‘Today I will praise’: A Masterclass of Radical Hope & Gratitude
Make space for gratitude and hope in these trying times as we explore poetry’s power for appreciation.
‘Today I will praise’ is the opening line from the poem, ‘Praise’ by Angelo Geter. Praise poetry is a tradition in many cultures, popular in Medieval and Renaissance literature, and still a widely used poetic form in parts of Africa in particular.
In these poems, the poet expresses gratitude for landscape, people, animals, gods, and often tries to capture the essence of what it is to be praised. In these trying times, making space for gratitude and hope can be daunting and even feel somewhat misguided. However, through the praise poem, in all traditions, we learn how powerful it can be to create a receptacle for appreciation in the poem. After all, truly paying attention to what is around us is the greatest act of love.
Let us write together poems in praise of the difficult and frustrating, of the dull and the dutiful, in all their uncomfortable glory, transforming our perspective and the attitude of those who encounter our words.
Masterclasses are an expanded version of our International Courses, with a much deeper consideration of technical craft and critical theory. These 12-week courses (maximum 10 places) are for advanced students only, and fluency with poetic language and ideas will be assumed. There are no live chats and they are suitable for UK and International students.
To apply for a concessionary rate, please send relevant documentation showing your eligibility for one of our concessions to [email protected] Conditions of eligibility are detailed here. If you have any questions or wish to be added to the waiting list of a sold-out course, please email [email protected]. For more information visit our Online Courses page.
Image credit: Nicholas Bartos
About Victoria Kennefick 
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Victoria Kennefick‘s debut poetry collection, Eat or We Both Starve (Carcanet, 2021), won the Seamus Heaney First Collection Poetry Prize 2022 and the Dalkey Book Festival Emerging Writer of the Year Award 2022. It was shortlisted for the T.S. Eliot Prize, the Costa Poetry Book Award, Derek Walcott Prize for Poetry and the Butler Literary Prize. It was a book of the year in The Guardian, The Irish Times, The Telegraph, The Sunday Independent and The White Review. Victoria is UCD/Arts Council of Ireland Writer-in-Residence 2023 and Poet-in-Residence at the Yeats Society Sligo.
'The Poetry School is an inspiring community for developing one's poetry and connecting with like minded people. It changed my life - I wouldn't be without it.'
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