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Poetry Therapy: A Practical Guide for Therapists
(Beginning to Intermediate Level)
Introduction
The purposes of this guide are to bring together the available research in the field and to provide a set of workable techniques that therapists can incorporate into their practice. It is an attempt to survey and bring into perspective the field of poetry therapy as it is currently found. It is hoped that this handbook can help to give this therapeutic modality the practical application it presently needs.
Poetry therapy, as represented by the exercises in Chapter 3, is most effective when practiced by a therapist with a sound knowledge of poetry. This is not to say that it is limited only to therapists who know a good deal of poetry, but those who do not will need to spend some time familiarizing themselves with poetry in order to put it to practice.
The first chapter introduces the field of poetry therapy and lists selected operating definitions. Chapter 2 covers the pertinent literature on the topic and emphasizes the major approaches to poetry therapy. Chapter 3 contains the set of exercises, including selected poems and an extensive list of "prescribable poems." These exercises were either compiled from the literature on bibliotherapy and poetry therapy or created by the author, and each exercise has been tested in numerous poetry therapy sessions.
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES:
- Summarize the major approaches to poetry therapy.
- Explain the history of poetry therapy.
- Compare and contrast poetry therapy and bibliotherapy.
- Identify the five goals of poetry therapy and its’ practical applications.
- Identify the characteristics of poetry written by clients during different phases of their life as outlined by Molly Harrower.
- Be able to use poetry therapy in individual and group sessions.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
- Chapter 1: What is Poetry Therapy?
- Definition of Terms
- Chapter 2: Literature Review
- Major Approach’s
- Other Related Literature
- Chapter 3: A Set of Exercises
- Addressing Poems in Individual Sessions
- Poems in Groups
- Appendix 1: Selected Poems
- If by Rudyard Kipling
- The Day is Done by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
- Life Sculpture by George Washington Doane
- Invictus by William Ernest Henley
- Crossing the Bar by Alfred Lord Tennyson
- Appendix 2: Suggested Poetry
- References
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