Abstract
This paper discusses how each of the great current American poets has developed a distinct style that is reflected in their technical and poetic form. The paper briefly looks at and discusses the poetic and technical concerns of the following poets: Billy Collins, Donald Hall, Mary Oliver, Sharon Olds and Gary Soto. Included in the paper are quote examples from each of the poets' works to illustrate the differences in their style.

From the Paper
"Billy Collins, an American Poet Laureate, has a form that uses a distinctly sarcastic and humorous tone. This form is evident in his poem "The Art of Drowning", where he states about life flashing before one's eyes as they drown, "But if something does flash before your eyes as you go under, it will probably be a fish, a quick blur of curved silver darting away, having nothing to do with your life or your death" (Qtd. in Khoury). Mazin Khoury states, "Collins uses simplistic stanzas to try to create images that pull the reader away from real life and draw them into his poetic creation" (Khoury). This use of imagery and sarcasm distinguishes Collins' style."

Tags:stanza, tone, imagery

Abstract
This paper discusses two distinguished, but distinctive American poets - Phillis Wheatley and Walt Whitman. The paper compares and contrasts both of these poets respective works. It describes the various biographical factors that influenced their works, especially in terms of form, style, tone and content. It shows how they both write from different sources of personal inspiration, life experience and personal and artistic viewpoint.

From the Paper
" Whitman's poem "I Hear America Singing", on the other hand, is a straightforward celebration of America's diversity, or its "varied carols." Here, Whitman mentions American "singers" from all walks of life, each singing his or her varied songs, yet making harmony with the rest, "Singing with open mouths their strong melodious songs." The singers in Whitman's poem may be mechanics; carpenters; shoemakers; mothers; young girls; or others, but each sings "what belongs to him or her and to none else", separately yet in harmony. This poem is an ode to all common working Americans from all walks of life, and a celebration of the diverse individuals, skills, interests, and jobs that comprise America. As Whitman further suggests, there for songs for day, songs for night, and songs for all times in between, yet each American has a distinctive and important song to sing."

Tags:form, prose, tone

Abstract
This paper discusses the poetry of Emily Dickinson, Elizabeth Bishop, Marianne Moore, Sylvia Plath, Wallace Stevens, and T.S. Eliot, and explores the unique perspective women bring to poetry. Two representative works of each of these poets are analyzed, then the paper concludes with comments regarding which poet has influenced the author the most, and which has had the least impact.

Abstract
This paper begins with a look at the death by suicide of poet Sylvia Plath and her previous attempts at suicide throughout her life. The paper then looks at Plath's childhood, her relationship with her parents, her academic achievements, her marriage and her writings.

From the Paper
"One of America's best known twentieth century poets, Sylvia Plath (1932-1963) lived an artistically productive but tragic life, and committed suicide in 1963 while separated from her husband, the British poet Ted Hughes. Before her death at age 30, Sylvia Plath had suffered a bout of severe depression for several months, the likely result of her separation from Ted Hughes and her strong suspicion of his adultery with the English poet Assia Wevill ("Sylvia Plath"; "Sylvia Plath, 1932-1963" 2). Sylvia Plath had also made several previous suicide attempts, beginning at age 20, or perhaps even earlier, always precipitated by the spells of depression and debilitating self-doubt that dogged the poet from early adolescence on (Neurotic Poets, Sylvia Plath 6-7)."

Tags:the, bell, jar, lady, lazarus, ariel, daddy, death, deceased, father, nervous, breakdown

Abstract
This paper studies the American poet Walt Whitman (1819-1892), one of the first to embrace uniquely American themes, styles and literary concerns. This paper examines Whitman's unique poetic voice and personal philosophy of poetry in order to show how Whitman established the first uniquely American voice within poetry, one separate from the mostly pre-Victorian and Victorian-inspired poetic styles, forms and themes of earlier American poets. The paper also explicates two sets of Whitman's free-verse poems: (1) Three of his earliest poems from "Leaves of Grass" (1855) and (2) four of his later Civil War poems, written from 1861-1865. Together these poems demonstrate how far Whitman had moved beyond British influence, to become the great innovator of modern American poetry.

From the Paper
"Within America before the Civil War, American literature most often closely imitated writing styles, tones and even thematic concerns of both past and present British authors. Before the poetry of Whitman in particular, American poets like Bradstreet, Taylor, Bryant, Wheatley, and others adopted British verse forms and other poetic conventions, shaping them to their own artistic voices and concerns within the New World. In several of Puritan poet Anne Bradstreet's poems that were either to or about her husband or children for example, Bradstreet closely imitated the metaphysical style of John Donne. The expansive, flowing, and exuberant free-verse works of Walt Whitman, which did none of that, may therefore be considered the first truly American poetry, reflecting, as it does, influences, moods, concerns, ways of expression, and social and political movements within American itself, and nowhere else, with a new and unique style and forms."

Tags:civil, war, voice, style, prose, poem, leaves, of, grass, literature, victorian

Abstract
This paper discusses poems by Amiri Baraka, Robert Hayden, and Michael S. Harper, exploring how each poet uses imagery of the human (specifically African-American) body to convey meaning. Baraka sees the body as a potential instrument for social change, calling for Black poets to create work that will inspire real action. Hayden describes the horrific lynching of a Southern Black man, exposing the sinister motives of his white attackers. Finally, Harper crafts a tribute to Coltrane, detailing the legendary musician's struggle with pain, both physical and existential.

From the Paper
"I have been reading the work of Amiri Baraka for several years now, but have only recently become more intensely interested in the complex style of this challenging poet. Baraka probably has the most unique, original style of any modern poet I've read, a style which, for me, is generally most effective when he reads it aloud than when simply read from the printed page. Much of Baraka's poetry is heavily influenced by jazz music, so if follows that his poems are fantastic on a purely auditory level. As entertaining and stirring a performer as Baraka is, I would argue that his poems must not be looked at as performance pieces, but also as the work of an accomplished craftsman. To that end, I searched for examples of literary criticism and scholarship that focused on the text of Baraka's work, rather than his impassioned delivery of it."

Tags:baraka, black, blackness, coltrane, harper, hayden, jazz, jones, leroi, lynching, militant, revolution, slam, slavery, south, spoken

Abstract
This paper presents a reflection on African-American poetry. The writer of this paper uses two poems, "Colored Kids at Carnival" by Langston Hughes and "On Being Brought From Africa to America" by Phyllis Wheatley, to explore themes, structure and saturation of the work.

From the Paper
"Throughout history poets have used their works to reflect their emotions, ideas and souls. American history is still relatively young, yet filled with diversity when it comes to the path worn down by the evolvement of the nation. African American poets often capture the essence of the nation's birth and growth through the poems they write. African American poets can present a level of understanding into the human mind, heart and soul that non AA's cannot begin to describe, yet can appreciate and understand while reading the work."

Tags:hughes, wheatley, racism, segregation, carnival

Abstract
This paper serves as a thesis proposal for further study on the depictions of psychologically vulnerable and depressed women in American literature. First, the paper considers two female authors who fit this description, Charlotte Perkins Gilman and Sylvia Plath. The paper further notes the psychological issues these two authors faced, namely clinical depression. Then, the paper poses research questions on how to approach this topic. Additionally, the paper cites the authors' works and how they would fit into a larger thesis. The lives and works of both authors are summarized in light of this topic. The paper concludes by stating that while this project will focus primarily on female American poets and writers, it is anticipated that it will include some review and comparison of work by similarly afflicted male artists.

Outline:

Topic Introduction
Research Questions

From the Paper
"Modern psychologists understand the degree to which human behavior features a repetition compulsion (Branden, 1999 p 81-4, 103-5; Kasl, 2001 p249-50). In the realm of emotional abuse and figurative paralysis in adult relationships, individuals who have never come to terms with and resolved their issues from their formative experiences are likely to perpetuate them unconsciously. Specifically, they are prone to selecting mates and significant others who manifest similar behavior to that of their earliest abusers; they often trigger (or exacerbate) that behavior (also unconsciously) through their own actions; and they suffer from paralyzing depression and lack of a desire to make necessary changes (Branden, 1999 p112;Gerrig & Zimbardo, 2007 p 307-8; Kasl, 2001 p270). This research project will include a retrospective analysis of these elements in the lives of Sylvia Plath, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, and other female poets and writers of this genre in those respects."

Tags:Sylvia Plath, depression, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, stigma

Abstract
Langston Hughes is perhaps one of the most significant African-American writers of his time because his poetry and prose spoke to a wide audience. It explains that another aspect of Hughes's popularity was his ability to focus on black music, such as jazz and the blues; his racial protest; and poems of that affirmed the African-American experience. It shows how, through these three core ideas, Hughes is able to successfully relate the positive and negative aspects of his experience. Hughes employs the techniques of humor, imagery, and rhythm to emphasize his points, and, as a result, proves himself to be a master at identifying with his African-American heritage.

From the Paper
"Paul Lauter states that Langston Hughes was a "bright young star of the Negro Renaissance" (Lauter 1487). In Lauter's opinion, Hughes' greatest discovery was Harlem. This experience allowed him to become enmeshed in the "language, music, and feeling of the common people of Harlem. Proud of his folk heritage, Hughes made the spirituals, blues, and jazz the bases of the poetic expression. Because he was a victim of segregation and prejudice, he was "steadfast in his devotion to human rights" (1487). As a result of his experiences, Hughes versatility allowed him to write meaningful poetry, fiction, and essays."

Tags:heritage, black