A New Class at Fordham Brings Popular Music into the Classroom
A new class at Fordham is using popular music artists like The Arcade Fire, Jay Z, and Nirvana to help students learn about poetry.
Professor Scott Levin's class, "Rock, Rap and the Poetic Tradition," is being offered at the University for the first time this semester.
Levin's students are looking at the connections between contemporary music lyrics and traditional poetry. For example, the class studies lyrics from the song "We Used to Wait" by the Arcade Fire along side T.S. Eliot's poem, "The Love Song."
Junior Alex Dorsky said the class makes poetry less intimidating. "Literary terms are confusing, but if you get to look at them in terms of lyrics it's easier to draw connections," Dorsky said.
Professor Levin created the class after the a request from the University to design a more appealing course for English majors. Levin said using popular music helps to keep his students interested in the classrom.
