LIT 3383 - Fall 2025 - Laganas

“The world begins at a kitchen table. No matter what, we must eat to live.” ~Joy Harjo

This course explores the rich tradition of female poets who address food in their writing. Rather than distinguish the poets by epochs or forms, they represent a smorgasbord of social, political, cultural, psychological, and aesthetic perspectives. Together, these women exemplify how they employ food as a metaphor to explore themes such as: memory, place, family, immigration, trauma, oppression, love, and sexuality. Specifically, we will feast on a buffet of works by Emily Dickinson, Sylvia Plath, Audre Lorde, Lucille Clifton, Naomi Shihab Nye, Patricia Smith, Joy Harjo, Joyce Carol Oats, Rita Dove, Sharon Olds, Sandra Cisneros, Tracy K. Smith, and more. This course will examine food as a poetic device to write about the archetypal, sensuous, and physical nature of a woman’s appetite. Pull up a chair to the table as we evaluate how meals are similar to poetry in that both are shared experiences that bring people together.