Trifles & Kisses: Transreading Welsh Poetry
Croeso! Welcoming the new Welsh poetic; beyond the classics.
What happens when roughhouse in a language’s china cabinet? Who gets hurt, what new things emerge? Can rigidity allow greater freedom? And how do we write to, or away from the Anglo-centric gaze?
These are questions to consider while reading the works of poets such as Iestyn Tyne (1997 -), Menna Elfyn (1951 – ), Euros Bowen (1904 – 1988), Gwyneth Lewis (1959 – ), Delyth George (1960 – 2019) and Gerallt Lloyd Owen (1944 – 2014). Every fortnight we will read a pair of poems, each of which will offer contrasting approaches to a form, or an image, or a theme, which you will then have a chance to explore in your work.
This course is suitable for those with no prior knowledge of Welsh poetry, as well as those with some experience. All the poems that we read will be original Welsh poems, with transliterations or translations provided. Welsh language poetry has almost 15 centuries of history, and we will be reading promiscuously from different eras, although most poems will be by contemporary authors.
We will (respectfully) leave Dylan Thomas and R.S. Thomas by the door, exploring the poetics of writers whose work, while mostly available in translation, is less known outside of the Welsh speaking world. Some, like Iestyn Tyne, who are only now being published in English translation; others such as Gwyneth Lewis and Menna Elfyn are well established and widely translated outside of Wales. So, while the course is not a substitute for an introduction to Welsh poetry, hopefully it will whet your appetite to learn more about cynghanedd, and writing in minoritised languages.
5 fortnightly sessions over 10 weeks. No live chats. Suitable for UK & 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: @catrinellis
About Grug Muse 
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Grug Muse is a poet and essayist from Dyffryn Nantlle. Her latest collection of poetry – merch y llyn – was published by Cyhoeddiadau’r Stamp in 2021 and won the Wales Book of the Year award in the Poetry category in 2022. Her essays have been published in magazines including Planet and O’r Pedwar Gwynt. She is an editor for Cyhoeddiadau’r Stamp and co-edits Ffosfforws, a Welsh language poetry journal. She also co-edited the essay collection Welsh (plural) (Repeater, 2022). She is part of Literature Wales’ ‘Sgwennu’n Well’ cohort 2023–24, developing her facilitation practice with regards to health and wellbeing.
I am glad there is a place offering online poetry courses where one interacts with the tutor and other students. Poetry courses can be fun and make one think about things in a different way.
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