James Merrill's The Changing Light at Sandover is an epic masterwork, written with-- or through-- a Ouija board.  Very readable, VERY gay, and tons of fun-- the poem also contains fascinating information about the structure of Being, the hierarchies of heaven, the Earthly story of birth and death, and the role of the Poet in the destiny of the universe.

Merrill was a Pisces-- born on my mom's (and Alexander Graham Bell's, Naomi Fry's, and Tracy Anderson's) birthday-- and The Changing Light at Sandover was composed by the seashores of Mystic Connecticut and Key West. I used to dismiss him as some rich formalist from whom what could I possibly need to learn??? Until a mystical breakdown in 2012 (can't make this shit up) led me to his masterpiece.

This course will be an adventure in poetry as medium and magical substance. Sense of humor and curiosity required. Optional pre-requisites: basic familiarity with (or interest in) Dante's Commedia and mid-20th century bohemian/artworlds-- "characters" in Merrill's epic include W.H. Auden, Maya Deren, and many more.