Overview of Literature: A Global Perspective

Agenda Overview

• Housekeeping Reminders
• Final Paper Overview: See Brightspace for details
• Visual Poetry: Discussion on what it is and strategies for reading it
• Close Reading Works:
  • M. Travis Lane’s “The Gravel Pit”
  • bpnichol, “blues”
  • Shane Rhodes, two poems

Final Exam Details

• Date: April 12, 2024
• Time: 3:30 PM
• Length: 3 hours
• Location: Dalplex
• Exam Schedule: Dalhousie Exam Schedule

Final Paper Preparation

• Tutorial Expectations:
  • Bring an idea for your final paper to the tutorial
  • Choose one question from the guidelines and a text for analysis
  • Formulate an argument and identify textual elements and evidence
• Activity Focus: Thesis and essay development

Persepolis Reading Assignment

• Book: Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood and The Story of a Return
• Reading Assignment: Pages 3-153 for next lecture
• Author: Marjane Satrapi

Defining Imagery

• Imagery: A word or series of words that evokes sensory experience
• Seven Senses:
  • Visual (sight)
  • Auditory (sound)
  • Olfactory (smell)
  • Gustatory (taste)
  • Tactile (touch)
  • Organic (internal sensation)
  • Kinaesthetic (movement/tension)

Physical Imagery

• Definition: Real, physical visual images; depicted as pictures, drawings, etc.
• Includes:
  • Textual imagery in various media (e.g., picture books, comics)
  • Layout of text itself achieving an imagistic quality
  • Traditionally analog, now often digital

Experimental Writing

• Concept: Challenges expectations in literature by disrupting conventions
• Focus: Blurring artistic boundaries, unconventional language use, resisting realism
• Subcategories: Includes erasures, visual poetry, video poetry, conceptual poetry

Defining Visual Poetry

• Description: Poetry rendered graphically, often not following traditional grammar
• Mediums: Typography, color, shapes, and other visual elements convey meaning
• Core Idea: Words and letters perceived as physical materials rather than just carriers of thought

Reading Visual Poetry

1. Impact of title on understanding
2. Representation of language and imagery
3. Form and content relationship
4. Influence of layout, font, and other attributes on meaning
5. Synergies and discrepancies in exploring subjects

M. Travis Lane: “The Gravel Pit”

• Biography: Born 1934, lives in Fredericton, author of over 15 books
• Themes: Personal commitment to poetry over academia

bpNichol and Minimalist Visual Poetry

• Biography: Canadian sound poet and editor
• Poem: “blues” explores the word "love" multidirectionally
• Reading Complexity: Presents alternate meanings (e.g., "evol" for evil)

Shane Rhodes and Settler-Indigenous Relations

• Focus: Explores settler-colonialism impacts through poetry
• Reciprocal Understanding: Discrepancies in treaty interpretations highlighted
• Published Works: Embraces settler-Indigenous interactions in his 2013 collection

Treaties and Their Cultural Significance

• Treaty Two: Engagement with the document itself in a poem format
• Treaty Eight: Visual arrangement relating to resource extraction and its consequences

Final Notes

• Next Steps: Complete reading of Persepolis for the upcoming lecture