The non-traditional texts of writers Claudia Rankine and Maggie Nelson have garnered critical and commercial success that has brought new audiences to the world of contemporary poetry. But are these works poetry? What defines the ways in which we define genre, exhibit our observations, champion our individual lyric?

In this class, students will erase the battle line drawn between the poetry and prose. We will commandeer creative license in order to deconstruct the notion of form. Using the texts of contemporary poets Nelson, Rankine, and others, participantswill find the spaces in which hybridity can open their own work to conquer uncharted narratives. The class will include an in-depth study of contemporary form through the examination of class texts, independent writing, and inquiry-based workshops.