Most artists agree that art matters but often disagree about how and why it matters. Does art change society by changing consciousness? And if so, how does that happen? Does art and poetry create effective opposition by stating political positions? By challenging the structures of language? By exploding conventional ideas about reality and the self? In this course we'll explore how different poets and poetry communities (avant gardes) have imagined what socio-political and artistic resistance is and how (whether) it works. We'll look at Surrealist Poetry, Black Arts Poetry, Beat Poetry, Feminist Poetry, and Language Poetry and explore the work of poets like Amiri Baraka, Wanda Coleman, Allen Ginsberg, Lyn Hejinian, Bob Kaufman, Adrienne Rich, and Sonia Sanchez who challenge and transform conventional ideas about identity, capitalism, art, and reality.

Visit Workday to view this information.