Modern Poems - the Sonnet

How have these two poets adapted the sonnet form to produce their modern sonnet forms?

Emily Dickinson is a favourite of many what is it about her poetry that attracts you?

How does she use the following: rhyme (with particular emphasis on slant rhyme, metre, hiatus and line length?

Seamus Heaney is even more modern - in what what is his technique different from that of Dickinson?

These questions will be answered by student through the medium of their own work, beginning by writing pastiches of their poetry and proceeding to own versions that adopt some of their principals but are not pastiches of any one poem.

This is a rough plan and progress will depend on results.

Exact dates will depend on availability but will be based on the idea of two sessions per week, probably Wednesdays and Saturdays, time of day will depend on time zones of individuals. A pre course meeting will be held to decide on the calendar on Wednesday April 28 at 5.00pm EST.

Subject to convenience overall the class proper should commence on Saturday 1st May at 12.00 noon EST


Instructor: James Bartlett

About The Instructor: Jim Bartlett is an ex-Royal Marine Officer, and retired teacher, with a good honours degree in Education, and English and Drama, from London University. He has been a member of a local poetry group in South Wales where he currently lives alone in a redundant farm house.

Jim started writing while serving with 45 Commando, Royal Marines in Aden in the mid 1960s. At that time he was writing mainly song lyrics but later moved on to poetry after studying it on his degree course, which he undertook as a mature student between 1972 and 1976.

He has been published in poetry magazines and newspapers from time to time. In 2005 he produced a CD of self-penned songs under the title of "Tomorrow Never Comes", and published a poetry collection of thirty-six poems in 2012 entitled, "Triple Dozen" prior to joining FanStory in March 2015. His songs and poems have won several competitions.

Jim has also lectured on English Folk Lore and Song for the WEA in SE London in the late 1970s. He was urged to enrol as an instructor on FanStory by many who found his reviews of their poetry particularly helpful.