Some writers of songs, stories and poetry take on the responsibility of bearing witness to some truth in our world. Bearing witness means to testify. Unlike a complaint or a political protest, such works create an experience for the reader or listener that will mark them and, as Carolyn Forché says, make them witnesses as well to what has been brought to life in the work. In this class, we will examine the idea of bearing witness and how to most effectively bring it into our writing. We'll look at examples and practice creating our own works.

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