If you haven’t done so yet, please post a response to a poem from the Romantic Tradition. See full assignment details in my previous post.

By Tuesday, Oct 12, please complete the following viewings and readings, which show the influence of Persian poet Rumi on Brooklyn-based poet and musician: Arooj Aftab.

View: Brooklyn Based Pakistani Poet

Read: Biography and Poem by Rumi

“Last Night” by Rumi

Last night
I begged the Wise One to tell me
the secret of the world.
Gently, gently he whispered,
“Be quiet,
the secret cannot be spoken,
it is wrapped in silence”.

Whirling Dervishes of Damascus

Watch: “Last Night My Beloved”

 “Beauty is truth–truth beauty–that is all ye know on earth and all ye need to know.” From “Ode to a Grecian Urn” by John Keats.

For next week, I ask that you review the section on The Romantic Poets. Choose one poem from this section and discuss the main idea of the poem, your favorite line, and a particularly good use of figurative language or other poetic device. Go to the bottom of this site, and search from either “British Romantic Poets” or “Seminal Poems.” Choose one poem to discuss. Be sure to also review the biography of your poet.

For a review of poetic devices see Elements of Poetry .

Please post your comment by pressing “comments” (above), putting your comment in the reply box, and “posting.”

View: Brooklyn Based Pakistani Poet: Arooj Aftab

Read: Biography and Poem by Rumi

Watch: “Last Night My Beloved”

Please also read about America’s first published poet: Phyllis Wheatley