth: Harcourt, 1994.
Gorrell, Nancy. “Teaching empathy through ecphrastic poetry: Entering a
curriculum of peace.” English Journal, 89 (2000): 32-42.
Jolliffe, David. Encyclopedia of Rhetoric and Composition: Communication from
Ancient Times to the Information Age. New York: Garland, 1996.
Kuhlman, Wilma. “Influences of shared poetry texts: The chorus in voice.”
Language Arts, 76 (1999): 307-313.
Preminger, Alex. Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics. Princeton, Princeton
University, 1974.
Routman, Regie. “Everyone Succeeds with Poetry Writing.” Instructor, 111 (1999):
26- 30.
Shelley, Percy. A Defence of Poetry. Indianapolis: Bobbs-Merrill, 1965.
Soven, Margot. Teaching Writing in Middle and Secondary Schools: Theory, Research,
and Practice. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1999.
Starkey, David. Poetry Writing, Themes and Variations. Chicago: NTC, 2000.

 

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