230590 “The Soul in Paraphrase”: Religion in British and American Poetry (S) (SoSe 2010)

We will be concerned with how poetic language has been used to express ideas of God, questions of belief and spirituality, reflections on death, and the teachings of particular religious traditions. The New Testament tells us (John 3:14) that "The Word became Flesh" in the person of Jesus Christ. This course will explore how "The Word" became words in poetry.

Students of religion may be interested in this course, but religious belief of any kind is not at all necessary to the enjoyment and appreciation of the poems we will read. Spiritual concerns and beliefs are abstract and very personal: how have poets sought to represent their beliefs? why has poetry been a preferred vehicle for these representations? how is religious poetry related to religious singing: hymns or gospel music? how do you put transcendent ideas into finite forms? and why should anyone want to do that?

Requirements for participation, required level

You should have completed Basic Module 3.

Bibliography

We will read poetry from the Book of Psalms, John Donne, George Herbert, Edward Taylor, Anne Bradstreet, Gerard Manley Hopkins Emily Dickinson, and others. You can familiarize yourselves with all of these via the Internet. Secondary material will be provided in the Reserved Reading (Semesterapparat). Students will be encouraged to discover other poets who have dealt with religion in their verse.