For your second major assignment, you will write a poem in free verse (no rhyme scheme, end rhyme, or specific meter). For this poem, your theme is love and/or sex. Love in particular is a loaded topic to write a poem about. In fact, this is an assignment I would never give to an introductory writing class because it is a recipe for disaster. Your challenge is, as Addonizio puts it, to write a love poem that doesn't sound like a Hallmark card. Love poems have also been done so many times throughout history that to write something that sounds original on this topic is difficult. The good news is that Addonizio's exercises in chapter 14 can help you to accomplish this. Use model examples from our reading and below as well.
Finally, read my article from "The Writing Cooperative" called, "How to Write a Non-Sappy Love Poem."
As before, try for more showing than telling. Show the particulars of a specific situation rather than writing on the broad theme itself. Like the poems we read from published poets in our books, be as specific as possible; try to illuminate the ordinary, describe it in a new and original way, try using metaphor and/or personification of inanimate objects in your description. As you're revising, use alliteration and judge which words you want to emphasize the most and the rhythm of the poem to determine where your line breaks should be (Don't always end the line where the punctuation is). Finally, look at your poem as a whole. Is there some universal, philosophical message you can get from this poem? Try to find a way of conveying that in the poem without stating it directly. The best way to do this is by letting an image or images represent the idea rather than stating the idea.
Things to include in every poem you write:
Things to avoid in every poem you write:
Before you write, read back through the first poems in your reading. Pick the poems you like the best and try to pattern your poem after them but using your own subject and your own details.
Format:
Examples of Love and Sex Poems
"Superglue," Dorianne Laux
"First Poem for You," Kim Addonizio
"Love is Not All," Edna St. Vincent Millay
"After Making Love We Hear Footsteps," Galway Kinnell
"The Promise," Sharon Olds
"Vacation Sex," Dorianne Laux
"Flirtation," Rita Dove
"Windchime," Tony Hoagland
"The Quiet World," Jeffrey McDaniel
Finally, read my article from "The Writing Cooperative" called, "How to Write a Non-Sappy Love Poem."
As before, try for more showing than telling. Show the particulars of a specific situation rather than writing on the broad theme itself. Like the poems we read from published poets in our books, be as specific as possible; try to illuminate the ordinary, describe it in a new and original way, try using metaphor and/or personification of inanimate objects in your description. As you're revising, use alliteration and judge which words you want to emphasize the most and the rhythm of the poem to determine where your line breaks should be (Don't always end the line where the punctuation is). Finally, look at your poem as a whole. Is there some universal, philosophical message you can get from this poem? Try to find a way of conveying that in the poem without stating it directly. The best way to do this is by letting an image or images represent the idea rather than stating the idea.
Things to include in every poem you write:
- showing more than telling
- conflict
- originality
- energy (of sound and sense)
- complete sentences (MOST of the time)
Things to avoid in every poem you write:
- cliches and word packages
- most adverbs, especially ones that end in "ly"
- abstractions like "joy," "happiness," "fear," "excitement," "anguish," etc.
- heavy-handed or melodramatic words like "heart," "eternal," "desire," "dearest," "yearn," "bliss," "embrace,"etc.,
- archaic words like "alas," "amiss," "upon," "farewell," "thee," "thou," "thy," "beloved," "thine," etc.
- perspective adjectives like "beautiful," "lovely," "ugly," "terrible," "fantastic," "surreal," "enchanting," etc.
- clunky words (basically, words with too many syllables)
Before you write, read back through the first poems in your reading. Pick the poems you like the best and try to pattern your poem after them but using your own subject and your own details.
Format:
- The poem should be typed using 12 or 11 pt. font size and Times New Roman or Arial font style.
- Your name and e-mail address should be in the top, right corner of the page(s)
- By the left margin, you should type the title of your poem, double space, and begin typing the text of your poem (which should be single spaced except for the breaks in stanzas).
- Unless you feel the poem needs to be double-spaced (e.g. you like the lighter feel on the page, it's a poem about isolation and having isolated lines seems appropriate, etc.) single space the poem. This is just to say that either is acceptable, but there should be a reason why you choose one over the other; you should do what is right for that particular work rather than just go along with the formatting that is already in your word processing program.
- Do not center the poem in the middle of the page or center each line of the poem. Again, the poem should begin at the left margin. If you would like to play with the spacing before and between lines and words, do so as suits the subject of your poem. Most serious contemporary poetry uses these devices very subtly, though, so keep that in mind. Look at the published poetry in your books as examples.
- Do not capitalize the first letter of every line. This is an antiquated convention to which most contemporary poetry does not adhere. Only capitalize the first letter of every sentence in the poem. If your word processing program automatically capitalizes the first letter of every line, turn auto-correct off or edit every line manually.
Examples of Love and Sex Poems
"Superglue," Dorianne Laux
"First Poem for You," Kim Addonizio
"Love is Not All," Edna St. Vincent Millay
"After Making Love We Hear Footsteps," Galway Kinnell
"The Promise," Sharon Olds
"Vacation Sex," Dorianne Laux
"Flirtation," Rita Dove
"Windchime," Tony Hoagland
"The Quiet World," Jeffrey McDaniel