Description
Poems of resolve: spoken language that steadies the mind and calls something into focus. As a new year approaches, we often talk about resolutions as goals for self-improvement. Poems can enact another meaning of resolve: not striving, but arriving. A shift in understanding. Clarity that comes from attentive noticing. In this class, we’ll read poems that begin in unease or openness and move toward a new composure or recognition. Our readings may include work by Rainer Maria Rilke, Sylvia Plath, Maggie Smith, and Robert Hass, among others. We’ll look at how sound, syntax, pacing, and image help create this sense of resolve. Brief, guided writing prompts will help us explore our understanding of resolve. Participants are invited to suggest poems, whether beloved, mysterious, or newly discovered. No prior poetry experience required. Please bring a notebook and a pen.
Barbara Thimm is a writer, translator, and educator. Her translations of selected poems by Timothy Donnelly and Mary Jo Bang were published by luxbooks in Germany. “A Discovery Behind the House,” the translation of a short story by Ror Wolf, appeared in Asymptote. She lives in Cambridge with her husband and two sons.
