Seminar: Reading the Wacky World of William Blake with S. Yarberry
William Blake is best known for his short poems, such as “The Lamb” and “The Tyger.” These brilliant—and often strange—lyrics, however, make up a very early and very small portion of his wacky world of writing. This reading seminar will introduce you to the visionary poetry of Blake: prophecies, illuminated books, and
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inscrutable howlings abound. Among other flashes and flares of his work, together we will traverse through The Marriage of Heaven and Hell and America a Prophecy, as well as take a crack at his acclaimed (and deliciously difficult) Milton: A Poem. In order to assist and expand Blake’s own poetry, we will also look to an eclectic set of poets who have engaged with Blake and/or his writings: Inger Christensen to Lucille Clifton to Diane di Prima. Through this course, we will come to find that Blake is quite funny, radically political, incredibly imaginative, and, indeed, perfectly odd. Remote 7-Week Seminar | 7 Wednesdays | December 2 January 13 | 7-8:30pm ET This remote class will take place on Zoom. The Zoom link will be emailed to you by a staff member in the week leading up to the class start date. All are welcome, space is limited. A limited number of need-based scholarships are available. Please email support@poetshouse.org with any questions. By attending or participating in this program, you agree to abide by our Community Agreement. About the Educator: S. Yarberry (he/they) is a poet and scholar of William Blake. They are the author of A Boy in the City (Deep Vellum, 2022) and the forthcoming collections The Robert Poems (Deep Vellum, 2026) and Urgent, Stars (Deep Vellum, 2028). Their writing on Blake can be found in Studies in Romanticism and European Romantic Review. S. is currently based in Chicago, where they edit Tyger Quarterly, run The PO Box Poetry Series, and serve as a Visiting Assistant Professor in English at Northwestern University.