ENG 3310
Elements of Prosody
Mischa Willett
MW 2:30–3:50 p.m.
These are the bones of what we believe about poetry. You know how some poems give people chills? How do they do that? Why do certain songs, even songs without words, make people cry? The fact is that we’re built—hardwired—with certain emotional connections to rhythm: we feel frightened, or on edge, or excited not always because of what’s being said but because of the tune beneath it and how that maps onto the human heartbeat or the length of a breath. An aspiring writer, or an astute reader, might want to know how to do tricks like that. Be prepared for lots of messing around in the workshop of words.