American Comic Poetry: History, Techniques and Modern Masters

by Jeff Morgan

Overview

Comic poetry is serious stuff, combining incongruity, satire and psychological effects to provide us a brief victory over reason--which could help us save ourselves, if not the world. This book champions the literary movement of comic poetry in the U.S., providing an historical context and exploring the work of such writers as Denise Duhamel, Campbell McGrath, Billy Collins, Thomas Lux and Tony Hoagland. Their techniques reveal how they make us laugh while addressing important social concerns.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781476623467
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Incorporated Publishers
Publication date:	10/29/2015
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	196
File size:	4 MB
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Jeff Morgan is a professor of English at Lynn University in Boca Raton, Florida, and the author of four books, numerous essays and poems. He lives in Boynton Beach, Florida.
Jeff Morgan is a professor of English at Lynn University in Boca Raton, Florida, and the author of four books, numerous essays and poems. He lives in Boynton Beach, Florida.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments
Foreword: The Best of All Medicines by Michael Hettich
Preface
Introduction
The Intellectual Approach
The Functional Approach
The Psychological Approach
1. A Brief History of American Comic Literature
Colonial and ­Pre-Colonial American Comic Literature
The Revolting Period
Early ­Post-Colonial Era
James Russell Lowell
The Flowering of the Comic Voice
Early ­Twentieth Century
Dorothy Parker
Ogden Nash
Late Twentieth Century
2. The Long and Short of It
Denise Duhamel, Comic Prose Poetry and the ­Three-Pronged Approach
Campbell McGrath’s “Ode to Bureacrats” and the ­Three-Pronged Approach
3. Billy Collins and the Intellectual Approach
4. Thomas Lux and the Functional Approach
5. Tony Hoagland and the Psychological Approach
Conclusion
Bibliography
Index

Editorial Reviews

Morgan’s witty prose explores the origins of comic poetry in America. [It]intersperses history with scholarship and provides a detailed account of American comic poetry.... Morgan produces a very well-crafted and approachable analysis of American comic poetry for both comic enthusiasts and beginners”—Journal of the American Studies Association of Texas (JASAT); “Morgan successfully demonstrates how popular humor is rooted in American poetic tradition in an accessible way, proving accessibility is essential to comedy as well as any lasting art.”—Brad Johnson, The Happiness Theory; “This analysis is also historical beginning with the early Americans like Franklin, Freneau and Barlow. Using his own bits of humor, he finds in each comedy that others might overlook.”—Mike Reed, University of Texas Rio Grand Valley; “Morgan strikes an ideal balance between humorous appreciation and poetic analysis. His insights are revealing and fresh. What a pleasure to encounter these poets through Morgan’s perspective!” —Diane Allerdyce, Whatever It Is I Was Giving Up and House of Aching Beauty.

From the Publisher