Pieces of Poetry: Recent Episodes
Alex Forrester
Easy intros to famous poets - a series which aims to increase the interest and enjoyment of poetry by introducing poets and their poems in an informal and relaxed format. Each episode will begin with an introduction to the poet, followed by a reading of one or more of their poems and then some thoughts on the poem(s) afterwards.
This episode discusses the poet and writer Stevie Smith with readings of some of her poetry. It starts with a brief biography and a reading of 'Not Waving but Drowning' with some analysis followed by readings and discussion of some of her other poems.
This episode discusses the poet and writer Maya Angelouwith readings of some of her poetry. It starts with a brief biography and intro to her early childhood years told in the first of her autobiographies 'I Know Why the Caged Bird sings' before readings with analysis and discussion of some her poems, their impact and her legacy.
00:00 - Introduction
00:26 - Maya Angelou - Intro and Biography
03:34 - Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water 'fore I Diiie - Poetry Collection
04:27 - No Loser No Weeper - Poem
05:43 - Still I Rise - Poem (Abridged)
08:53 - Caged Bird - Poem (Excerpt)
09:45 - On the Pulse of Morning - Poem (Excerpt)
11:03 - Legacy and Final ThoughtsPoemsMaya Angelou, "No Loser, No Weeper" from Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water 'fore I Diiie, Random House (New York, NY), 1971
Maya Angelou, "Still I Rise" (excerpt) from And Still I Rise: A Book of Poems. Random House , (New York, NY), 1978
Maya Angelou, “Caged Bird” (excerpt) from Shaker, Why Don't You Sing?. Random House, 1983
Paul Laurence Dunbar, "Sympathy.”" from The Complete Poems of Paul Laurence Dunbar. (New York: Dodd, Mead and Company, 2004)
Maya Angelou, “On the Pulse of Morning” (excerpt) from The Complete Collected Poems of Maya Angelou , Penguin Random House LLC, 1994
ReadingsNo Loser, No WeeperStill I Rise - Maya Angelou Live Performance
On the Pulse of Morning - President Clinton Inauguration 1993
OtherBook on Maya Angelou from Children's Biographies Series "Little People Big Dreams"
This episode discusses the poet T. S. Eliot with a brief biography followed by an introduction and reading of his first published poem 'The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock' and some analysis and thoughts on the poem and the context in which it was written.