When we read poetry for pleasure, we bring to the experience our own tastes, distastes and affinities. We are informed by our reading history and contemporary trends. When we read poetry for the purpose of review or critique, these elements do not disappear, but the task requires us to approach the poem with a critical lens too. In this workshop we will explore what this critical lens looks like, and how you can develop such a lens and bring it into your reading.
This practical two-hour workshop (back by popular demand) teaches the basic skills of reviewing and critiquing poetry. This will combine an overview of principles and approaches to close readings of a poem, and a guided process for converting these close readings into a strong, well-constructed argument.
By the end of this workshop you will have:
developed the skills and confidence to read a poem critically and develop an argument in review form
What you need to participate:
Zoom and a reliable Internet connection
This workshop is best suited to:
poets of all experience levels
beginner and intermediate poetry reviewers and editors
Ticketing:
This workshop will run twice, so please choose the date that suits you.
Tickets are priced on a sliding scale, from concession ($30) to full ($40) to feelin’ flush ($50, i.e. subsidise a concession ticket by choosing to pay a li’l extra).
One free ticket is reserved for a person experiencing financial hardship — please get in touch.
Upon booking, you will receive email confirmation and, closer to the workshop, further instructions and a Zoom link.
About the facilitators:
Elena Gomez is a poet and editor living in Melbourne. She is the author of Admit the Joyous Passion of Revolt, Body of Work and a number of chapbooks and pamphlets, including the recently published Crushed Silk. She is currently Reviews Editor for Cordite.
Rory Dufficy is a writer, researcher and critic. He is currently working on a manuscript entitled An Epoch of Possibility: The Avant-Garde and the Twentieth Century. He researches the literatures of political transition, rupture and stasis.