Welsh poetry is enriched and informed by the legends, people, and especially the landscapes that have shaped the world of the poets. This course will focus on the texture, imagery, and language of the poems reflecting that world. The writing of Dylan Thomas and Gillian Clarke will be at the center of the course and class discussion, although the class will read a few medieval and other early poems as well as selections from 20th-century poets and from younger modern poets. Both Dylan Thomas and Gillian Clarke travelled well beyond Wales, but their greatest poems and other writings are rooted in their homeland. Dylan Thomas wrote in English but his language captures the rhythms of home. Gillian Clarke, former national Poet of Wales, writes in both English and Welsh and is also the translator of other poems we will read. The class will also read some prose selections from both authors. Although any collection of the poems of Dylan Thomas will be helpful, many of Thomas’s poems can also be found online. All of Gillian Clarke’s writing is published by Carcanet. I strongly recommend the purchase of Roots Home her most recent collection of essays, which serendipitously includes diary selections, descriptions of nature, discussions of her own poetry (with some poems), and an essay on Dylan Thomas. Its emphasis on roots echoes the themes of this course. Although her Collected Poems includes some poems we will read and would be helpful, it is limited in scope because she has published several small collections of poetry since then. Because much of her poetry is not available online, I will provide supplementary selections. Note: ordering early is wise since her books are shipped from the UK.
Instructor Ann Nesslage is a graduate of Vassar with a masters in British literature from Bryn Mawr. Ann retired from Choate Rosemary Hall, where she taught different levels of literature including British Studies and world literature. She also created electives in fantasy literature, satire, Early Irish and Welsh literature, and other topics. Ann lives in Bremen, where she enjoys reading and gardening and serves on the Bremen Conservation Commission and the library board. She is also a member of the CSC board and the Curriculum Committee.
Photograph from The Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540
https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2015645396/
If you want to register and are not yet a member, Click here for New Member Signup