SPECIALIZATION: Secondary, English Language and Literature

COURSE: Poetry of the Caribbean

COURSE CODE: LT201SEB
PROGRAMME: Secondary
SEMESTER: 1
YEAR: 2
PREREQUISITE: Introduction to Poetry
CREDITS: 3
DURATION: 45 hours

RATIONALE

Poetry of the Caribbean is designed to provide student-teachers with an understanding of

the development of poetry in the region and the range of issues associated with its
history. The course is intended to expose students to the works of various poets ranging
from the famous to the lesser known. Emphasis will be placed on the contributions of
females poets from the Spanish and or French Caribbean. The course will allow for
student to be exposed to some of the major socio-economic and environmental issues that
affect many areas of Caribbean life. The course is also intended to further students’
interest in and enjoyment of poetry.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of the course students should be able to:

 Trace the development of poetry in the Caribbean
 Identify a range of themes associated with the Caribbean history as represented in
its poetry
 identify the literary works of a range of Caribbean poets
 identify works of poets from the Spanish or French Caribbean
 distinguish between the variety of poetic forms
 critically discuss the values that will engender sustainable development in
Caribbean life as identified in Caribbean
 identify common themes represented in Caribbean poetry
 discuss the contribution of women writers in the Caribbean
 discuss the Caribbean voices from the perspective of the “outside looking in”

UNIT 1: DEFINITIONS (4 HOURS)

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Learning Outcomes
At the end of this unit student should be able to:
 identify distinctive features of Caribbean poetry
 develop through research a definition of Caribbean poetry
 Interpret the works of critics in arriving at a definition

CONTENT
Definitions of Caribbean poetry
Distinctive features of Caribbean poetry
Interrogating views of critics, theorists, poets etc

UNIT 2: HISTORICAL OVERVIEW (6 HOURS)

Learning Outcomes
At the end of this unit student should be able to:
 analyse the phases of Caribbean poetry and the poets who contribute to each
 discuss the works of early Caribbean poets

CONTENT
Distinct phases/features of Caribbean poetry: pre 19th century; 19th century; early – mid
20th century;
The poetry of Claude McKay and Una Marson – a general overview

UNIT 3: SUGGESTED COMMON THEMES (10 HOURS)

Learning Outcomes:
At the end of this unit student should be able to:
 identify and discuss, from the poems under discussion, values (related to equity,
human rights, peace, citizenship etc) that produce a sustainable society
 identify and analyse/compare common themes in Caribbean poetry.
 examine the works of poets under study in relation to various literary
perspectives/theories in relation.

CONTENT

Exploration of at least three the following themes:

 Slavery, colonialism and power relationships
 Voicelessness and marginalization
 Colonization and oppression (various types of oppression)
 Caribbean folk tradition
 Ambiguity and ambivalence
 Nation language
 Gender
 Identity

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  Race, colour, class
 Resistance and rebellion
 Exile and displacement/ migration
 Relations with the empire
 Fragmentation
 Coping strategies/survival
 Oral traditions
 Music and religion
 Place – the environment and people

UNIT 4: A LOOK AT THE CANON (16 HOURS)

Learning Outcomes:
At the end of this unit student should be able to:
 Identify and analyse at least two poets and their contributions from the Caribbean
canon.
 Identify their preoccupations and locate them in the Caribbean literature
landscape

CONTENT
Close study of one of the following:
 Kamau Brathwaite
 Derek Walcott
 Lorna Goodison
 Olive Senior
 Mervyn Morris
 Edward Baugh
 Dennis Scott
 Louise Bennett

(Literary theories: Students will be sensitized to some of these theories that may be
applied in analysing the poems under study e.g. Postcolonial, Reader Response, New
Criticism, Marxist, Feminist)

[Please note that the themes in Unit 4 may be applied to the poets being studied in Units 4
and 5]

UNIT 5: OTHER VOICES

Time (9 HOURS)
Learning Outcomes:
At the end of this unit student should be able to:
 analyse the works of a poet from the Spanish or French Caribbean
 identify the works of other writers/poets with Caribbean origins, but who are not
now living in the Caribbean.
 appraise the contributions of women to the development of Caribbean poetry

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  apply relevant literary theories to derive meaning from poems

CONTENT

(Copies of selected poems to be given to students)

 Selections from the non-Anglophone Caribbean e.g. the works of either Nicolas
Guillen or Aime Cesaire.
 The contributions of women to the development of Caribbean poetry.
 Caribbean voices: from the outside looking in - Dionne Brand, David Dabydeen,
Fred D’Aguiar, Grace Nichols and others that are chosen by the lecturer.

Exploration of at least three of the following areas in the selected poems given to
students:
 diaspora
 migration
 gender
 women writers
 memories
 language
 history
 non-Anglophone Caribbean
 Hispanic and Francophone culture
 Relations with the empire

ASSESSMENT
The course will be assessed as follows:

Course Work 60% (3 pieces)

1. One thematic essay assignment (20%)
2. One one-hour in-course poetry test (20%)
3. Mini project on two of the poets (not done in class) in the canon (group) (20%)

Examination 40%
One 2-hour written examination

Suggested Activities

 Group presentations
 Research
 Discussions
 Poetry readings

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  Select poem from any period. Identify ways in which this poem is characteristic
of this period. Find another poem from another period/geographic location, with
similar theme. Compare the treatment of this theme.
 Presentations which critically examine themes emerging from poetry (poems
should be examined to determine their particular function in the Caribbean reality.
 Guide students for preparing a critical analysis.
 Respond to a critical analysis of poems and compare and contrast theirs and
critics’ views.

References (These are some suggestions and not exhaustive)

Wynter, Sylvia. The Necessary Background. Critics on Caribbean Literature. Ed.

Edward Baugh. London : George Allen and Unwin Ltd., 1978.
Baugh, Edward. It Was The Singing. Sandberry Press.
Brand, Dionne. No Language is Neutral. McClelland & Stewart.
Brathwaite, Kamau Edward. The Arrivants. Oxford Univ. Press.
Breiner, Laurence. An Introduction to West Indian Poetry. Cambridge University
Press.
Brown, Stewart, Ed. Caribbean Poetry Now. Edward Arnold.
Brown, Stewart and Ian McDonald. The Heinemann Book of Caribbean Poetry.
Heinemann.
Goodison, Lorna. Selected Poems. University of Michigan Press.
Hamner, Robert. Ed. Critical Perspectives on Derek Walcott. Three Continents Press.
Nichols, Grace. I is a Long Memoried Woman. The Red Sea Press.
Morris, Mervyn. Examination Centre.
Morris , Mervyn. Making West Indian Literature. Kingston: Ian Randle Publishers,
2005.
Ramchand, Kenneth and Gray, Cecil. West Indian Poetry. Longman.
Senior, Olive. Gardening in the Tropics. McClelland & Stewart.

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