The Poetry of Mary Oliver

We will begin this course with an introduction to Mary Oliver, an American poet first published in 1963, who went on to win both a Pulitzer Prize in Poetry (1984) and a National Book Award (1992).  Our first class will give us the opportunity to trace her clear and poignant observances of the natural world in some of her well-known nature poems.  In our second class, we will explore her sources of inspiration while reading several of her lesser known poems on a variety of subjects, taking the time to find in her words our own personal inspiration.  In our final class, we will take a make-believe walk in and around Provincetown, the poet’s home for fifty years and the place she called heaven.