Come and explore the poetry of consolation, acceptance, grief and commemoration. We shall be reading and discussing some of the greatest elegies ever written and exploring how mourning in poetry can be a sensitive process of expressing recognition and remembrance, attachment and loss. 

The course centres its focus on the loved ones mourned, be they family members, mythical creatures, friends, strangers, casualties of war, children, natural beings, political figures, and poets. 

We’ll also look at the big picture, relating these poems to a literary tradition. Are poets self-consciously in ‘performance’ when they bemoan a loved one? Do they set themselves in artistic rivalry with elegists who have preceded them?

Courses are open to all. New participants are welcome. 

Classes run on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings from 10:00 to 12:00. 

Course fees are £120, if paid in November 2025, £125 thereafter. 

Term will start on the 13th and 14th of January, break for half-term week on 9th-13th of February, and resume on February the 17th, end on March the 24th and 25th. 

Contextual or critical resources will be provided as photocopies.

Please purchase: 

The Penguin Book of Elegy: Poems of Memory, Mourning and Consolation, eds. Andrew Motion and Stephen Regan, Penguin Classics, ISBN 978-0-241-26962-6.

For further information and enquiries please send an email to the address below:

alexander@thatliteratureguy.com

To book the course transfer £125 to:

Alexander Fairburn-Dixon

Monzo Business Account

Sort Code: 04-00-04

Account Number: 43715503

Feel free to contact me if you wish to make alternative arrangements for payment.