LIT 3383-0003 -Spring 2026 - Laganas

"“The world begins at a kitchen table. No matter what, we must eat to live.” ~Joy Harjo Our 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, cultural, political, and aesthetic perspectives. Together, these women exemplify how they employ food as a metaphor to explore themes such as memory, family, cultural identity, place, love, desire, oppression, sexuality, death, and celebration. Specifically, we will feast on a buffet of works by Emily Dickinson, Sylvia Plath, Lucille Clifton, Naomi Shihab Nye, Patricia Smith, Joy Harjo, Rita Dove, Audre Lorde, Joyce Carol Oats, Sharon Olds, Sandra Cisneros, Tracy K. Smith, Bernadette Mayer, and many more. Our 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."