Course Examines How Storytelling Can Impact Perceptions of Climate Change

January 30, 2020
Kate Thorpe (left), a doctoral candidate in English, and William Gleason, the Hughes-Rogers Professor of English and American Studies co-teach “Literature and Environment,” which considers how storytelling illuminates environmental issue. Photo: Denise Applewhite

On a Saturday afternoon in December, as part of the Being Human Festival 2019, William Gleason (English; American Studies) and doctoral candidate Kate Thorpe (English) held A Reading and Creative Writing Colloquium in Greenway Meadows Park, Princeton, sharing insights from their undergraduate seminar “Literature and Environment” with members of the community. Participants read a poem, analyzing not only how the writer imagines relationships between humans and the natural world, but also the formal strategies used by the poet. Next, participant walked along the Scott and Hella McVay Poetry Trail, where they created their own poems, exploring how literature can nourish healthier relationships with the natural world.

Gleason and Thorpe’s course is featured on the University homepage. Read the full story here.

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