17th and 18th Century Poet Project

For this project your team will become experts on your poet and will perform a close reading of one of their poems. You will create a PowerPoint presentation which will include one brief, interactive activity with the class. The PowerPoint must have at least 15 slides and must do its best to cover the following categories:

o   Background of the poet’s early years and their entry into writing.

o   The poet’s public life and societal views (views on society, religion, and politics).

o   The poet’s personal life and how this may have impacted their writing.

o   The poet’s style and approach to writing (what themes were they interested in? What messages did they use their poems to express?)

o   A breakdown and analysis of the selected poem (s) (minimum of 5 slides).

o   The poet’s later years and a possible evolution of his or her poetry.

o   An explanation for why this poet is remembered today. Impact on Poetry.

o   A Works Cited Page in MLA format.

For the poetry analysis portion of the project, you will want to do a close reading of specific sections of the poems. Make sure to analyze not only the topics and themes of the poem as well as the diction, but also the poetic devices present (figurative language, alliteration, rhyme scheme, meter, imagery, repetition, etc.). Speak to how these poetic devices are used to enhance the meaning of the work. Your group will be graded based on the depth of your analysis and the overall knowledge your members have on the poet’s life and works. Your delivery of the presentation will also be part of the grade.

You will want to take notes during these presentations.

Poets:

·         John Donne (The Flea and Holy Sonnet 10).

·         Ben Jonson (To Celia and Still to Be Neat)

·         George Herbert (Man)

·         Robert Herrick (The Night-Piece, to Julia and His Return to London)

·         John Milton (When I Consider… and On His Having Arrived…)

·         John Dryden (A Song for St. Celia’s Day)

·         Alexander Pope (The Dying Christian to his Soul and The Riddle of the World)

·         Jonathan Swift (A Description of a City Shower)

·         William Collins (Ode to Evening)

·         Charlotte Smith (To the Moon and To Melancholy)

·         Joanna Baillie (London)