Mohr Visiting Poets

Each year, the Creative Writing Program welcomes a distinguished poet to teach a Stanford writing seminar to undergraduates. These unique classes are kept small--limited to no more than 15 students--and they focus on a subject of the poet's expertise and choosing. These seminars are made possible with the generous support of Lawrence and Nancy Mohr.

The poet also holds a public reading and colloquium. For information about events with previous Mohr Visiting Poets, refer to our Past Events page.

English 192V The Occasions of Poetry

• Offered: Spring 2023

• Instructor: Professor Collier

• Satisfies the Intermediate/Advanced Poetry requirement

• Enrollment granted via application. To be considered for enrollment, please submit the Spring 2023 application.

Riddles, prayers, curses, songs, incantation, invective, praise, personal and historical memory, art, cultural identity, love and death, in fact a lot of love and death, are just a few of the occasions of poetry we will consider in this course. I hope by doing so we come to see that the full range of human experience is the only thing that limits poetry’s occasions. We will read intensively in modern and contemporary poetry as well as practice the craft of writing poems. We will discuss what we read and write from a poet’s point of view, rather than a scholar’s, paying particular attention to structural and formal elements. We will also take up general aesthetic questions regarding the art of poetry by reading essays written by poets about the practice of their craft. The format of the class will blend workshops with discussions. Ultimately, I hope we see that one of the most useful and important occasions that poetry provides is the creation of a small, passionate group dedicated to supporting and encouraging each other as we learn our craft as poets.