“Parsley”by Rita Dove There is a parrot imitating springin the palace, its feathers parsley green.Out of the swamp the cane appears to haunt us, and we cut it down. El Generalsearches for a word; he is all the worldthere is. Like a parrot imitating spring, we lie down screaming as rain punches throughand we come up green. We cannot speak an R—out of the swamp, the cane appears and then the mountain we call in whispers Katalina.The children gnaw their teeth to arrowheads.There is a parrot imitating spring. El General has found his word: perejil.Who says it, lives. He laughs, teeth shiningout of the swamp. The cane appears in our…

“The Sea Is History”   by Derek Walcott Where are your monuments, your battles, martyrs?Where is your tribal memory? Sirs,in that grey vault. The sea. The seahas locked them up. The sea is History. First, there was the heaving oil,heavy as chaos;then, like a light at the end of a tunnel, the lantern of a caravel,and that was Genesis.Then there were the packed cries,the shit, the moaning: Exodus.Bone soldered by coral to bone,mosaicsmantled by the benediction of the shark’s shadow, that was the Ark of the Covenant.Then came from the plucked wiresof sunlight on the sea floor the plangent harps of the Babylonian bondage,as the white cowries clustered like manacleson…

“Crossing Brooklyn Ferry”by Walt Whitman 1Flood-tide below me! I see you face to face!Clouds of the west—sun there half an hour high—I see you also face to face. Crowds of men and women attired in the usual costumes, how curious you are to me!On the ferry-boats the hundreds and hundreds that cross, returning home, are more curious to me than you suppose,And you that shall cross from shore to shore years hence are more to me, and more in my meditations, than you might suppose. 2The impalpable sustenance of me from all things at all hours of the day,The simple, compact, well-join’d scheme, myself disintegrated, every one disintegrated yet part…

Hi All,  By now you should have CUNY Commons accounts. If you haven’t created one yet, please do so ASAP. Here is the link for the video tutorial, and be sure to reach out if you have any difficulties. After you create an account, it’s important that you send me your username.  Also, let me know if you are having trouble accessing the reading. And, as a reminder, here are the things you need to do this week: https://docs.google.com/document/d/16SXdZh2NkgUNIQPB5r2_ic8qAOFR99p7jbuzAjSuSw4/edit#bookmark=id.cfecezpn0bga All best,  PF

In the section titled “Conventions of Literature” (p26) from Jonathan Culler’s chapter, he describes the idea that both the speakers and the listener work to create the meaning of something that is said. Read the poems by Emily Dickinson listed for this week and describe two instances where her writing requires that you complete the thought, that requires you interpreting what you see. How did you go about interpreting these parts of the poems? How did you draw conclusions? What evidence did you think of to support your interpretation?

Welcome letter Dear Students,  Welcome to the Fall II (isn’t January!?) semester! I’m looking forward to reading your thoughts about the literature we will explore during this semester. My hope is that the reading will open important questions for you and that the writing assignments will give you the space to examine these questions.  Before you read this long-ish announcement:  But first, here at the beginning we must engage in the sometimes clunky task of making sure our technology is in order.  I am not a fan of Blackboard, so we will only use this system for two things: announcements (but these will also be posted here on the course…

The Soul selects her own Society (303) by Emily Dickinson The Soul selects her own Society —Then — shuts the Door —To her divine Majority —Present no more — Unmoved — she notes the Chariots — pausing —At her low Gate —Unmoved — an Emperor be kneelingUpon her Mat — I’ve known her — from an ample nation —Choose One —Then — close the Valves of her attention —Like Stone — c. 1862

“The Brain—is wider than the Sky”By: Emily Dickinson The Brain—is wider than the Sky—For—put them side by side—The one the other will containWith ease—and You—beside— The Brain is deeper than the sea—For—hold them—Blue to Blue—The one the other will absorb—As Sponges—Buckets—do— The Brain is just the weight of God—For—Heft them—Pound for Pound—And they will differ—if they do—As Syllable from Sound—