The Armadillo’s Surprise: the poetry and life of Elizabeth Bishop

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In this workshop, we will delve into the life of this enigmatic poet and through her poem, The Armadillo, examine how she used pace, rhyme and surprise to build to a climax.

Using different prompts, participants will be invited to learn from this great poet and choose one or more of these tools to start on the creation of their own poem in the workshop.

Elizabeth Bishop has been described as one of America’s most important poets. A pioneer of confessional poetry, her poems describe the physical world in detail. While others find her poems convey emotions of loss, disconnection and grief, Bishop would herself refute this more in depth analysis, saying she only wrote about what she saw.

No experience of writing poetry or knowledge about Elizabeth Bishop is needed prior to the workshop. You are invited to discover her life and words together, or bring your own knowledge to the group if you have studied her previously.