Reviewed by: Teaching Modern Latin American Poetries ed. by Jill S. Kuhnheim and Melanie Nicholson Beth Green-Nagle Kuhnheim, Jill S., and Melanie Nicholson, editors. Teaching Modern Latin American Poetries. MLA, 2019. Pp. 343. ISBN 978-1-60329-409-6. Teaching Modern Latin American Poetries edited by Jill S. Kuhnheim and Melanie Nicholson is a worthy addition to the Modern Languages Association’s Options for Teaching series. This collection of twenty-two essays by experienced authors was written with veteran and new college faculty in mind. Topically, it focusses on Latin American poetry from the second half of the twentieth century and early twenty-first century. It provides a connection to the previous literary traditions and accepts the challenge of creating interest in a genre which can be difficult. In the “Introduction: Teaching the Language of Poetry,” Jill S. Kuhnheim writes: “In response to the notion that poetry is too literary, too difficult, or too unfamiliar to teach in a variety of contexts, this book offers college-level instructors strategies and new approaches to the genre that will reinvigorate and expand their teaching repertoires” (1). This collection is an excellent resource for faculty who want to strengthen their knowledge of contemporary Latin American poetry, increase familiarity with Brazilian and indigenous authors, integrate less canonical writers into courses, and revitalize their pedagogy with new ideas and models to effectively engage students with poetry. This collection is not a handbook for poetry teaching, and the essays do not replicate familiar lists of canonical texts. They do consider works and authors from many of Latin American countries, including Brazil, but this is not exhaustive. Instead, the collection offers ways to integrate new texts, poetic forms, and authors into the courses most taught at the undergraduate level: surveys of literature, culture courses, special topics courses, and composition courses. It also suggests some innovative ideas such as a creative writing course in the target language or a translation workshop with indigenous poetry. Although focused on a college-level audience, some ideas could be adapted for teaching advanced high school and graduate-level courses, and the length of the essays, averaging 14–15 pages, make them potential resources for student readings. The collection is divided in three sections. Part 1, entitled “Poetic Literacy and Latin American Canon” presents a foundation of knowledge for poetic literacy and teaching canonical works. Melanie Nicholson provides an overview of Latin American poetic history with a strong focus on the twentieth century, especially modernismo, postmodernismo, the vanguardia, post-avant-garde, and contemporary poetry up to the 1980s. She provides a brief overview of Brazilian poetry, particularly 20th century Brazilian modernismo. Johnathan Mayhew proposes teaching students to “examine poems in the context of their concrete history and their implicit theories of poetic language and genre” as we shed the formalist remnants of New Criticism from our theory and praxis (33). Justin Read, Jacobo Sefamí, and Tamara R. William’s essays offer strategies for teaching difficult poetic texts like the silva, the avant-garde and neobaroque, and the long poem. Melanie Nicholson presents the course design of “A Course Model for the Liberal Arts Curriculum” for undergraduate students using Latin American poetry in translation. In “Part II: Orality, Multimedia, and Comparative Arts,” the essays present a welcomed variety in topics and pedagogical models. Gwen Kirkpatrick challenges teachers to help [End Page 303] students reconnect poetry with oral and visual forms. Eduardo Ledesma explores how to teach experimental poetry from the 1920s Avant-Garde, 1960s Concrete poetry, and the digital poetry of the 2000s. Bruce Dean Willis advocates for studying contemporary Mexican lyric poetry through music to create cultural understanding and increase student interest. Teresa Longo presents an innovative curriculum integrating the study of poetry, ethics, and aesthetics. Charles A. Perrone provides an overview of the phases of twentieth century Brazilian poetry highlighting important movements and poets. Jill Kuhnheim describes her performative technique of approaching poetry through oral readings by students and poets. “Part III: Poetic Contexts and the Idea of Latin America,” provides more models for teaching poetic works from outside the canon. Fernando J. Rosenberg challenges us to explore the intersections between poetry and human rights. Juan G. Ramos gives a descriptive...
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Feb 1, 2021
Antonella Zizza + 5
Open Access
