Zephyr Poetry Society (Winter 2024)

The Zephyr Poetry Society is a venue for those interested in exploring and connecting themselves more closely with the rich tradition of English poetry.

At the core of each meeting will be the collective reading and discussion of individual poems. Through these discussions, we will hone our analytical skills, isolating the various aesthetically relevant features of the poem (meter, imagery, content, etc.) and asking how these contribute to its overall effect. Analysis, however, will always be subordinated to our primary aim: a richer and more articulate aesthetic experience of the poem as a work of art.

Our focus will be on poems with classical status in the English poetic tradition—though we will often deviate from this rule where necessary for illustrative purposes and to represent the tradition’s breadth.

Dinner will be provided for participants at each session.

Schedule

January 9th, 6:00pm

Topic: Tennyson, In Memoriam A. H. H. (selections)

January 16th, 6:00pm

Topic: Sidney, Astrophil and Stella (selections)

January 23rd, 6:00pm

Topic: Sidney, Astrophil and Stella (selections)

January 30th, 6:00pm

Topic: English quantitative meter

Eligibility

All Stanford affiliates are encouraged to register.