BA English Literature and Drama

Key details

BA ENGLISH LITERATURE AND DRAMA

Start Year

2021

Attendance

Full Time

Award

Degree of Bachelor of Arts

UCAS course code

WQ43

Entry Requirements

BBB

Duration (years)

On this degree you’ll immerse yourself in all aspects of the theatre while gaining a first-class academic grounding in English literature. This will give you a deep understanding of the relationships between the practices of writing in all major genres – prose, poetry and drama – and the practices of dramatic production and acting. Your practical skills in the theatre and your mastery of literature will support and enrich one another.

You’ll develop your skills in practical stagecraft through our intensive drama training and with the resources of UEA’s Drama Studio on hand for you to use and enjoy. You’ll also encounter literature from across centuries and across genres, ranging from established classics to new work being written today. With its vivid dramatic and literary traditions and lively contemporary scene, Norwich is the perfect city in which to be a student of drama and literature.

About

This course combines modules in English literature with practical and theoretical drama modules. You’ll largely have flexibility to decide the precise balance between literature and drama in your course. You may, for example, choose to study a wide range of genres, including the novel and poetry, or gradually to specialize in dramatic literature and performance.

You will have access to the same range of literature modules as our full-time English literature students. That means you’ll be able to delve into periods from the medieval to the present day, explore diverse traditions from across the globe, and tackle a heady mix of genres, which currently range from epic to children’s literature, crime writing to lyric poetry, tragedy to biography. It’s worth reading the detailed account of our BA English Literature degree to get a sense of the possibilities on offer.

In your practical drama modules you will work alongside full-time drama students in our professionally equipped 200-seat Drama Studio. You’ll have the keys to this amazing space, letting you control everything in your own productions, from performance and staging to costume, lighting and sound-design. You’ll have the chance to bring all your performance skills together in major practical projects each year.

Studying literature will deepen your practical work in the theatre. As you get inside the words of plays in the seminar room, you’ll become better able to release their energies in your own performance. At the same time, your study of literature will be enriched by your performance work – you’ll understand how plays work from the inside. The two elements of your degree are always deepening and enhancing one another.

You’ll also benefit from our highly regarded student-run Minotaur Theatre Company, which gives you the chance to gain valuable additional performance, technical and scriptwriting experience.

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Important Information

Whilst the University will make every effort to offer the courses listed, changes may sometimes be made arising from the regular review of course programmes. Where this activity leads to significant (but not minor) changes to programmes, there will normally be prior consultation of students and others. Changes may for example consist of variations to the content and method of delivery of programmes, courses and other services, to discontinue programmes, courses and other services and to merge or combine programmes or courses. The University will endeavour to keep such changes to a minimum, and will inform students.

Assessment for Year 1

Our BA English Literature and Drama modules do not have written exams. Each of the modules you take has its own assessment; your final degree classification is made up of the marks you receive in your second and third years.

Your practical work in acting, performance and directing will be observed and assessed. You might also write reflectively about your own performance, or you might find yourself writing creatively, producing portfolios of scriptwriting for assessment.

On the literature side, you’ll be assessed on the written coursework you submit. Coursework can take many forms. You’ll often find yourself writing a critical essay in response to questions a tutor has set or, as your degree progresses, you might invent your own projects with increasing independence. But you might find yourself pushing the boundaries of what you write, too – submitting ‘creative criticism’, where you express your new critical ideas by writing creatively. Your coursework is supported by seminar discussion, peer feedback and tutorials with your seminar leader.

Structure

In your first year you’ll lay the foundations for your practical work in your Applied Drama and Technical Skills module. You’ll sharpen your analytical skills in the Reading Now and Slow Reading modules. You’ll also extend your knowledge of all kinds of literature with optional modules covering topics such as Writing Across Borders, and you’ll get a grounding in dramatic traditions from across the globe and across time in our compulsory Introduction to World Dramatic Literatures module. This rich mix culminates at the end of the year in performance work with staff and theatre directors (in the Post-War British Drama module).

Teaching and Learning

All our teaching enables you to learn by doing – whether that’s by pulling apart the language of a short poem in a small seminar, learning how to express yourself confidently through regular writing exercises, or bringing plays’ words to life through your own performance.

On the English literature side, you will be taught in a combination of lectures and seminars. Lectures are given by our enthusiastic team of literary critics, who will help you frame your thoughts about the texts you’re reading, giving you ideas and introducing you to relevant contexts. In seminars, you’ll develop your thoughts and ideas through discussion with your peers, under the guidance of your seminar leader.

You will hone your drama skills through workshops, seminars, and technical classes as well through your own directing and performance. In one of our workshops, you might find yourself learning how to work with text as an actor, experiment with different directorial theories, or develop skills in devising plays.

Your tutors’ guidance doesn’t stop when the seminar ends. Each member of staff at UEA dedicates specific hours each week to one-to-one meetings with students, when you can come and seek additional advice and feedback. You’ll also be assigned an adviser who supports you through your time as an English and Drama student by providing guidance on your growth as a performer, critic and writer, and on where those skills might take you in your career.

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Assessment for Year 2

Structure

In your second year you’ll have a wealth of options, both theatrical and literary-critical, allowing you to build a programme that suits your developing interests. You could choose modules that emphasize practical and outreach work, explore devised performance, or focus on performance skills. Other modules concentrate on drama, from Shakespeare to today’s new work, or literature, from Chaucer to contemporary fiction. You can also sample our world-famous creative writing tuition or experiment with one of our innovative creative-critical hybrid modules. Alternatively you might choose to take a module in a related humanities discipline, such as film and television studies or politics.

Teaching and Learning

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Assessment for Year 3

Structure

In your third year you’ll bring everything you’ve learnt together in a core drama and literature module where you’ll consider in detail the complex interrelations between drama and other genres. You can also choose to take part in our major final-year drama production or to pursue a personal drama project. Many students also choose to undertake a drama dissertation (which might be an extended piece of critical analysis or an original script). Depending on your options, you’ll also take at least one specialist literature or drama module, choosing from a selection covering topics from medieval romance to the art of murder, taking in on the way the Italian Renaissance, tragedy, contemporary drama and film, and ghosts, haunting and spectrality..

Teaching and Learning

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Assessment for Year 1

Compulsory Modules

READING NOW

Code LDCL4009A

Credits 20

Reading is at the heart of our experience of literature. It is central to the ways in which we think and write about literary texts, and to some of the claims made on their behalf. This module is concerned with what it is we do when we read literature, at university and elsewhere, and why. We will concentrate in particular on four elements: on the practice of what is commonly known as close reading, one of the building blocks of literary study; on some of the ways in which reading has been represented in literary texts themselves; on the kinds of significance, both moral and political, claimed on behalf of reading; and on reading as we do and think about it today, in a world ever more virtual and networked.

SLOW READING

Code LDCL4011B

Credits 20

This module seeks to build on and develop the work of the Autumn semester, in particular that of modules concerned with close reading. In small tutorial classes of two hours per week you will engage with a long text in a deep and sustained way across the semester, opening up a multi-layered and multi-faceted reading. The first half of the course will focus on the literary text itself, its forms and its stylistic innovations, alongside some short supplementary readings. As the module goes on, you will encounter the diverse ways in which others have read the text from different critical perspectives. You will reflect on, especially, the ways critics have brought the literary text into dialogue with theoretical texts to mutually illuminating effect, looking closely at some of the theoretical texts they are drawing on too. In the end, you too will bring the literary text into dialogue with some of the theoretical writing you encounter in the second half of the course. The real focus of this course is, of course, less the text you are reading than the very practice of reading itself.

APPLIED DRAMA AND TECHNICAL SKILLS

Code LDCD4016A

Credits 20

A mixture of workshops, seminars, physical skills, technical classes, aiming to begin the process of training in all areas related to the delivery of an intelligent performance. You will learn to work together in drama through exercises and through improvisation and on text. You will also be introduced to the second level of Responsible Person training (‘RP2’) through weekly classes in technical disciplines (you will normally choose 2 from: Sound, Lighting, Costume, Design, Stage Management, Workshop Skills, Meisner Work).

POSTWAR BRITISH DRAMA

Code LDCD4008B

Credits 20

This volatile and rich period after World War II in Britain radically transformed the British Theatre and saw the rise of a number of innovative theatre companies throughout the second half of the twentieth century. You will examine British Theatre in the context of ideas that originated in Europe and Britain at the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the 20th. You’ll explore the work of seminal theatre companies, playwrights and directors in the United Kingdom and interrogate the performance styles through the lens of British and European social history through the decades. Through a detailed examination of dramatic texts, video clips, memoirs, journal articles and newspaper clippings, as well as practical workshops and participatory performances of work from the period under scrutiny, you’ll explore all aspects of theatrical performance from design to direction.

INTRODUCTION TO WORLD DRAMATIC LITERATURES

Code LDCD4007A

Credits 20

What’s the history of dramatic literatures, and how have ground-breaking plays shaped it? Introduction to World Dramatic Literatures enables you to examine a wide range of influential plays — from comic to tragic, realist to absurd — offering a broad arc of dramatic history. As well as the work of major European dramatists, you will be able to draw on the dramatic literature of Asia, Africa and/or the Americas. You will learn how to analyse playtexts in their historical and aesthetic contexts, observe and discuss performed extracts, and perform in them if desired.

Optional A Modules

(20 credits)

THEATRE: THEORY AND PERFORMANCE

Code LDCD4017B

Credits 20

You'll investigate theories of theatre through the reading and discussion of key theoretical texts, and through practical workshops exploring voice, movement and performance processes, while continuing elements of the technical skills training begun in Semester 1.

READING PLAYS

Code LDCD4018B

Credits 20

As a first year student you will be able to take this seminar based module to develop a vocabulary for the analysis and close reading of dramatic texts. This includes their implicit visual and interpersonal dynamics. The playwrights treated will vary each year.

WRITING ACROSS BORDERS

Code LDCL4021B

Credits 20

This module will study how literary texts move across borders of history, geography and culture and what happens to them when they do. It will focus on particular examples of textual travelling drawn from different historical periods and, in the process, raise critical questions about cultural exchange and the idea of literature as a form of translation and adaptation.

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Important Information

Whilst the University will make every effort to offer the modules listed, changes may sometimes be made arising from the annual monitoring, review and update of modules. Where this activity leads to significant (but not minor) changes to programmes and their constituent modules, the University will endeavour to consult with students and others. It is also possible that the University may not be able to offer a module for reasons outside of its control, such as the illness of a member of staff. In some cases optional modules can have limited places available and so you may be asked to make additional module choices in the event you do not gain a place on your first choice. Where this is the case, the University will inform students.

In their 2nd and 3rd years combined, students must take no more than a total of 150 credits from modules coded LDCD, and no more than a total of 150 credits from modules coded LDCL. Students who select either LDCD5019A/LDCD5020B: Creative Industries Research Project must normally select one of the LDCD5014A/LDCD5015B: Creative Industries Research Internship modules. Students are not permitted to select LDCD5019A/LDCD5020B: Creative Industries Research Project and LDCD5014A/LDC5015B: Creative Industries Research Internship and also select LDCL5025B: Erasmus Exchange or LDCL5026B: Literature Studies Semester Abroad: Australia (Spring). In Year 2 students take 120 credits in total.

Assessment for Year 2

Compulsory Modules

Optional A Modules

(100-120 credits)

CREATIVE WRITING: INTRODUCTION (SPR)

Code LDCC5004B

Credits 20

Have you ever wondered what it means to write creatively? Or how you might articulate what Zadie Smith calls ‘your way of being in the world’? Together we’ll address these questions. You’ll explore the work of some of the finest writers in the world, while also receiving clear guidance on how you might bring shape to the promptings of your imagination. This module will get you writing prose fiction and/or poetry. While there is no single, authorised way to write, there are things worth knowing about. You’ll discover some of these things in class; others you’ll pick up through being alert to what you have read and the way in which it functions. The most important thing, however, is to discover your own way of doing things. What drives you to capture a certain moment, or tell a certain story in a certain way? That’s what we'll be aiming for. Along the way you’ll develop an understanding of the craft of writing – the technical nuts & bolts – while acquiring the disciplines necessary to being a writer - observation, drafting, and submitting to deadlines. You'll be guided through a series of themes and concepts that go to the heart of creative writing, from voice and structure, to imagery and form. You'll generate material throughout the course, both through guided exercises and private study. Very often you'll be asked to write about ‘what you know’, drawing on notebooks, memory, family stories, your sensory impressions. In prose you will go on to look at such things as character, dialogue, point-of-view, ‘showing’ versus ‘telling’, plotting, etc. In poetry, there will be an exploration of the possibilities of pattern and form, sound, voice, imagery, and rhythm. By the end of the course you’ll have developed a body of work to call your own and a sense of what it means and what it takes to write seriously.

CREATIVE WRITING: INTRODUCTION (AUT)

Code LDCC5005A

Credits 20

CREATIVE WRITING: PROSE FICTION (SPR)

Code LDCC5006B

Credits 20

This module will enable you to test your abilities and potential as a writer of prose fiction, building on the experience you already have in a formal creative writing environment. The first half of the course will be exploratory and practical, using structured exercises and handouts. You’ll be asked to consider such issues as character, genre, voice, dialogue and point of view. In the second half, the emphasis will shift to constructive group discussion of your own work, along with that of your peers. The overall aim of this module will be to develop your expressive and technical skills in writing prose fiction, and to improve your abilities as an editor and critic of your own and other people's work. This module is exclusive to English Literature With Creative Writing students and for other students who have achieved a mark of 68%+ (or equivalent for Visiting students) in a previous Creative Writing module. All other students should enrol on Creative Writing: Introduction (Aut) or Creative Writing: Introduction (Spring).

CREATIVE WRITING: POETRY (SPR)

Code LDCC5007B

Credits 20

This module is for those who want to write better poems and it enables you to really test the range of your abilities in writing poetry. You’ll develop and improve your expressive and technical skills in writing poetry, and be encouraged to improve analytical awareness of both the craft elements and the wider contexts of writing poetry, and also to improve students' abilities as editors and critics of their own and other people's writing. The first half of the seminar will be exploratory and practical; we'll be using structured exercises and the writing of (mostly contemporary) published poets to consider issues like voice, persona, imagery, structure and form, with time also dedicated to sharing student work. In the second half the emphasis shifts to constructive group discussion of your own work, alongside your peers, in a workshop setting. Whether discussing published poems or our own, we will be 'reading like a writer' and discussing how poems are put together. This module is exclusive to English Literature With Creative Writing students and for other students who have achieved a mark of 68%+ (or equivalent for Visiting students) in a previous Creative Writing module. All other students should enrol on Creative Writing: Introduction (Aut) or Creative Writing: Introduction (Spring).

THE WRITING OF JOURNALISM (AUT)

Code LDCC5013A

Credits 20

What kinds of writing skills produce great journalism? This question is essential to creating powerful journalism and it’s a central concern of this module. The Writing of Journalism enables you to develop a critical awareness of the skills and structures involved in creating effective journalism. You’ll consider a range of journalistic forms and find out how best to nurture and develop your own writing. You'll have the opportunity to explore the ways in which journalistic writing works – its contexts, its demands, and its inventiveness. This will enable us to approach journalism as a discourse with its own conventions, practices, and ideologies. This module is concerned with journalism as a practice, and a genre. As such, it involves discussion, peer-workshops, and practical experience of reading and writing news and feature articles. In addition to writing your own journalism, you will examine journalistic writing and critical work concerning the craft, in order to probe and challenge your own ideas and assumptions about the practice and production of this writing form. Rather than see the practice of journalism and the critical study of journalism as distinct activities, this module aims to engage you as critical readers and writers whose work is informed by both contexts. In so doing, you’ll gain a greater understanding of the demands and conventions of journalistic writing, develop and sharpen your own work, and gain the discursive flexibility which will allow you to navigate the writing of journalism today.

THE WRITING OF JOURNALISM (SPR)

Code LDCC5014B

Credits 20

SCRIPTWRITING: TV/FILM

Code LDCC5016A

Credits 20

Scriptwriting: TV/FIlm deepens your ability to create and understand dramatic texts, through exercises in writing drama and the analysis of a range of screenplays for film and TV. In this module you’ll explore different forms and styles and your work will receive feedback from both the tutor and your peers. Your first assignment will be a portfolio of shorter pieces, and then you’ll write a screenplay of up to 30 minutes length. The course is hands-on, inspiring and practical, and you’ll be writing every week.

SCRIPTWRITING: TV/FILM

Code LDCC5016B

Credits 20

SCRIPTWRITING: SCREEN AND STAGE

Code LDCC5017A

Credits 20

Scriptwriting develops your ability to create and understand dramatic texts, through exercises in writing drama and the analysis of a range of plays and/or film scripts. In this module you’ll explore different forms and styles and your work will receive feedback from both the tutor and your peers. Your first assignment will be a portfolio of shorter pieces, and then you’ll write a play, radio drama or screenplay of up to 30 minutes length. The course is hands-on, inspiring and practical, and you’ll be writing every week.

SCRIPTWRITING: SCREEN AND STAGE

Code LDCC5017B

Credits 20

CREATIVE INDUSTRIES RESEARCH INTERNSHIP (AUT)

Code LDCD5014A

Credits 40

Supervised placements and internships in one or other of the performance orientated creative industries in Britain or elsewhere. Internships can take a variety of industry-approproate forms, but essentially allow you to continue your degree work by spending a specified period at an approved institution or company in the creative industries. That period will normally be no less than 6 weeks (or equivalent) and not longer than 12 weeks (a full seminar). Normally a period of 8 weeks allows for sustained practical experience and a period of reflection and writing-up. The Internship enables you to develop your professional skills in a working theatre or theatre-related environment (this may be, for example, located in the administrative or technical department of a local, national or international theatre company: a film, radio or television production company's offices or studios, or an educational establishment concerned with the teaching or applied use of drama). Exceptionally, and by agreement of the module convenor, a placement may take place in a broader 'creative industries' setting. As with Creative Industries Research Project (Aut), this module is available to students on the three Drama programmes (Drama, English Literature and Drama, and Drama and Creative Writing) in LDC and elsewhere, on prior approval of a viable proposal by the Drama faculty.

CREATIVE INDUSTRIES RESEARCH INTERNSHIP (SPR)

Code LDCD5015B

Credits 40

You can undertake a placement or internship in the real world of the arts. Its value lies in your direct experience of work in the professional world; in the acquisition and development of industry-based skills; in your first-hand engagement with the administrative and/or backstage processes that underpin the arts; and in a chance to test your vocation against the demands of the industry you hope to join. You’ll develop your professional skills in a working theatre or theatre-related environment (this may be, for example, located in the administrative or technical department of a local, national or international theatre company: a film, radio or television production company’s offices or studios, or an educational establishment concerned with the teaching or applied use of drama). Exceptionally, and by agreement of the module convenor, a placement may take place in a broader ‘creative industries’ setting. You’ll be allocated a supervised placement or internship in one or other of the performance orientated creative industries in Britain (or occasionally elsewhere), on prior approval of a viable proposal by the Drama faculty. Internships can take a variety of industry-appropriate forms, but essentially allow you to continue your degree work by spending a specified period at an approved institution or company in the creative industries. You’ll normally spend no less than 6 weeks (or equivalent) and not longer than 12 weeks (a full seminar) in your internship, but a period of 8 weeks usually allows for sustained practical experience followed by a period of reflection and writing-up, in which the learning outcomes of the process are consolidated. Placements, which take place in Year 2, are worth 40 credits (i.e., they are the equivalent of two traditional modules.) If the placement is local, you may be able to take a third module at UEA. If you are working at a distance from the university, then you will need to pair the placement with the 20 credit Creative Industries Research Topic.

PERFORMANCE SKILLS: THE ACTOR AND THE TEXT

Code LDCD5016A

Credits 20

What is the actor’s relationship with the text? If the spoken word is a window into a character’s inner world what does the actor need to do to bring that inner landscape to life? This creatively challenging Module will give the developing actor a tangible set of tools with which to approach the text. Whether it be verse or prose the module aims to bring the spoken word to life not just through the voice but through the whole body. We will get inside the words in order to experience their visceral nature, in order to release their energy so as to understand why certain words have been chosen over others, why certain rhythms and sounds create particular kinds of character. The Module will encourage connection and spontaneity in the performer whist marrying this vitality with rigorous text analysis. We are aiming to create pro-active performers who are in charge of their own craft and can bring a character to life through a vocal, textual and psychophysical approach. The Module will be an exciting journey towards finding autonomy and artistic intuition in the art of interpreting Dramatic texts. The main methods of study will be through: (1) individual performance of poems and speeches, (2) scene classes and duologues (3) character study of roles in a variety of plays.

DRAMA OUTREACH PROJECT

Code LDCD5018B

Credits 20

You will take part in group practical applied theatre work which entails public performance and delivery of interactive events to target audiences in the community or on campus..

CREATIVE INDUSTRIES RESEARCH PROJECT (AUT)

Code LDCD5019A

Credits 20

If you are undertaking a 40 credit Creative Industries Placement away from Norwich, it may not be possible for you to take a 20 credit module on campus, to make up the normal 60 credit per semester load. This 20 credit Creative Industries Research Topic allows you to complete the credit requirements through either an extended piece of research and writing on a drama-related topic selected by you with the approval of the module organiser, or an approved and supervised solo performance piece. As with Creative Industries Research Internship (Aut), this module is reserved for students on degree programmes: Drama, English Literature and Drama, and Drama and Creative Writing. Applications from other students may be considered if there is prior approval of a viable proposal by the Drama faculty.

EXPERIMENTS IN PERFORMANCE

Code LDCD5020A

Credits 20

In this module you will examine the development of experimental theatre and performance from its foundations in the late 19th century avant-garde to the present. You will address key experimental movements in their artistic contexts (including development, adaptation and theory) and assess how they produced radical new theatre and also shaped the production of the existing repertoire. As well as developing analytical skills in the field of theatre and performance, you will be introduced to experimental approaches to acting through physical investigation and reflection on modes of training. Applications from Visiting Students on Theatre degree programmes may be considered.

CREATIVE INDUSTRIES RESEARCH PROJECT (SPR)

Code LDCD5020B

Credits 20

POLITICAL THEATRE

Code LDCD5025B

Credits 20

How can theatre change the world? You'll attempt to find out by examining the use of theatre and performance by theatre artists and activists to challenge power and create the possibility of change. You’ll look at political theatre in the USA, South America, South Africa, and Europe in the 20th century and beyond; week by week you will encounter plays, writers, performers, and theorists and build up your own toolkit of political theatre. You’ll also create short plays and performance works, and take part in forum theatre, dance, stagings, and events which will enhance your political and theatrical understanding. You will be assessed through writing a short play, a sustained comparative essay, and an original performance work. Themes studied might include feminism, LGBTQ theatre, anti-racism, and Marxism. You will debate, create, and study and emerge having found your own voice as a political theatre-maker.

DEVISED PERFORMANCE

Code LDCD5053A

Credits 20

In this course, we will explore the concept of devised performance, in all of its various manifestations, and examine methods to develop devised theatre in the rehearsal room. Exploring the use of non-dramatic texts, thematic structures, storytelling, found text and abstract imagery, this class allows you to study and put into practice the devising techniques of companies such as the Wooster Group, Elevator Repair Service, Complicite, Kneehigh and SITI Company. You will study and practice elements of narrative and dramatic structure, as well as physical performance skills and acting; you will similarly experiment with a range of techniques used to generate material for performance outside of the traditional genre of the playwright's theatre .

PRACTICAL FILM MAKING AND PERFORMANCE

Code LDCD5054B

Credits 20

You will, primarily, undertake practical film-making activities in which you will begin to explore the craft of screen-writing, directing, shooting, and editing through the process of making your own short films. In each assigned task you will take on a variety of different roles in order to attain a basic understanding of different aspects of the medium. This will help you get a sense of what area of production you feel most drawn to and may want to pursue after completing the Module. As well as gaining hands on experience of the film process you will also be given the opportunity to experiment with performance in order to discover acting styles appropriate for the camera.

THE DIRECTOR, THE ACTOR AND THE SCRIPT

Code LDCD5055A

Credits 20

What is the director's job? How best does the actor work with the director? How does the language of the one translate into a practicable understanding in the other? How much shared vocabulary is profitable to their dynamic? In this module you will explore the convergence and divergence of skillset and function in this most intimate of collaborations; we will seek to strip to their fundamentals the mechanics of the director-actor relationship, and then offer tools with which both director and actor can work, in ongoing exercise and scene studies. You will gain a solid understanding of scene structure and analysis; integrate new acting tools; learn a healthy mutual respect for one another's function, and learn to navigate some of the subtleties in the communication between actor and director. This module is aimed at students who are seriously interested in furthering their command of practical work and you must be equally willing to both act and direct.

FEMINIST THEATRES

Code LDCD5058B

Credits 20

What was the feminist theatre movement and what does it mean for you now as a writer, theatre maker and/or scholar? Feminist Theatre allows you to explore key feminist theatre makers from the Suffrage movement to the present, focusing on radical companies and writers of the 1970s and 1980s. Combining seminars and practical workshops, you will investigate what feminist historiography is and how you can engage creatively with archives. The module invites you to draw on a lineage of feminist ideas and methods to consider and challenge the continued under representation of women in theatre (and beyond). Assessment will be part analytical and part creative or creative-critical work, with an option to create a performance. All welcome! No need to identify as a woman or feminist to take part.

SPECIAL TOPIC IN DRAMA

Code LDCD5060B

Credits 20

The Actor in Rehearsal and Production This module gives you the opportunity to deepen and extend the range of your interpretive skills, exploring both familiar and new rehearsal processes, as you work toward the production of a single play or collection of challenging scenes. Directed by the tutor and/or assistant director, the texts and methods of working will deepen your grasp of text analysis, and of theatre craft and performance skills; you will gain specific, personalised critique throughout the module, aimed at fostering your growth and deeper understanding of yourself as interpretive artist and collaborator. You will also better understand how essential to the interpretation and orchestration of a text is the collaboration with the director's own individuality and voice. Selected materials will vary in character and may come from any area of English or translated drama. We will work towards a public sharing at the end of the module. The production will be mounted without sets, costumes or lights, placing the emphasis throughout the module on the actor's work with the director, with the ensemble and on her/himself.

CRITICAL THEORY AND PRACTICE

Code LDCL5031A

Credits 20

This is a module you will find helpful throughout your degree, informing and perhaps changing the way you read and analyse literature, film and other cultural forms. Across the twelve weeks, you’ll not only engage with the rich, complex and provocative work of literary critics and theorists – including deconstructive, feminist, post-colonial and queer theorists – but also of some of the thinkers and writers who have influenced them: such as Marx, Freud and Saussure. You will therefore encounter some of the most important and exciting thinkers of the modern period, acquiring an understanding of developments in linguistics, economics, psychoanalysis and philosophy, and tracing the ways in which these overlap with, and inform, literary and cultural study.

EUROPEAN LITERATURE

Code LDCL5033B

Credits 20

In this module, you’ll examine examples of twentieth-century European writing (all read in translation). Rather than (merely) place writers in their national contexts, you’ll deal with topics, issues and formal experiments that complicate, sometimes transcend, national boundaries. In fact you’ll interrogate what 'European' might mean in relation to literature - where are the borders? Are continental Europeans fundamentally 'other'? And if so, how does this otherness manifest itself aesthetically, thematically, tonally and formally? You'll look at how writers from different countries frequently challenge the conventions of genre and the conventions of reading and interpreting. Among a range of important innovations (or continuities), you may explore varieties of 'European' modernism, postmodernism, the absurd, fantasy, noir, and other genres. You’ll also ask how European writers have responded to the challenges, upheavals and catastrophes of the twentieth century and how they deal with the ethnic, religious and cultural diversity within Europe. You’ll engage with these topics in weekly lectures, and you’ll be assessed by means of an individually chosen project (supported by a formative proposal followed by individual and group tutorials).

ROMANTICISM 1780-1840

Code LDCL5034B

Credits 20

1780-1840 was the Age of Revolution and Romanticism, often regarded as a revolutionary style of writing. It was the age of the American and French Revolution and the Wars they entailed, the age of slavery and rebellion, of empire and conquest. You may think of Romantic writing as mainly nature poetry, primarily work by Blake, Wordsworth, Coleridge, Shelley, Keats, and Byron. But the signs of a ‘Romantic’ sensibility can also be found in a much broader constituency of writing: the novel, letter writing, the essay, political and aesthetic theory, and social commentary. In this module you’ll be introduced to some of the most exciting Romantic period writing, including poetry, fiction and non-fictional prose from the Age of Revolution. You’ll also explore key period artistic and literary concepts such as the sublime, beautiful, picturesque, the Hellenic, and pastoral, and you’ll analyse the many ways in which the writers of the period exploited concepts of landscape. You’ll look at issues such as the Supernatural and Dreaming. Your understanding of Romantic writing will be enhanced by an analysis of aesthetics, politics, and of the work of women writers. During the course you’ll explore poetry by Blake, Wordsworth, Coleridge, Keats, Shelley, as well as Jane Austen’s novel Mansfield Park (1816) and Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein (1818; 1831). You may also consider writings by less familiar poets, such as John Clare, Charlotte Smith, Anna Laetitia Barbauld, Mary Robinson, as well as prose works by Edmund Burke, Thomas Paine and Mary Wollstonecraft and others. You’ll look at how writing is gendered in the period and the implications of this for both male and female writers. You’ll be taught through a mixture of one-hour weekly lectures and two-hour weekly seminars, as well as self-directed study. You’ll gain experience in communicating your ideas in tutorials, as well as through written work and presentations. You’ll be assessed through two formative pieces (a close reading and a project bibliography) and one summative piece on a project chosen by yourself in discussion with your seminar tutors.

AUSTEN AND THE BRONTES: READING THE ROMANCE

Code LDCL5035B

Credits 20

This module considers texts by Austen and the Brontes in relation to a wide variety of literary and historical contexts: feminisms, colonialism, impact of war, the social status of the woman writer, representations of governesses, madness, mad women and mad men, rakes, foreigners and strangers. We investigate the forms of communication which seem to be offered by and in the romance novel and the ways in which the lives of these authors have been told and read as romances. Opportunities will be available to work on film versions and students will also have, as part of the assessment, the opportunity to produce their own piece of creative writing in response to the primary texts.

EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY WRITING (pre-1789)

Code LDCL5041A

Credits 20

The eighteenth century was a time of great literary experimentation in which many new genres emerged, including the periodical essay, the mock-epic, the ballad opera, and the novel. These genres took shape within a commercial revolution that transformed both what it meant to be an author and what it meant to be a reader. In this module you will see how writers such as Joseph Addison, Alexander Pope and John Gay created works that both participated in and criticized the culture of commerce. You will explore the fictions created by writers such as Daniel Defoe, Horace Walpole, and Elizabeth Inchbald, who developed very different versions of the novel. You will also examine how writers such as Samuel Johnson, Frances Burney, and Olaudah Equiano navigated the new possibilities for authorship that were opening up in the period. Ultimately you are invited to become an “eighteenth-centuryist” and to make imaginative connections between the exciting range of genres that emerged in this century and the culture that produced them.

SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY WRITING: RENAISSANCE AND REVOLUTION (pre-1789)

Code LDCL5042A

Credits 20

This module introduces you to a huge variety of kinds of writing from one of Britain's most exciting and turbulent periods of cultural, political and intellectual transformation: the seventeenth century. The module works through lectures, which establish larger questions we might ask of the week's material, and seminars, in which we read passages of texts together closely. We begin in the early seventeenth century by exploring the ways English writing was transformed by its encounters with classical texts (giving you the opportunity to read classical authors such as Horace and Martial in translation), before turning to explore women writers’ complicated relationship to early-modern literary culture. We examine the emergence of new forms of life-writing, especially those written by women, and explore the ways in which seventeenth-century travellers wrote about their encounters with the Middle East. In the module's latter section, we ask how literary forms were transformed by the extraordinary upheavals of the English civil war and the execution of the monarch. Authors we study include famous figures such as Ben Jonson, Andrew Marvell, and John Milton (including a look at his masterpiece, Paradise Lost), as well as many lesser-known writers, including women such as Lucy Hutchinson and Hester Pulter. To better understand the ways early-modern texts’ circumstances of publication shape their meaning, we offer the opportunity to sign up for an (entirely optional) visit to the Norfolk Heritage Centre (in the centre of Norwich) to handle their remarkable collection of seventeenth-century books.

MODERNISM

Code LDCL5045A

Credits 20

The modernist movement transformed literature and the arts worldwide in the early part of the 20th century, peaking in the period between 1918 and 1939. Although the term modernism was rarely used by authors in this period, in the period after World War II it became the usual term to describe a group of writers, responding to one another, whose work is characterised by radical experiments with language and form, which aimed to do justice to a range of many subjects such as the mysteries of consciousness and the unconscious, gender, sexuality, and desire, violence and democracy, the primitive and the mechanical. We will be reading a range of authors, including such long-canonised figures as James Joyce, T. S. Eliot, Ezra Pound, William Carlos Williams, HD, Gertrude Stein, and Virginia Woolf, but expanding the modernist canon in the light of recent scholarship to other more recently revived authors such as Djuna Barnes, Mina Loy, Dorothy Richardson, and Jean Rhys. We will trace some of the origins of modernism in earlier literary movements such as Symbolism, Imagism, Aestheticism, and Impressionism, and explore its kinship with foreign literary movements such as Dada and Surrealism. Modernism invented modern methods of criticism and we will be placing a particular emphasis on the close reading of poetry and poetic prose. A study of modernism is essential for understanding all 20th century literature and this module is highly recommended for any students wishing to take any modules in 20th-century literature.

FROM PUSHKIN TO CHEKHOV: NINETEENTH-CENTURY RUSSIAN FICTION

Code LDCL5048A

Credits 20

‘Russia is old; her literature is new. Russian history goes back to the ninth century; Russian literature, so far as it interests the world, begins in the nineteenth…. Russian literature is the voice of a giant, waking from a long sleep, and becoming articulate. … And what he has said has been well worth the thousand years of waiting.’ What has nineteenth century Russian literature said that the world has waited so long to hear? This is a question you will begin to answer as you read some of the age’s great authors, such as Pushkin, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky and Chekhov. You’ll gain insight into what makes this writing distinctive and an awareness of the political, social and cultural conditions that created it. You’ll discover why it was so important to other European writers and learn about the intriguing literary relationship between Russia and the West. You’ll start by familiarising yourself with some of the historical background, concentrating on the ‘westernisation’ of Russia, a process begun by Peter the Great and made visible in the construction of the city of St Petersburg. At the beginning of the module you’ll be given some key themes and questions to think about; these will help you to focus your reading during the coming weeks. You’ll learn through seminars and independent study and research. You’ll be assessed on one essay, which can be developed from a class presentation. By the end of the module you’ll have read some of the great nineteenth century Russian writers and gained an understanding of the political, historical and social background of their work. You’ll have discovered why these novels had such a profound impact in Western Europe and how they were instrumental in the development of the Modernist movement in Britain. You’ll have gained a wider literary perspective and reading in translation will have made you think in new ways about your own language too.

I AM

Code LDCL5054A

Credits 20

How do our literary choices inform our sense of self? What do our critical and theoretical interests say about our values and concerns? How do we make connections between our academic studies and the outside world? 'I Am' explores ideas concerned with the self, being, consciousness, and identity through engaging with a range of texts, from literature and literary criticism through to personal essays and online blogs. The aim is to help you, through the practice of reading and writing, reflect on your own values and intentions and to discover a language in which to articulate, with greater confidence, who you are. You should commit to participating in a process of uncovering your reality. This process will include classroom discussion, peer review, learning new approaches to writing and engaging in exploratory practical exercises. You’ll also be expected to keep a journal in order to reflect on connections between your reading and yourself. 'I Am' is grounded in a commitment to help you consider your future beyond university. An increased level of self-awareness will undoubtedly support you as you approach the task of making decisions about jobs and careers in the future.

READING AND WRITING TRANSLATIONS

Code LDCL5061A

Credits 20

How do we convey the experience of one language and culture in the words of another? What is at stake intellectually, artistically, and politically in translation? This module will provide you with a descriptive vocabulary for the analysis of literary translation and an introduction to key theoretical explanations of what happens when we translate. You’ll study translations from a range of historical periods, genres and languages. In the past, we have worked on authors such as Alexander Pushkin, Pablo Neruda, Adonis, Thomas Mann, and Knut Hamsun. Theories have included the classic controversies of St. Jerome and Vladimir Nabokov as well as debates about cultural equivalence and political issues such as the representation of the foreign. The module is taught by seminar where we engage with translation in a variety of ways, for example comparing different translations of a single text, translating the Bible from multiple languages into English, rewriting existing translations, and studying draft manuscript translations of a novel by Georges Perec. Assessment is by summative coursework for which you can either produce a comparative analysis of existing translations or an original translation with commentary. On successful completion of this module you’ll be able to describe the linguistic and stylistic features of a variety of texts as well as critically assess and apply different theories of translation. A thorough reading knowledge of another language besides English is advisable, but not essential.

MEDIEVAL WRITING (pre-1789)

Code LDCL5063A

Credits 20

This module provides an introduction to the study of medieval literature. You will explore Chaucer’s poetry (through works such as 'The Clerk’s Tale', 'The Merchant's Tale', 'The Nun’s Priest’s Tale'), the wonderful Morall Fabillis of Robert Henryson, the work of Julian of Norwich and Margery Kempe, and a number of important Middle English Romances, including the superb 'Sir Gawain and the Green Knight'. You will work in three inter-related ways: by exploring a range of important medieval literary genres (the lyric, allegorical narrative, romance, ‘mystical writing’, ‘life writing’, moral fable, dream vision); by considering important aspects of the medieval world (social, political, religious) and their textual representation; and by addressing the material circumstances in and by which medieval texts were written and read, published and circulated (in manuscripts and in the very earliest printed books). The aim, then, is really two-fold: to introduce you to the remarkable riches of medieval literature (one of the pay-offs of the relative linguistic difficulty of Middle English is that it forces us to attend slowly and carefully to the textual details of our material in a way I suspect we don’t always find ourselves able to and in a way that the texts we will be reading wonderfully reward), and, at the same time, to allow you to try your hand as medievalists, exploring the distinctive possibilities and practices that come with working with this material.

PUBLISHING (AUT)

Code LDCL5064A

Credits 20

Have you ever wondered how books are chosen for publication, or do you want to set up a literary magazine? This module address conceptual as well as practical aspects of the publishing of texts, including discussions around readership the meaning of editorship and what constitutes an editorial policy. You will be taught how to set up, run and market your own publication (such as a magazine, a book, a fanzine), to consider the principles of good design, and will learn the rudiments of finance, scheduling and copyright law. You'll begin with an introduction to the concepts behind cover and page design, and an opportunity to put your new knowledge into practice by designing and writing copy for a book jacket. You go on to present and develop an idea for a short publication and, via discussion, class exercises and private research, learn to write or select, then edit, material for it. You will engage with the processes involved in its hypothetical production and learn to identify and address its readership. You'll also benefit from taught sessions on Adobe Indesign software in our Media Suite to enable you to design your publication at a simple, basic level. As you study you'll gain experience in communicating your ideas to a class and in tutorial, as well as through word and image in your formative work and portfolio.

PUBLISHING (SPR)

Code LDCL5065B

Credits 20

VICTORIAN WRITING

Code LDCL5067B

Credits 20

This module aims to equip you with a knowledge of writing from across the Victorian period, in a variety of modes (fiction, poetry, science, journalism, criticism, nonsense). We will examine authors such as George Eliot, Tennyson, Dickens, Darwin, Charlotte Bronte, and the Brownings. You will thus develop an awareness of how different kinds of writing in the period draw on, influence, and contest with each other. Likewise, you will acquire a sense for the cultural, political and socio-economic contexts of 19th-century writing, and some of the material contexts in which that writing took place (serial publication, popular readership, periodical writing, public controversy).

WORDS AND IMAGES

Code LDCL5068B

Credits 20

In this module, you will explore the relationship between words and images in contemporary literature. You will cover what is meant by reading images, examine the varying but related stories that words and pictures tell, and analyse the narrative techniques employed in illustrated texts. As well as developing a critical vocabulary with which to discuss how these two media can be combined, you will survey shifts in the generic conventions of such literature over the last few decades so you develop an awareness of the various narrative techniques utilised by the medium. Rather than assuming comics are simplistic, debased or ‘illiterary’, you will address the medium as a site of exciting and innovative literary and artistic experimentation. You will also have the chance to carry out your own creative work in the genre.

CONTEMPORARY FICTION

Code LDCL5069B

Credits 20

What is the state of the art of the novel at present? And what are some of the distinguishing preoccupations and characteristics of the contemporary novel? This module seeks to consider these questions with a view to developing an understanding of the condition of the novel today. The module focuses on fiction published in the UK and Ireland in the last ten years, with a particular focus on more inventive writing. We’ll read a small set of contemporary novels, the content and form of each of which will exemplify some of the possibilities for fiction in the present day. We’ll consider the relation between the contemporary novel and the contemporary moment – for example, our concerns regarding the environment, identity, nationhood, and history – and think also about what it might mean to be or to call oneself contemporary: to be together with one’s own time. The list of authors chosen for the module changes regularly, as you would expect. Recently, it has included the likes of Ali Smith, Anne Enright, Zadie Smith and Mohsin Hamid. You’ll consider a range of ways of conceiving and interpreting the contemporary novel, and discuss these ways with your peers. There is no consensus about what does or should constitute a canon of contemporary fiction, although there is a growing critical literature on the subject, some of which we’ll read. It will be our job, in lectures and in seminars, to think carefully about what novels published in the last ten years offer the best argument for the continued viability of the novel itself as a contemporary art form.

SHAKESPEARE (pre-1789)

Code LDCL5070B

Credits 20

The aim of this lecture-seminar module is to help you become a better reader of Shakespearean drama. Shakespeare is now so universally known and read that it is easy to forget that he wrote at a specific historical moment for specific audiences, actors and theatrical spaces. What happens to our understanding of Shakespeare's plays when we read them within the context of theatrical performance? This is what our module enables you to do -- and in doing so, it aims to give you fresh, new ways to interpret Shakespearean language and theatricality. Lectures equip you with methods and contexts for reading Shakespeare's plays; seminars give you the chance to put these into practice through close, attentive readings of his plays. Each week we study a different play in detail. The summative assessment asks you to put what you've been learning into practice by writing a critical analysis of more than one play using some of the module's methods.

LITERATURE AND PHILOSOPHY

Code LDCL5072A

Credits 20

This module will offer a series of different approaches to the question of how Literature and Philosophy can speak to each other as academic disciplines, demonstrating the breadth and diversity of the two fields, as well as acquainting students with the research in literary criticism and philosophy currently being pursued at UEA. As well as examining the ways in which literature can illuminate and trouble philosophical argument, it will explore literature and 'the literary' as a topic for philosophical analysis, and the kinds of thinking such a topic would demand. Setting literature and philosophy into dialogue in this way will engender a more capacious understanding of the particular philosophical issues, and literary techniques, under discussion. The course will allow students to develop an awareness of the limits and advantages of various modes of literary and philosophical expression, and to foster more sophisticated skills in both literary and philosophical criticism. The module will be made up of a lecture circus, with two weeks given to each lecturer on a particular topic related to their current research (there will be five in all, including a lecture from the module convener, plus two from Philosophy and two from Literature, Drama and Creative Writing). The seminars will discuss issues arising from these lectures, working with texts set by the lecturer.

READING AND WRITING CONTEMPORARY POETRY

Code LDCL5073B

Credits 20

Using the reading and study of poetry from the post-war context up to the present day, you'll consider some of the concerns of poetry including voice, form/structure and the 'poetry of witness'. You'll also look at contemporary visual art to consider correspondences between the arts. The poets studied will be drawn principally from an Anglo-American tradition and may include such writers as Frank O'Hara, Elizabeth Bishop, Yusef Komunyakaa, Carol Ann Duffy, Carolyn Forché, Patience Agbabi and Emily Berry among others. Formative work includes creating a mini-anthology of contemporary poetry and there will be the chance to discuss poems you've written or read. You'll be able to write creatively and/or critically for assessment.

THE SHORT STORY (AUT)

Code LDCL5074A

Credits 20

What is a short story? What do short story writers have to say? What about short story critics and theorists? Is the short story a narrative in miniature? Or is there more to a short story than simply being 'short'? And why are critics so concerned with whether the short story is alive or dead? These are the kind of questions this module will investigate by asking you to think as a short story reader, theorist, critic and writer. Reading will be drawn from short story writers - and writing about the short story - roughly spanning the 19th century to the present, and from a range of cultural contexts. Our interest will not be to establish a history of the short story, but instead to explore the range of thematic preoccupations, changing definitions, and critical debates surrounding the form. You will have the opportunity to respond to these questions in critical and/or creative forms of assessment. Writers studied might include Edgar Allan Poe, Katherine Mansfield, Julio Cortazar, Anton Chekov, Ali Smith and Ryunosuke Aqutagawa. This list is suggestive only.

THE SHORT STORY (SPR)

Code LDCL5075B

Credits 20

What is a short story? What do short story writers have to say? What about short story critics and theorists? Is the short story a narrative in miniature? Or is there more to a short story than simply being 'short'? And why are critics so concerned with whether the short story is alive or dead? These are the kind of questions this module will investigate by asking you to think as a short story reader, theorist, critic and writer. Reading will be drawn from short story writers - and writing about the short story - roughly spanning the 19th century to the present, and from a range of cultural contexts. Our interest will not be to establish a history of the short story, but instead to explore the range of thematic preoccupations, changing definitions, and critical debates surrounding the form. You'll have the opportunity to respond to these questions in critical and/or creative forms of assessment. Writers studied might include Edgar Allan Poe, Katherine Mansfield, Julio Cortazar, Anton Chekov, Ali Smith and Ryunosuke Aqutagawa.

THE WRITING OF HISTORY

Code LDCL5077A

Credits 20

What makes a good history essay? What makes a good literary critical essay? How are they different? How do the disciplines of History and English Literature approach argument and evidence, narration and description? What are the generic, formal and stylistic expectations that govern academic writing in each of these disciplines? Some version of these questions will have occurred to any student attempting to meet the assessment criteria in a university degree. They are perhaps particularly pressing for students studying both literature and history, where somewhat different approaches are required by each discipline. This module brings historians, literary critics and creative writers into a multi-disciplinary conversation designed to explore the tensions as well as the continuities between history and literary studies. By asking faculty members from the two schools to investigate similar territory from contrasting perspectives, you will explore how very similar subjects and sources can be treated differently by different disciplines (and by different methodological orientations within those disciplines). Historians, literary critics and creative writers will give guest lectures that describe and analyse their research process and writing practice. There will also be some more theoretically driven weeks where the work of key philosophers and theorists of history and literature will be read and discussed. You are encouraged to reflect on your own approach to the writing of history and literary criticism and will have the opportunity to learn reflexive writing. The summative assessment asks you to analyse a source text using the resources of both disciplines, and then to write a reflexive essay positioning your own approach in relation to other historians and critics studied on the module.

EMPIRE AND AFTER: GLOBALIZING ENGLISH

Code LDCL5079A

Credits 20

Today, literature in English is produced in many countries across the world and English increasingly enjoys a status as a ‘global’ language. In this module you will explore how this situation came about by placing the development of English literary traditions both in the British Isles and elsewhere into the long historical context of the rise and fall of the British Empire. Beginning with canonical works by British writers from the eighteenth century through the nineteenth and into the twentieth centuries, you will then consider literary and political responses to the experience of empire and colonization by writers from areas such as South Asia, Africa, the Caribbean, Australasia, and the Americas. You will explore how ‘English Literature’ has been shaped on a global scale by global historical forces, and how different the history of the English literary tradition looks when placed alongside and in counterpoint to these ‘other’ writings in English. You will then discuss the writings of authors such as Daniel Defoe, Joseph Conrad, Chinua Achebe, Jean Rhys, Amitav Ghosh, Kate Grenville and J.M Coetzee amongst others. The module will introduce you to the theoretical and conceptual apparatus of postcolonial literary studies and to some of the key frameworks for understanding the formation of the modern world, such as race and racism, nations and nationalism, colonial discourse and postcolonial theory, and how gender and sexuality were pivotal in the formation of colonial and post-colonial identities.

LITERATURE STUDIES SEMESTER ABROAD (SPRING)

Code LDCL5081B

Credits 60

A semester spent at a university abroad with the approval of the School. Students interested in European universities should see the Erasmus exchange modules. In all instances you must consult with Study Abroad Office.

WATCHING YOUR LANGUAGE

Code LDCL5084A

Credits 20

We all know our own language, but a great deal of that knowledge is automatic: we’re not aware of what we know. This module uses an assortment of concepts, exercises and texts to develop a more precise consciousness of the way language is used. It will exploit the resources of the Oxford English Dictionary to see how individual words grow and change their meanings. It will ask what ‘standard English’ is, and why some writers choose to deviate from it. It will explore the idea that language may be corrupted, with disastrous political effects. And it will look at some historical attempts to control words, including current debates about the language of prejudice and hatred. Literary texts will include George Orwell’s 1984 and Russell Hoban’s Riddley Walker. Critical materials will include extracts from M.M. Bakhtin, Victor Klemperer, Raymond Williams, Deborah Cameron. Written work will consist of short reports and analyses, some of them drawing on students’ own experience of language in use.

HE SAID, SHE SAID: GENDER AND PERSPECTIVE IN CONTEMPORARY FICTION

Code LDCL5085B

Credits 20

This module asks: - How does gender affect our perception of the world? - Why is it important to critique ideas of gender at this point in history? - How does the perceived gender of an author affect our interpretation of their work? - How does our own gender affect how we write and interpret fiction? - What about the intersection of gender and race? Gender and sexuality? - How does our position on the axis of oppression and privilege affect our personal experience and our ability to write from the perspective of those with intrinsically different experience? - How does our position on the axis of oppression and privilege affect our ideas of authenticity? - In a time of human social and political upheaval, is all art inherently political?

Optional B Modules

(0-20 credits)

MATERIAL WORLDS

Code AMAA5009A

Credits 20

We live our lives surrounded by material objects. In many ways, our lives are dictated by the consumption of goods. How then, should we understand our relation to materiality? In this module, you'll learn about contemporary archaeological and anthropological perspectives in the study of material culture. Questions that come up include: why the Summer Solstice is celebrated at Stonehenge; how houses differ across cultures; why we give each other gifts and wrap them; and how clothing gives us identity? Studying human-object relations from a range of perspectives, this module equips you to understand the role of materiality in your life and to think in nuanced ways on our consumer society.

THE LIVES OF OBJECTS

Code AMAA5089A

Credits 20

Your main objective in this module will be to develop your critical skills as they pertain to thinking, reading, writing and looking. To enable this, the module will fall into two main sections. In the first section, you’ll focus on one particular methodology – object biographies – used in archaeology, anthropology, museum studies and art history. You’ll examine this methodology in detail, breaking it down into its component sections. You’ll then consider its strengths and its weaknesses, as we subject it to a thorough critical evaluation. In the second half of the module, you will study a range of theories and methodologies used in the study of material culture. In this part of the module, you will focus more broadly on what critical thinking is, both in general and within each of the four disciplines taught in the Department of Art History and World Art Studies. You’ll be taught through a combination of two weekly lectures and one discussion seminar. The lectures will offer you an introduction to the relevant topic, and will end with an opportunity to discuss/debate the issues raised. During the discussion seminars, you’ll consider key issues raised in preceding lectures and the weekly class readings which accompany them.

ART IN THE CONTEMPORARY WORLD

Code AMAA5090B

Credits 20

Art is a resource which can be used both positively and critically to affect the contemporary world around us. It may be exploited, most obviously for its economic value, but also for broader social or political gain. You will explore these different uses of art by addressing the factors that condition our contemporary reception of art works and visual culture. You will begin by examining some of the key methodologies for interpreting art’s contemporary functions, including its capacity to create contemporary identities and world-views. You will then turn to focus on the museum and gallery as spaces for these contemporary issues to emerge, before considering the same ideas at work in more quotidian ways. And, finally, you will conclude with a reflection on your own position as art historians, anthropologists, and archeologists working with art in the contemporary world.

ART AND ARCHITECTURE IN VENICE

Code AMAA5093B

Credits 20

Positioned at the hub of trade routes which spanned out across the known world, the city of Venice was a major commercial and political power during the medieval, renaissance, and early modern periods. It also grew to be one of Europe's most important centres of artistic production, with Venetian painters, sculptors, glassmakers, and architects channelling their city's diverse multiculturalism into a vast range of influential artworks. You will examine the development of art and architecture in the city from its earliest foundations through to the present day, tracing the aesthetic and urban history of what its inhabitants came to call 'La Serenissima,' the most serene city on earth. In previous years this module has featured a study trip to Venice.

ARCHAEOLOGIES OF THE MEDITERRANEAN WORLD

Code AMAA5098B

Credits 20

Using a range of case studies from the Mediterranean World, this module introduces students to some of the most significant themes and debates in the archaeology of the Mediterranean and archaeology more generally. Case studies will be drawn from a range of time periods and will address ‘the big themes’ in archaeology, such as cultural transmission, cultural development, societal collapse, trade and exchange, conflict, migration, empire and expansion, the emergence of urban societies, climate and society and ritual and religion. Often more than one theme will be included in a case study and the aim will be to understand how they relate to each other. For example, how does conflict or climate change contribute to migration or societal collapse?

CONTEMPORARY GALLERY AND MUSEUM STUDIES

Code AMAA5102A

Credits 20

You will examine how contemporary artists have explored the way in which contemporary galleries and museums function. Since the 1960s artists have adopted the museum as both subject and medium in their artworks. These seminars will examine how such projects impact on our idea of what galleries and museums are, how they operate, and what role they have in public life today. Throughout, key ideas regarding aesthetics, politics, memory, and audience participation will be approached by way of specific artworks and exhibitions. These sessions will be supplemented by workshops exploring art criticism, as well as a study trip to London.

AMERICAN ART AND AMERICAN PHOTOGRAPHY 1900-1950

Code AMAA5103A

Credits 20

You will examine the relations between art and photography in the United States in the first half of the 20th century. The central debate in American modernism has concerned the role of the medium, and considering photography in relation to the other visual arts permits a reassessment of this debate. Artists and photographers examined include Alfred Stieglitz, Georgia O’Keeffe, Marcel Duchamp, Diego Rivera and Walker Evans.

INDIGENOUS ARTS AND INDIGENOUS PEOPLES

Code AMAA5105A

Credits 20

You will begin by analysing what is meant by Indigenous arts and peoples. In particular, we shall consider the link between the anthropology of art and Indigenous identity. The inter-disciplinary approach continues, by examining issues related to the interpretation of indigenous arts in wide-ranging geographic and cultural contexts from North America, to India and Australia. It then questions Indigenous peoples' engagement with notions of ethnicity and heritage, as well as the formation of an ‘Indigenous media’ through film-making.

BLACK FREEDOM STRUGGLES: SLAVERY, 1619-1865

Code AMAH5043A

Credits 20

Race is central to the history of the United States. The conversations about race in 21st century America have their origins in a system of slavery that developed from the early colonial period. This module excavates these roots and thereby enables you to look to current conversations and understand where these began. You will follow a chronological sequence on the module, allowing us to trace the course of racial slavery in North America from its inception in 1619 through to its abolition in 1865. You will consider the roots of racism in the colonial era that strengthened during the antebellum years and beyond and consider their relationship with racial slavery. You will engage with the developing historical scholarship of slavery in the United States, gaining a deeper understanding of contemporary (then and now) debates concerning race and racial identity. Employing a range of resources including written and visual primary sources, oral histories, cinematic depictions, and nineteenth century novels, will allow you to see the networks of power articulated though race and ideas of otherness . You'll learn through a mixture of seminars and self-directed study, often working with artifacts or source materials in seminars to enable you to think collectively about their meanings. Assessment will be entirely through coursework. The study of slavery in the United States will make you a better historian, whatever your area of interest. Concepts of race and ideas of otherness are so central to the study of history in the 21st century that the techniques and strategies of analysis employed on this module will enable you to think about the arguments of others more effectively and also position yourself within those debates.

BLACK FREEDOM STRUGGLES: THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT

Code AMAH5050B

Credits 20

The African American freedom struggle did not begin or end with the civil rights protests of the 1950s -1960s. Since the demise of slavery, black activists have been forcefully demanding racial equality. From 1865 to the present day, African Americans have not only asserted their rights as citizens, but have demanded an end to economic injustice, while questioning the actions of the U.S. government both at home and abroad. This module examines black political and cultural protest in the United States over the course of the ‘long’ civil rights movement. Covering the period from the first years of black freedom following the Civil War to the emergence of Black Lives Matter, you will learn about the breadth and diversity of African American activism. You will challenge popular narratives of the civil rights movement and uncover the radical impulses that have animated the freedom dreams of black America. You will cover how African Americans responded to disenfranchisement, racial violence and economic inequality. You will also learn about the lives of key figures in the black freedom struggle such as Booker T. Washington, Nannie Helen Burroughs, Marcus Garvey, Mary McLeod Bethune, Stokely Carmichael and Angela Davis. Ultimately, through the study of primary sources and secondary texts, you will grapple with the complexity of black political thought and develop a detailed understanding of how African Americans counteracted white supremacy. On successful completion of this module you will have a broad understanding of the major trends in African American political and cultural history from the nineteenth century to the present day. You will able be able to clearly articulate how African Americans have shaped our understanding of the American nation, democracy and the meaning of human rights. Finally, through the close study of a range of cultural and political texts including autobiographies, speeches, newspapers and film, you will develop key analytical skills that are vital to the interdisciplinary study of history and politics.

LIVING ON THE HYPHEN: Multi-ethnic American Literatures

Code AMAL5077A

Credits 20

America has long been interpreted as the location of social possibility founded upon a desire to assimilate and negate ethnic 'others'. In this module, you’ll trace and explore the literary responses of distinct 'American' cultures: including Native American; African American; Asian American; and Latin American. Through studying each distinct group of texts, you’ll engage with the specific historical, cultural and political relationships between the US and each author's country of origin or national/cultural history, across the 20th and 21st centuries. You’ll also make connections between these distinct groups of writers, to consider topics such as race and racism, exile, return, family, belonging, identity, language and memory, colonisation, imperialism, slavery, segregation, immigration, and illegality/invisibility, with an emphasis upon contemporary experiences. Via important multi-ethnic writers and texts, you’ll explore what constitutes American literature aesthetically, temporally, geographically, and culturally, evaluate the value of the term ‘multi-ethnic’ and its place within American literary studies, and engage critically with questions of American literature as ‘World literature’. Through seminar based discussions, you’ll develop your ability to evaluate literary texts as contributions to historical revisions and debates, and also as representations of identity, belonging, the nation state, politics, and culture. You will be assessed through coursework, while gaining experience of communicating your ideas via seminar discussion and group presentation, and you’ll have the opportunity to engage in peer to peer assessment practices. On successful completion of the module, you’ll have the knowledge and skills to consider the diversity of American literature and the complexities of American cultural and national identity.

CONTEMPORARY MEDIASCAPES

Code AMAM5020A

Credits 20

You'll be provided with an understanding of media access, production, participation and use/consumption. Module content is organised around notions of space and place, thereby enabling engagement with issues including: globalisation/the global; national media and media systems; regional and local media; community and ‘grassroots’ media, domestic and ‘personal’ media. Over the course of the module, you'll develop an understanding of the range and reach of media and the multiplicity of factors determining how, when and where populations are enabled to access and participate in media activities. Parallel to the above will be an exploration, through selected case study examples, of media and cultural policy issues, spaces/places of media production as well as a critical engagement with questions of power in relation to these. The module also adopts a contemporary focus by incorporating debates about the role and potential of digital media and communications technologies in enabling new forms of media production, distribution and participation.

ANIMATION

Code AMAM5024A

Credits 20

Animation has long been one of the most popular and least scrutinised areas of popular media culture. This module seeks to introduce you to animation as a mode of production through examinations of different aesthetics and types of animation from stop motion through to cel and CGI-based examples. It then goes on to discuss some of the debates around animation in relation to case study texts, from animation's audiences to its economics. A range of approaches and methods will therefore be adopted within the module, including methods like political economics, cultural industries, star studies and animation studies itself. The module is taught by seminar and screening and is not a practice module.

RESEARCHING MEDIA

Code AMAM5025B

Credits 20

The module provides you with the key concepts and methods necessary to devise and execute an independent research project, whether using traditional academic methods or practice based research. As a result, you will cover the key processes involved in devising and focusing a research project, reflexively undertaking the research yourself and writing up your results. In the process, you will be shown how to position your work in relation to an intellectual context; devise the research questions that are practical and realistic; and develop research methods through which to address these questions.

FILM THEORY

Code AMAM5030A

Credits 20

This module explores aspects of film theory as it has developed over the last hundred years or so. It encompasses topics including responses to cinema by filmmaker theorists such as Sergei Eisenstein and influential formulations of and debates about realism and film aesthetics associated with writers and critics such as André Bazin, Siegfried Kracauer, Rudolf Arnheim and Bela Bálázs. You’ll study the impact of structuralism, theories of genre, narrative and models of film language; feminist film theory and its emphasis on psychoanalysis; theories of race and representation; cognitive theory; emerging eco-critical approaches; post-structuralist and post-modern film theory. You’ll be taught by lecture, screening and seminar. You’ll work with primary texts - both films and theoretical writings - and have the opportunity to explore in their written work the ways in which film theories can be applied to film texts.

FILM GENRES

Code AMAM5033A

Credits 20

Film Genres introduces students to the range of theories and methods used to account for the prevalence of genres within filmmaking. We investigate historical changes in how film genres have been approached in order to consider how genres have been made use of by industry, critics and film audiences. Genre theories are explored through a range of case studies drawn from one or more of a range of popular American film genres including the Western, science-fiction, melodrama, romantic comedy, the road movie, the buddy movie, film noir, the gangster film, the war film and action/adventure film. In exploring concepts and case studies relating to film genres the module aims to demonstrate the richness of film genre and its continuing relevance as a mode of analysis.

THE HOLLYWOOD STUDIO SYSTEM

Code AMAM5042B

Credits 20

Is there really 'no business like show business'? This module will develop your understanding of how silent-era, classical and post-classical Hollywood has developed as an industry, balancing the twin demands of creativity and commerce. Our aim is to encourage you to analyse how Hollywood works as an industry, the kind of films it produces, and the ways in which they are consumed by domestic and global audiences. You will engage with a variety of Hollywood films and be introduced to a range of theories and approaches for analysing how they are produced and consumed.

DOCUMENTARY

Code AMAM5045A

Credits 20

This module will introduce you to key issues in documentary history, theory and practice. You will engage with definitional and generic debates; historical forms and founders; different modes of documentary; ethical issues; and social and political uses. We will draw upon a range of national and media contexts and give you the opportunity to engage with a range of theories, archival materials, documentary styles and ethical debates within your written and practical work. At the end of module you will produce a documentary shaped by the traditions and theories you have studied, employing a range of archive film and television footage sourced from the East Anglian Film Archive.

THEORISING TELEVISION

Code AMAM5047A

Credits 20

This module explores some of the key ways in which television has been theorised, conceptualised and debated. You are offered insight into how the discipline of Television Studies has developed, as well as how television itself has developed - in terms of social roles, political functions and aesthetic form. The medium will be explored as a textual entity, a social activity (i.e. the focus on audiences and viewing), and a political agent (ideology and power). Part of our intention is to focus on how the specificities of television have been understood.

WRITING THE AMERICAN SCRIPT

Code AMAM5051A

Credits 20

For much of the twentieth century, the screenplay was synonymous with Hollywood, the Studio System, and “The Movies”: films as brash and bold as booming American power, written by screenwriting giants, such as Preston Sturges, Herman J. Mankiewicz, Billy Wilder, Anita Loos and Paddy Chayfsky. But much of what we love about more recent American film-making has been the work of writers outside the mainstream: John Cassavetes, Joan Micklin Silver, Charlie Kaufman, Spike Lee, Nora Ephron, Quentin Tarantino, and the like. Throughout, American screenwriting has produced work as dynamic and expansive as the nation itself. In this module you will move through the high points of American scriptwriting, using scripts, texts, and creative pastiche to develop an understanding of the form. Your work may be assessed through a mix of creative and critical work, writing exercises and a complete short script. In broadly the first half of the semester you will use pastiche and other techniques to develop basic screenwriting skills. The remainder of the term will be devoted to developing and workshopping an original script. You will be introduced to the basic dramaturgy of cinematic storytelling, screenwriting form and format, and skills in pitching and story development. This module will therefore help you develop your creative capacity, your communication skills, and will help broaden your commercial awareness.

WRITING THE AMERICAN SCRIPT

Code AMAM5052B

Credits 20

Writing the American Screenplay: Hollywood and Beyond For much of the twentieth century, the screenplay was synonymous with Hollywood, the Studio System, and “The Movies”; films as brash and bold as booming American power, written by screenwriting giants, such as Preston Sturges, Herman J. Mankiewicz, Billy Wilder, Anita Loos and Paddy Chayfsky. But much of what we love about more recent American film-making has been the work of writers outside the mainstream: John Cassavetes, Joan Micklin Silver, Charlie Kaufman, Spike Lee, Nora Ephron, Quentin Tarantino, and the like. Throughout, American screenwriting has produced work as dynamic and expansive as the nation itself. In this module you will move through the high points of American scriptwriting, using scripts, texts, and creative pastiche to develop an understanding of the form. Your work may be assessed through a mix of creative and critical work, writing exercises and a complete short script. In broadly the first half of the semester you will use pastiche and other techniques to develop basic screenwriting skills. The remainder of the term will be devoted to developing and workshopping an original script. You will be introduced to the basic dramaturgy of cinematic storytelling, screenwriting form and format, and skills in pitching and story development. This module will therefore help you develop your creative capacity, your communication skills, and will help broaden your commercial awareness. Students who achieve a mark of 68%+ either in this module or Adaptation and Transmedia Storytelling are eligible to enrol on Creative Writing: Scriptwriting in the School of Literature, Drama and Creative Writing at Level 6.

AMERICAN MUSIC

Code AMAS5023A

Credits 20

The first book published in the New World was a hymn book. Music, sacred and profane, has been at the centre of American lives ever since. Distinctive American musical styles still dominate the globe, as they have done for decades. But how did American music develop into the genres that we recognise today? How did uniquely American sounds catch the ear of listeners all over the world? You will gain a thorough understanding of the development of American music. You will focus on a number of distinctive musical traditions - from minstrelsy to blues, jazz, and country; from rock and roll to hip hop - and consider the way that they have shaped popular music today. Throughout the course, you will encounter a rich variety of music and an extraordinary range of characters, from the most famous entertainers in modern culture, to the obscure, the forgotten and the neglected. Whilst exploring the development of American music, you will also examine the ways in which its growth tells a larger story about the history of America and its people. In particular, it will give you a different perspective on the issue of race in American life. Through seminar discussion, written coursework, and group presentations, you will develop your analytical and critical abilities - whether that means your ability to think about the significance of a song and its meaning for a particular historical moment, or the way that the shifting meaning of a genre of music can tell us many things about its wider social and cultural context.

THE ORIGINS OF THE ENGLISH LANDSCAPE 4000BC TO 1066AD

Code HIS-5002A

Credits 20

On this module you’ll study the development of the English landscape from early prehistoric times to the late Anglo Saxon period. You’ll learn to identify and interpret key landscape features from the Neolithic, Bronze and Iron Ages before moving on to study Roman and Anglo Saxon landscapes. Lectures, seminars and field trips will provide you with an introduction to the approaches and sources used by landscape historians and landscape archaeologists. You’ll develop your understanding of landscape history through the study of key sites such as Stonehenge, Hadrian’s Wall and Sutton Hoo. The chronological approach of the module will provide you with an understanding of long term landscape change, telling the story of the English landscape from prehistory to the eve of the Norman Conquest.

THE ENGLISH LANDSCAPE 1066 TO 1600

Code HIS-5003B

Credits 20

You’ll examine the development of the English countryside during the Middle Ages. You’ll discuss the nature of rural settlement, high status buildings and landscapes and 'semi-natural' environments.

ANGLO-SAXON ENGLAND, C. 400-1066

Code HIS-5005A

Credits 20

The Anglo-Saxon period spanned 600 years from the end of Roman Britain to the Norman Conquest. It was a period of turmoil, seeing waves of immigration, the clash of peoples and religions, and kingdoms jockeying for control. Out of this crucible England emerged. This is the story of how it came to be. Using contemporary sources, you will learn to handle evidence and reconstruct the worldview of people who lived over a thousand years ago. Anglo-Saxon history teaches you to go a long way with a little evidence; to use your imagination to fill in the gaps. Whether it's new to you or something you've studied before, you'll achieve a deeper and richer understanding of how the nation was formed. Via lectures, seminars and private study, you'll discover the Romans, Saxons and Vikings; the strange treasure they left behind; the cryptic and conflicting chronicles (learning to read between the lines), and debates we still haven't resolved today. Developing your powers of argumentation, you'll run into questions with no certain answer. Building with fragmentary evidence will boost your creativity, and you'll encounter ancient artefacts. (Trips have included West Stow Anglo-Saxon village and Norwich Castle Museum.) At the end of the module you'll command an overview of how England came into being. You'll also have built your ability to see other people's points of view, even if they lived a thousand years ago. This is a crucial ability whether in personal or professional relationships. Also learning to argue with evidence as fragmentary as the evidence we'll explore will hone your problem-solving skills to an unusual degree.

FROM HASTINGS TO THE HUNDRED YEARS WAR: NORMAN AND PLANTAGENET ENGLAND 1066-1307

Code HIS-5007B

Credits 20

This module examines a critical period in English History. We begin with the Conquest of England by the Normans and look at the ways in which as a consequence England was drawn into European affairs. The mid point is the loss of those continental lands in 1204 and the Magna Carta crisis of 1215. We then explore the domination of Britain by the English kingdom and end with the start of England’s next great European adventure, The Hundred Years War.

FROM AGINCOURT TO BOSWORTH: ENGLAND IN THE WARS OF THE ROSES

Code HIS-5009B

Credits 20

You will explore one of the most turbulent and dynamic periods in English history: c.1400-1485. In addition to exploring the narrative of events as it unfolded chronologically you will also learn about topics such as: theories of medieval kingship, the relationship between church and state, the relationship between England and Continental Europe, medieval warfare, chivalry and knighthood, the relationship between national and local concerns, and the opportunities for people of all genders to participate in political struggle. You will have the opportunity to read a wide range of primary sources as well as considering key historiographical debates. Upon completion of your module, you should have a more nuanced understanding of the exercise of power in the 15th century and how the deeds and decisions of those in charge impacted the lives of people further down the social spectrum. You should also have honed your skills in primary source analysis and historiographical scrutiny.

THE RISE AND FALL OF BRITISH POWER

Code HIS-5011A

Credits 20

You will examine Britain's expansion and decline as a great power, from the end of the Napoleonic Wars to the mid-twentieth century. During this module, you will consider the foundations of British power, the emergence of rivals, Britain's relationship with the European powers and the USA, and the impact of global war. You will also investigate the reasons for Britain's changing fortunes, as it moved from guarding the balance of power to managing decline.

NAPOLEON TO STALIN (and beyond): THE STRUGGLE FOR MASTERY IN EUROPE

Code HIS-5017B

Credits 20

This module deals with the rivalries of the Great Powers from the end of the Napoleonic Wars to the onset of the Cold War and its end with collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. We shall be examining topics such as the Vienna system; the Crimean War; Italian and German unification, the origins of the First and Second World Wars and the Cold War period.

MODERN GERMANY, 1914-1990

Code HIS-5018A

Credits 20

We will introduce you to German history in the twentieth century, which was characterised by various radical regime changes and territorial alterations. Topics include German world policy and nationalism in the late imperial period; imperialism and expansionism during the First World War; the challenges of modernity in the Weimar Republic; the rise of Hitler and the formation of the Nazi empire in Europe; the post-war division of Germany and the legacy of the Third Reich; the nature of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) dictatorship and the problem of West German terrorism; as well as the fall of the Berlin Wall and reunification. Special attention will be given to questions of nationalism and national identity, issues of history and memory, and Germany’s role in Europe and the world. On completion of this module you will have developed a solid understanding of one of the most dramatic periods of German history when the country oscillated between the two extremes of war and repression, on the one hand, and the return to peace and democracy, on the other.

HERITAGE AND PUBLIC HISTORY

Code HIS-5026A

Credits 20

What shapes our view of history and heritage? How do we balance academic approaches with the need to engage an audience? How do we assess the significance of historic buildings and sites? On this module you’ll explore these questions by studying the ways in which history is presented in the public sphere, in museums and galleries, at heritage sites and historic buildings, in the media and online. Through lectures, seminars and field trips you’ll gain an understanding of different current approaches to history and heritage, exploring themes such as the role of museums, the commemoration of historic events and the development of digital heritage.

EARLY MEDIEVAL EUROPE: WARRIORS, SAINTS AND RULERS

Code HIS-5042A

Credits 20

You'll explore the experiences and fortunes of the peoples of the western peninsula of Eurasia between the rule of the Emperor Constantine I in the 330s and the call to crusade in the 1090s. At the beginning of the period, the lands centred on the Mediterranean and much of its hinterland were situated within the Roman empire. Yet, within three hundred years, this empire had disintegrated and been replaced by a number of successor states, ruled by competing dynasties. These states included Visigothic Hispania, Vandal Africa, and Merovingian Francia. Another—in fact, the longest lived of all the successor states—was the eastern empire centred on Constantinople, long known to historians as ‘the Byzantine empire’. By the close of the 7th century, many of these states had themselves been conquered by Arabic and African warriors committed to the new religion of Islam and been incorporated in the Caliphate centred on the city of Damascus—an empire which easily rivalled the might, spread, and power of Rome before its own collapse and fission in circa 1000. What Islamic rulers could do, so too could Christian ones. In 800 the son of a Frankish usurper, Charlemagne, was crowned emperor of the West. The actions and ambitions of this emperor were as formative and as formidable in the history of 9th and 10th century Europe as those of Napoleon in the 18th and 19th. The heirs and successors of Charlemagne—whether Frankish, Ottonian, or Scandinavian—were long compelled to negotiate his legacy and memory. By the 11th century, even the Roman pontiffs, now advancing a new programme of reform and renewal, were looking to situate themselves in relation to his Salian successors. The summons to liberate Jerusalem and rescue the Greek empire in the east, carefully tailored to the aspirations of the new élites of Francia and Catalonia, was perhaps the most explosive strategy advanced by these Roman pontiffs. This course is thus broad in chronological scope, covering more than eight hundred years, and extensive in geographical range, taking us from the Atlantic to the Euphrates, from the Atlas mountains to the North Sea. In the course of this journey we'll meet many warriors, saints, and rulers, both female and male.

THE FIRST BRITISH EMPIRE

Code HIS-5045A

Credits 20

Between the sixteenth and the early nineteenth centuries, the English crossed the oceans and claimed territory on every continent other than Antarctica. This module surveys the creation and growth of British Empire, examining its origins and its impact on an array of peoples. In the context of studying how the empire spread and functioned, we will consider the varied experiences of Africans, Native Americans, Aboriginal Australians, Protestant refugees from the continent of Europe, the peoples of India, the Irish, and British settlers across the globe. The complex, intimate, and often violent interactions of these groups led to ideological battles pitting loyalism against republicanism, for example, and imperial “civilization” against an array of indigenous cultural revivals. At first glance these struggles may seem to place the British against the subject peoples of their empire, but on closer examination it becomes apparent that they fractured nearly every population within the imperial domains. The creative energy of the British Empire stemmed in large part from collaborations between British groups and individuals and segments of their purported imperial subjects in building, reforming, or in some cases seeking to destroy the structures of imperialism

PROPAGANDA

Code HIS-5050B

Credits 20

This module introduces you to the history and theory of propaganda, and its role in society. You’ll consider what constitutes and defines propaganda. Focusing on the 20th century, we examine propaganda in a range of political settings, both totalitarian and democratic, in the local context of the relationships of power and communications. The module is structured chronologically, starting with the development of propaganda during World War I and finishing with a consideration of propaganda in the 21st century.

TWENTIETH-CENTURY BRITAIN, 1914 TO THE PRESENT

Code HIS-5057B

Credits 20

The Great War transformed domestic expectations and ushered in an age of Mass Democracy and economic hardship. After 1945 the welfare state and full employment saw rising affluence, accompanied by the emergence of youth cultures, a sexual revolution and new forms of radicalism and identity politics. The economic crisis of the 1970s sped-up deindustrialisation whilst the neoliberalism of Thatcher and her successors deepened inequalities and stoked nationalist sentiment. We explore the social, political and economic history of these tumultuous years.

HISTORY OF MODERN ITALY

Code HIS-5060B

Credits 20

Since the unification of the states of the Italian peninsula, the history of modern Italy has been the subject of intense historical debate. Modern Italy has often been cast as a ‘weak’ state and ‘fragile’ nation, riven by particularism and by competing secular and religious ideologies, ‘economically backward’, less successful than its national neighbours, and ‘the least of the Great Powers’. More recent historiography has sought to challenge or modify these perceptions in a number of ways, and this course examines modern Italian history from unification to present day, in the light of these ongoing historiographical debates. a) Italian nationalism, the process of Italian unification and the attempts to create national unity after 1870; b) the relationship between socio-economic change and political development in Liberal Italy; c) the impact of the First World War on Italian society and politics; e) the nature of the Fascist regime and its impact on Italian society; f) the radicalisation of the regime, its racial policies and the quest for Empire; g) Italy’s role in World War II, the reasons for the collapse of the Fascist regime, and the emergence of civil war. h) Italian history since 1945

WOMEN, POWER AND POLITICS II, THE DUCHESS OF DEVONSHIRE TO NANCY ASTOR

Code HIS-5063B

Credits 20

We will explore female involvement in politics, from the Duchess of Devonshire’s infamous activities in the 1784 Westminster election until 1919, when Nancy Astor became the first woman to take her seat in the House of Commons. We will examine topics including the early feminists, aristocratic female politicians, radical politics and the suffragettes, and will investigate the changes and continuities with female engagement with the political process from the eighteenth century through to the twentieth century.

TUDOR ENGLAND

Code HIS-5067A

Credits 20

The Tudors are England’s most famous royal dynasty. This module seeks to move beyond the traditional stories of Henry’s turbulent marriages and Elizabeth’s stunning victory over the Spanish Armada. You'll gain a better understanding of the change and turmoil the Tudor century caused, not just to the monarchs themselves but to the lives of their subjects, the everyday people of England. Beyond establishing a strong chronological knowledge of the 16th century and its religious upheavals, the module will consider issues of gender; the changing construction of the social order; the importance and developing role of local elites; problems caused by poverty and dearth; and the position of England within Britain itself and within Europe.

STUART ENGLAND

Code HIS-5067B

Credits 20

We will explore the dramatic century of Stuart rule in England. This ‘century of revolution’ included the union of the English and Scottish crowns, the dramatic upheaval of the civil wars, and the continued political instability that led to the birth of political parties and the Glorious Revolution. While exploring these political themes we will also consider developments such as: the birth of modern news culture, crowd politics, civil society and coffee shops, the origins of empire, state formation, and the emergence of England as ‘a nation of shop keepers’ and Europe’s great ‘constitutional monarchy’.

BEGINNERS' GERMAN I - A1 CEFR

Code PPLB4018A

Credits 20

Have you ever wished you could order your mulled wine at the Christmas market in German? How would it feel be to be able to introduce yourself in German or survive a basic conversation in the language? Or do you simply want to understand what makes the Germans, the Austrians, or the Swiss tick? These questions highlight the central learning achieved within this module. Our beginners’ course in German is perfect if you have very little or no prior knowledge of the language. You will gain the confidence to use German in basic conversations as you develop a first understanding of German sounds and essential grammar. You will build up a bank of key vocabulary to survive in real-life situations. You will also gain a greater awareness of German traditions and ways of thinking to help you make sense of a country that is deeply rooted in the heart of Europe. In a relaxed environment you will participate in classroom-based activities, working in pairs and groups to try out and be creative with new sounds, words and phrases. The fun of language learning will never be far away and promises to give you the confidence to make the first steps in German. As well as speaking and listening to each other you will discover the joy of understanding an authentic German text and to write an amazing first paragraph in German. A first course in German will enable you to add a vital skill to your CV. At this crucial political and cultural moment in time the study of the German language and culture will without doubt make you a more attractive graduate and informed global citizen, whatever your specialism or area of interest. Please note that you should not have a level of German that exceeds the level of this course.

BEGINNERS' GERMAN II - A2 CEFR

Code PPLB4019B

Credits 20

Do you want to refresh and further develop your basic German skills? Would you like to converse with a native speaker beyond the first introductions? Or do you simply want to understand a little more about what makes the Germans, the Swiss or Austrians tick? This follow-on course is perfect if you have completed the Beginners 1 module or have very basic knowledge of the language. You will gain more confidence in using German in conversation as you become ever more familiar with essential German grammar. You will learn how to express opinions, wishes and requests, and how to master the skill of congratulating and complimenting other people. During this module you will also gain further awareness of German traditions and ways of thinking to help you make sense of a country that is deeply rooted in the heart of Europe. In a relaxed environment you will participate in classroom-based activities, working in pairs and groups to try out and be creative with new words and phrases. The fun of language learning will never be far away and promises to give you the confidence to maintain a conversation and express yourself to a target audience in writing. As well as speaking and listening to each other you will apply a range of strategies to help you make sense of authentic German texts. A solid beginners’ course in German will enable you to add a vital skill to your CV. At this crucial political and cultural moment in time the study of the German language and culture will without doubt make you a more attractive graduate and informed global citizen, whatever your specialism or area of interest. Please note that your current level of German language should not exceed the level of this course.

BEGINNERS' ARABIC I

Code PPLB4029A

Credits 20

This course is a pre-requisite to the study of Arabic language. You will master the alphabet: the script, the sounds of the letters, and their combination into words. You are introduced to basic Arabic phrases and vocabulary to help you have introductory conversations. You will develop essential speaking, listening, reading and writing skills as well as a solid understanding of the structure of the language in Modern Standard Arabic (MSA). Some aspects of the Arab world and culture(s) are covered.

BEGINNERS' ARABIC II

Code PPLB4030B

Credits 20

This is the second part of a beginners' course in Arabic following on from Beginners' Arabic I. Students with a basic knowledge of Arabic writing and speaking may join this module.

INTRODUCTION TO BRITISH SIGN LANGUAGE I

Code PPLB4031A

Credits 20

How would you converse with someone who is deaf? At work? In school? In an emergency? How can you avoid typical faux pas due to ignorance of a different culture? Can a 'signed'/'visual' language 'convey as adequately' as a 'spoken' language? These questions highlight the central learning achieved in this module. This is a course in British Sign Language assuming no prior, or minimal knowledge of the language. Throughout the course you will discover aspects central to the Deaf World and its Culture, and how to communicate through a unique 'visual' language, a language that uses your hands and body to communicate! Teaching and learning strategies involve signed conversation (from early on), role-play, and lots of games and exercises that make a truly 'fun and enjoyable' module to take. You will learn a little about the history of the Deaf and Sign Language itself, and its long battle to be recognised. You will discover how using your body and hands can be an exciting and meaningful way of communicating. You will acquire a wide range of easily usable vocabulary, a deeper look into various features that make the language unique, and very different to spoken languages. On successful completion of this module you will have developed knowledge and skills that will enable you to communicate with a Deaf person. You will be able to take your British Sign Language studies onto the next level, broadening your knowledge and developing further, the skill within this amazing 'Visual' language. Please note that very occasionally subsidiary language modules may be cancelled due to low enrolment. Students who are found to have a level of knowledge that exceeds the level for which they have enrolled may be asked to withdraw from the module, at the Teacher's discretion.

INTRODUCTION TO BRITISH SIGN LANGUAGE II

Code PPLB4032B

Credits 20

Having gained an insight in communicating using a 'visual' language, how would you relate a story, a narrative or a conversation using more than two people? How would you describe where something is in a room, the room itself or give directions involving a map? This module builds on your studies in British Sign Language giving you confidence and further skills in communicating with the deaf. Teaching and learning strategies continue to involve a more fluent signed conversation, role-play, and lots more games and exercises embedding your learning that makes this an exciting module to take! In this module you will continue to look at deaf culture, address and look at various equipment that assists the Deaf in their everyday life. For example, how do they know someone is at the door? Can they communicate over the telephone? What would happen if you were in a building on fire? On successful completion of this module you will have developed knowledge and skills that will enable you to communicate confidently with a Deaf person. Your will broaden your knowledge and understanding of a truly unique and amazing form of communication and a culture so very different than what you may have encountered before. Please note that very occasionally subsidiary language modules may be cancelled due to low enrolment. Students who are found to have a level of knowledge that exceeds the level for which they have enrolled may be asked to withdraw from the module, at the Teacher's discretion.

INTRODUCTION TO BRITISH SIGN LANGUAGE I (SPRING START)

Code PPLB4033B

Credits 20

How would you converse with someone who is deaf? At work? In school? In an emergency? How can you avoid typical faux pas due to ignorance of a different culture? Can a 'signed'/'visual' language 'convey as adequately' as a 'spoken' language? These questions highlight the central learning achieved in this module. This is a course in British Sign Language assuming no prior, or minimal knowledge of the language. Throughout the course you will discover aspects central to the Deaf World and its Culture, and how to communicate through a unique 'visual' language, a language that uses your hands and body to communicate! Teaching and learning strategies involve signed conversation (from early on), role-play, and lots of games and exercises that make a truly 'fun and enjoyable' module to take. You will learn a little about the history of the Deaf and Sign Language itself, and its long battle to be recognised. You will discover how using your body and hands can be an exciting and meaningful way of communicating. You will acquire q wide range of easily usable vocabulary, a deeper look into various features that make the language unique, and very different to spoken languages. On successful completion of this module you will have developed knowledge and skills that will enable you to communicate with a Deaf person. You will be able to take your British Sign Language studies onto the next level, broadening your knowledge and developing further, the skill within this amazing 'Visual' language. Please note that very occasionally subsidiary language modules may be cancelled due to low enrolment. Students who are found to have a level of knowledge that exceeds the level for which they have enrolled may be asked to withdraw from the module, at the Teacher's discretion.

BEGINNERS' RUSSIAN I - A1 CEFR

Code PPLB4043A

Credits 20

Winston Churchill once said that ‘Russia is a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma’. Russia gave the world Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Shostakovich, Chagall and borsch! Would you like to know more about the largest country in the world and unwrap some of the mysteries of its history, culture and politics through its language? This is a beginners’ course in Russian assuming little or no prior experience or knowledge of the language. In the first week you’ll acquaint yourself with the Russian alphabet (it’s not that different) and learn to read Russian. At the end of the course you’ll know all the basics of Russian grammar, will be able to read simple texts and to use your speaking skills in real-life situations (in case you find yourself lost in Red Square)! You’ll participate in classroom-based activities, often working in pairs and groups exchanging ideas and supporting each other in your exploration of the language. You’ll be able to improve and develop your grammar and vocabulary skills through watching Russian films, reading newspaper articles and short stories, discussing their content and expressing your opinion. Having a Russian language course on your CV will give you an advantage over other graduates, and it will also provide work opportunities in Eastern Europe, Russia and the countries of the former Soviet Union. This course will also help you to become a more informed global citizen whatever your specialisation or area of interest. Please note that you should not have a level of knowledge in Russian that exceeds beginners’ level when enrolling on this course, or you may be asked to withdraw from the module (at the Teacher’s discretion). Please contact us if you’re unsure.

BEGINNERS' RUSSIAN II - A2 CEFR

Code PPLB4044B

Credits 20

Winston Churchill once said that ‘Russia is a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma’. Russia gave the world Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Shostakovich, Chagall and borsch! Would you like to know more about the largest country in the world and unwrap some of the mysteries of its history, culture and politics through its language? Before enrolling on this course you’ll need to be acquainted with the Russian alphabet, able to read and write in Russian, and to know a few initial items of grammar and vocabulary (skills that will be learnt in the Beginners' Russian I module). At the end of the course you’ll know all the basics of Russian grammar, you’ll be able to read more complex texts and you’ll have improved your speaking skills in real-life situations (in case you find yourself lost in Red Square)! You’ll participate in classroom-based activities, often working in pairs and groups exchanging ideas and supporting each other in your exploration of the language. You’ll be able to improve and develop your grammar and vocabulary skills through watching Russian films, reading newspaper articles and short stories, discussing their content and expressing your opinion. Having a Russian language course on your CV will give you an advantage over other graduates, and it will also provide work opportunities in Eastern Europe, Russia and the countries of the former Soviet Union. This course will also help you to become a more informed global citizen whatever your specialisation or area of interest. Please note that you should not have a level of knowledge in Russian that exceeds the beginners’ level specified above when enrolling on this course, or you may be asked to withdraw from the module (at the Teacher’s discretion). Please contact us if you’re unsure.

BEGINNERS' ARABIC I (SPRING START)

Code PPLB4045B

Credits 20

Its aim is the mastery of the alphabet: the script, the sounds of the letters, and their combination into words. Also, it introduces basic Arabic phrases and vocabulary to help you have introductory conversations. You will develop essential speaking, listening, reading and writing skills as well as a solid understanding of the structure of the language in Modern Standard Arabic (MSA). Some aspects of the Arab world and culture(s) are covered.

BEGINNERS' GERMAN I (SPRING START) - A1 CEFR

Code PPLB4047B

Credits 20

Have you ever wished you could order your mulled wine at the Christmas market in German? How would it feel be to be able to introduce yourself in German or survive a basic conversation in the language? Or do you simply want to understand what makes the Germans, the Austrians, or the Swiss tick? These questions highlight the central learning you will achieve within this module. Our beginners’ course in German is perfect if you have very little or no prior knowledge of the language. You will gain the confidence to use German in basic conversations as you develop a first understanding of German sounds and essential grammar. You will build up a bank of key vocabulary to survive in real-life situations. You will also gain a greater awareness of German traditions and ways of thinking to help you make sense of a country that is deeply rooted in the heart of Europe. In a relaxed environment you will participate in classroom-based activities, working in pairs and groups to try out and be creative with new sounds, words and phrases. The fun of language learning will never be far away and promises to give you the confidence to make the first steps in German. As well as speaking and listening to each other you will discover the joy of understanding an authentic German text and to write an amazing first paragraph in German. A first course in German will enable you to add a vital skill to your CV. At this crucial political and cultural moment in time the study of the German language and culture will without doubt make you a more attractive graduate and informed global citizen, whatever your specialism or area of interest. Please note that you should not have a level of German that exceeds the level of this course.

INTERMEDIATE GERMAN II - A2/B1 CEFR

Code PPLB5033B

Credits 20

Would you like to take your German to a higher level and start to become a more independent user? Wouldn’t it be tempting to be able to describe the plot of a good film or book? Or take part in simple discussions and manage to hold your own? Fancy promoting a TV-series from to a native German speaker? This follow-on course is perfect if you have completed the Intermediate module or have basic A-level experience in German but not if you are already working at a higher level than this. You will become more independent in conversation with others as you continue to explore essential grammar and vocabulary at a higher level. You will learn how to talk about experiences, hopes and ambitions in a more complex way and how to master the skill of persuasion. During this module you will develop a deeper understanding of the German way of thinking through looking at current affairs and iconic German television programmes. In a relaxed environment you will participate in classroom-based activities, working in groups to try out and be creative with new words and grammar structures. The fun of language learning will never be far away and promises to give you the confidence to hold your own in discussions and presentations. As well as speaking and listening to each other you will apply a range of strategies to help you produce and understand longer texts. A sound intermediate course in German will enable you to add a vital and highly valued skill to your CV. At this crucial political and cultural moment in time the study of the German language and culture will without doubt make you a more attractive graduate and informed global citizen, whatever your specialism or area of interest.

INTERMEDIATE GERMAN I - A2 CEFR

Code PPLB5151A

Credits 20

Would you like to take your basic German skills to a higher level? Wouldn’t it be tempting to be able to express a range of feelings in German? Or take part in simple discussions and manage to hold your own? Fancy presenting a cultural event in your country to a native German speaker? This module is perfect if you have already completed Beginners modules or have sufficient pre-A-level experience of German but not if you are already working at a higher level than this. You will become more competent and confident in conversation with others as you explore essential grammar and vocabulary at a higher level. You will learn how to express opinions and preferences in a more complex way and how to master the skill of agreeing and disagreeing. You will gain the confidence to present to a small audience and shine in the process of it. During this module you will develop your understanding of the German way of thinking through shining a light at cultural traditions and events. In a relaxed environment you will participate in classroom-based activities, working in groups to try out and be creative with new words and phrases. The fun of language learning will never be far away and promises to give you the confidence to hold your own in basic discussions and presentations. As well as speaking and listening to each other you will apply a range of strategies to help you produce and understand longer texts. A basic intermediate course in German will enable you to add a vital skill to your CV. At this crucial political and cultural moment in time the study of the German language and culture will without doubt make you a more attractive graduate and informed global citizen, whatever your specialism or area of interest.

INTRODUCTION TO THE EUROPEAN UNION

Code PPLI5044A

Credits 20

Who rules the EU? What does it do concretely for EU citizens? How democratic is it? How serious are the challenges it is currently facing, from the reform of its economic governance to Brexit? To explore these questions, and more, you'll examine the development, structure, nature and functions of the European Union. You'll look at the history and theories of European integration from the 1940s to the present day. You'll explore the institutions and processes which run the EU, and demystify its main policies. The aim of the module is not only to ensure that you understand the ‘nuts and bolts’ of what the EU is and how it works. You'll also examine critically and articulate contending arguments on key issues such as the role of the member-states in the European system of governance; the EU's democratic credentials; the causes and consequences of Brexit; or the influence of the EU in the world. The EU is an integral part of its member states' structures of governance and it influences their domestic political, social and cultural life, as well as EU neighbouring countries. Understanding how the European Union works is important in many jobs at local, national or international levels in the public, private and third (community and voluntary) sectors. This module is recommended if you intend to progress to the 'European Studies with Brussels Internship’ module in Year 3.

POWER, WEALTH AND NATIONS: GLOBAL POLITICAL ECONOMY

Code PPLI5161B

Credits 20

What if I told you that the West was no longer the power centre of the world’s economy? Could Pax Sinica provincialize the UK as political economic power settles over Hong Kong and the Pearl River Delta? What would Adam Smith, Karl Marx and Friedrich List have to say about global transformations underway in the global political economy? And, as Susan Strange famously put it: cui bono: Who benefits from all these transformations? Multinational corporations, nation states, financial sector, exporting economies, citizens? You’ll investigate the accumulation of wealth, movement of capital, centres of power, flows of globalisation, patterns of trade, and the ubiquity of finance in a world being transformed by innovation where emerging powers challenge the status quo of North Atlantic powerhouses.

CONTEMPORARY JAPANESE SOCIETY

Code PPLJ5012B

Credits 20

In this module, you’ll analyse contemporary Japanese society using topical issues in Japan and deepen your understanding of the country and people. All lectures are conducted in English. Throughout the module, you’ll learn about various topical issues such as family, gender and education, uncover the roots behind these and develop your findings and ideas into a discussion. You’ll use various materials including academic articles and digital resources including online news articles and audio-visual materials. Through not only reading the news but also considering the stories in depth and the reasons behind the issues happening in Japan, you’ll develop and improve your research and analytical skills. You’ll also be able to discern and compare similarities and differences between Japanese culture and society and your own country.

LANGUAGE AND SOCIETY

Code PPLL5170A

Credits 20

Do accents define us? Do we need to change how we speak depending on who we are speaking to? Is language sexist? These are key questions to consider when think about sociolinguistics, the study of language and society. After all, Language is a powerful thing, an aspect of human behaviour that both defines and reflects the cultural norms of different societies. Our aim is to provide an introduction to sociolinguistics and throughout the module you will discover a wealth of different approaches to analysing language in relations to many different social variables, such as class, gender or social distance. You’ll gain a firm grounding in sociolinguistic frameworks, methods and concepts, and also learn how to communicate linguistic ideas, principles and theories by written, oral and visual means. You’ll begin with an overview of the field of sociolinguistics and key social variables. You’ll then delve deeper, uncovering core concepts such as dialectology, Code-switching, genderlects, language policy, multilingualism, and interpersonal dynamics. By looking at the different methods and types of evidence used by sociolinguists, you’ll become proficient in the different ways of working in this fascinating subject. Learning will be through a mixture of seminars and self-directed study. Seminars will include practical opportunities to practice your skills in linguistic analysis. You’ll be assessed though coursework (100%), but will present your research for your coursework during the module as part of the formative assessment. The module is open to anyone interested in learning more about sociolinguistics, and you do not need to be studying a language to take this module – just have an interest in language and how we use it. On successful completion of the module, you’ll have the knowledge and skills to take your understanding of language and society, and how we communication and interpret this communication, and apply it to many different areas of study. You’ll develop your research, writing and presentation skills. And you’ll be able to communicate your ideas more effectively, putting your thinking to the test by sharing it with others.

GENDER AND POWER

Code PPLM5002A

Credits 20

Providing a conceptual overview of feminist research approaches, this module examines contemporary gender and power relations. You will examine both the formal and informal power structures that shape the experience of gender. Bringing together the fields of media and sociology, politics and cultural studies, you will explore the relationship between feminist theory and activism.

POLITICAL VIOLENCE & CONFLICT: THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES

Code PPLM5002B

Credits 20

Political violence, individual or collective, is easily condemned as an irrational and barbaric phenomenon, with little relevance for understanding political developments and social change. A lot is down to LeBon’s famous nineteenth century accounts of the crowd as ‘a primitive being’ so destructive ‘that the interests of the individual, even the interest of self preservation, will not dominate them’ (LeBon, 1995). The taboo of violence persists despite attempts of social and political theorists to engage with the issue and understand different forms and contexts, from riots, to religious violence and terrorism. The aim of the module is to break this generalized taboo by tracing the role (explicit or implicit) of political violence in political theory and its function in processes of socio-political transformations and change. Critical engagement with contemporary theoretical and empirical debates around the issue and the examination of mass and new media representations of political violence will enable students to develop a sophisticated understanding of the origins, logics, perceptions and outcomes of political violence and conflict.

MEDIA, GLOBALISATION AND CULTURE

Code PPLM5003B

Credits 20

What role do media and communication play in processes of globalisation? How is an ever more global media creating cultural change? In this module you will explore the cultural implications of global media and culture by investigating audience practices and media representations. It begins by introducing the main theoretical approaches to mediated globalisation, before examining how these work in practice. Indicative topics include the power of global branding, global celebrity culture, global publics and local audiences, transnational cultures, and representations of migration.

LIES, ALGORITHMS AND CONCERTOS: UNDERSTANDING MEDIA AND CULTURAL POLICY

Code PPLM5005B

Credits 20

How should we deal with the dissemination of 'fake news'? What role do algorithms play in the media we consume, and is it concerning? What kind of government intervention is there in media markets and in cultural life and how does this get decided? This module will enable you to understand the dynamics and issues of media and cultural policy and how various levels of governance are involved in regulating media cultural sectors. The module will start by introducing you to public policy and policy making processes, covering multi-level governance, multi-stakeholderism, and the policy cycle. It will then enhance your understanding though deep dives into current issues in media and cultural policy, such as audiovisual media policy, arts institutions, net neutrality, harmful content on platforms, sports and premium content rights, urban regeneration through culture, evolving models of (self/co-)regulation. The module will draw on examples from across the globe and at various level including local, regional, national and supra-national policy making, with special efforts made to integrate ones from non-Western contexts. You will have the opportunity to work on real policy issues and practice professional skills in simulations and assessment activities. This module is for anyone interested in media and culture or in public policy in general. It covers topics that touch our daily lives so would be useful to anyone concerned about the shape of our society.

THE MEDIA AND IDENTITY

Code PPLM5042B

Credits 20

How do the media shape how we see ourselves? Or indeed how others see us? In a world of social media, self-branding and the increasing importance of mediated forms of identity, on this module you will explore critical ways of thinking about the relationship between culture, media and the self. Drawing on a range of theoretical approaches in the field of media and cultural studies, this module asks you to use research methods from autoethnography to content analysis to explore both their own identities and the way in which identities more broadly are formulated through contemporary media culture. Through discussing the representation of identity in media content, as well as issues of media production, regulation and consumption, you will critically reflect upon the relationship between media culture and social power and consider how social and technological changes impact on the ways in which identity is experienced in everyday life. On successful completion of this module, you should be able, at threshold level, to critically reflect upon the ways in which media texts construct social identity and should be able to discuss the relationship between media and identity with awareness for social, institutional and technological factors that shape both media production and consumption. Assessment is by group presentation and independent research project.

DIGITAL MEDIA AND SOCIETY

Code PPLM5053A

Credits 20

For better or worse, digital technologies are hyped at having revolutionised society. This module will provide you with an introduction to the ways in which the internet and other digital technologies are (and are not) affecting society from theoretical and empirical perspectives, and how society shapes technology. Topics covered include: the evolution of the internet; the network society ; regulating new media; the radical internet and terrorism; social networking, blogs and interactivity; culture and identity in the digital age; and how the internet affects politics and the media.

MIND AND LANGUAGE FOR SECOND YEARS

Code PPLP5173A

Credits 20

In this module you will be invited to engage with some of the key issues that figure in Philosophy of Mind and in Philosophy of Language, and to identify the interconnections between the two. Some major thinkers in the field, both recent and from earlier periods of the Western canon of philosophy, will be studied, and chosen set texts may be selected for close attention as relevant. Topics might include the mind-body problem, the nature of mind and its relation to the brain, issues connected with meaning and understanding, how (if at all) language governs, limits or facilitates thought, and the relation between language and the things about which we use it to talk. By taking this module in your second year you will explore a selection of these topics. A further selection of these topics is available in the complementary Level 6 Mind & Language module, which you can take in your third year.

PHILOSOPHY MEETS THE ARTS (SECOND YEAR MODULE)

Code PPLP5176B

Credits 20

Philosophy has much to say about the arts, and much to learn from them. In this module you will have a chance to explore some aspects of this relationship. Some issues that arise fall into what we would call aesthetics and the philosophy of art: we can ask about the value of art, aesthetic experience and judgement, artistic creativity, interpretation and representation, and we can investigate the views of many past thinkers on these matters. On the other hand, we can also use art to illuminate philosophy, and for this purpose we have chosen to focus primarily on cinema (while “literature and philosophy” investigates similar questions in connection with literature”). This module will focus on one or other of these two aspects of the encounter with beauty and the arts, but you may also wish to take the complementary module at level 6, in your third year, in order to cover both aspects of the subject.

ENVIRONMENTAL PHILOSOPHY FOR SECOND YEARS

Code PPLP5177B

Credits 20

How can we avoid environmental catastrophe? How can philosophy help? The relationship between human beings and the natural world is the basis of everything we are and yet we do not seem to have found a way to avoid destruction, degradation and potential catastrophe. In this module we will examine various ways in which philosophy can examine our relationship with the natural world and contribute to the fight to protect the planet. Topics may include the ethics of climate change; value theory and nature; human-animal relationships; the ways science, art and politics affect our relationships with the natural world. This module will cover a selection of these topics, and students may wish to continue the course by taking the complementary Level 6 module in their third year.

KEY THINKERS AND TEXTS FOR SECOND YEARS

Code PPLP5179A

Credits 20

The history of philosophy, from ancient times to our own, is richly studded with exciting and innovative thinkers, whose ideas still spawn a vast volume of research and reflective criticism. These great minds are our partners in many fascinating slow-motion dialogues that extend over decades, centuries and even millennia. We converse with them about some of the most significant issues in the field. In this module you’ll join in this discussion by taking part in seminars focused on reading and discussion of some more of the original texts (in English translation, if that is not the original language), under the guidance of a research expert in the field. Texts will be selected by the seminar leader, to complement your other second and third year modules, and will not include precisely the same texts as are included elsewhere in the philosophy Honours programme. Rather we’ll aim to focus on thinkers whose work is insufficiently addressed in the other modules. Examples of thinkers that will be most likely to appear in the seminars for this module include Plato, Aristotle, the Presocratic Philosophers, Ancient Sceptics, Enlightenment thinkers such as David Hume, Immanuel Kant, René Descartes, George Berkeley, thinkers from early Analytic philosophy, early or late Wittgenstein, Simone Weil or Iris Murdoch. During this module you’ll be taught in a seminar/reading group style, with each group meeting on a weekly basis for twelve weeks. One or more such seminar groups may meet, depending on student enrolments and staff availability, and each group will be reading a different text or texts, from a different period or school of thought. You’ll be enrolled into whichever group interests you most (you’ll need to say which one you want to attend when you sign up for the module). Seminar groups will run with a minimum of ten students in the group: if you choose a group with less than 10 participants, you’ll be offered a choice of a different seminar group or a different module. This is a free-standing module that can be taken by itself. However, by taking this module in year 2, and the complementary Level 6 module in year 3, you can create a two semester course, exploring a selection of historical thinkers and adding a fitting supplement to the topical modules that you’ll be taking over these two years.

WESTERN POLITICAL THOUGHT

Code PPLX5064A

Credits 20

In this second year module you will examine in depth the works of selected thinkers who are seminal to the Western tradition of political thought, and have shaped the ways in which we think about politics even today, including Plato, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Mill and Machiavelli. You will also compare their work thematically, with a focus on themes such as the natural law and social contract traditions, and other schools of thought which have been influenced by these traditions. The module will be based on the study and interpretation of key primary texts and will enable you to develop skills of textual analysis and critique. It will also provide some of the historical background necessary to study more contemporary political theory at 3rd year undergraduate level, as well as building substantially on some of the political theories encountered on Social and Political Theory at first year level. The module is taught by a combination of weekly lectures and seminars, supported by private study of your own, and you will be assessed by coursework, usually a combination of an essay and a portfolio which reflects on your reading and seminar performance throughout the semester.

STATES, INSTITUTIONS AND CITIZENS

Code PPLX5162B

Credits 20

Political systems around the world are facing profound challenges and transformations. Established democracies in Europe and North America have seen the rise of populism, as marked by election of Donald Trump in the USA, the Brexit referendum in the UK or Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil. Democracy has also been in retreat in many states which democratised or partly democratised after the cold war such as Russia and Poland. At the same time, autocratic regimes in the Middle East and North Africa have come under pressure, with movements such as the Arab Spring signalling aspirations amongst many people for a more democratic system of governance. This module provides you with a critical understanding of how political systems vary around the world and the pressures facing them. It begins by focusing on the drivers of democratisation. It then proceeds to consider how political institutions such as the executive, legislature and the degree of decentralisation vary - and the effects that this has. Finally, we consider new trends in citizen's voting behaviour at the ballot box and pressure groups campaigning for change. You'll gain a critical awareness of current debates in comparative politics and develop key skills including critical evaluation, analytical investigation, written presentation, and oral communication.

POLITICS IN THE USA

Code PPLX5164A

Credits 20

The election of Donald Trump as President in 2016 has radically changed US politics. Yet to fully understand the current times, contemporary American politics needs to be put into context. This module covers the historical themes that exist in US politics from the eighteenth century to the present day. The emphasis will be on modern political history and contemporary politics, but this will be underpinned by a knowledge of the political philosophy at the time of the formation of the United States, the governmental structures, and political developments over historical time.

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Important Information

In their 2nd and 3rd years combined, students must take no more than a total of 150 credits from modules coded LDCD and no more than a total of 150 credits from modules coded LDCL.

Assessment for Year 3

Compulsory Modules

DRAMA AND LITERATURE: THE QUESTION OF GENRE

Code LDCL6017B

Credits 30

You will explore the relationship between the study of literature and the study of dramatic performance both creatively and theoretically. Its practical aspect consists of an adaptation for the stage of a literary text, which you will freely chosen and test by workshop performance, and its theoretical aspect consists of attempts to define the narrative modes of the epic, the lyric and the dramatic, with the dramatic further dividing into tragedy and comedy. These two aspects of the course converge in considerations of how you have drawn on these narrative modes in your own adaptations, and how great writers throughout the centuries have created works which stand on thresholds between them e.g. theatrical novelists or lyrical dramatists. One question which underlies all critical engagement with the subject of genre is whether generic awareness should be understood as an historical encumbrance which stands in the way of representing or expressing personal experience, or whether it is a necessary and enabling resource for increasing the receivers’ pleasure or extending their philosophical horizons. Critics have stood on either side of the debate.

Optional A Modules

(30-90 credits)

CREATIVE WRITING DISSERTATION (AUT)

Code LDCC6003A

Credits 30

This is an advanced level module which is for final year CW minors. The module allows students an opportunity to write a substantial short story (approximately 6000 words) or drama script (60 pages) or collection of poems (15-25 poems, totalling between 270 and 290 lines) and to develop an understanding of their own motivations, influences and processes through the production of a reflective self-commentary (2000 words). This module aims to encourage independent learning and the initiation and development of new creative material in a way that provides a grounding in the disciplines necessary both for postgraduate research and the professional practice of writing. Students must be on the English Literature with Creative Writing course OR have received a mark of 68%+ in a previous creative writing module AND have a project proposal approved by the module convenor as well as a faculty member.

DRAMA PRODUCTION (YEAR 3)

Code LDCD6007A

Credits 60

This module enables you to cover the development and delivery of a full-scale theatre production (usually of a scripted, possibly classical play): involving planning, rehearsal, technical contribution, performance and self-evaluation. Please note, you will be expected to be available during all business hours of the working week throughout the Autumn semester, in addition to evening and weekend rehearsals during the final weeks of the process.

DRAMA DISSERTATION

Code LDCD6009A

Credits 30

You will have the opportunity to produce an independently researched dissertation of 8,000 words on some aspect of drama or dramatic literature, performance theory and practice. This may treat drama in the medium of theatre, TV, film or radio, or it may take the form of a drama script (45-60 minutes running time).

DRAMA DISSERTATION

Code LDCD6010B

Credits 30

DRAMA PROJECTS

Code LDCD6011B

Credits 30

Individual performance projects with supervision, leading to presentation (usually before the external examiner). The module requires you to present a finished performance piece (max. 15 minutes for solo pieces: max. 30 minutes for joint pieces) developed from research and rehearsal using any appropriate media. You may choose to write, direct, perform, produce or anything else appropriate, including any mix of these roles. The overall conception, design and presentation of the piece should be clearly the responsibility of the individual(s) offering the project. The performance is presented to a panel of drama faculty markers (normally, but not essentially, including the External Examiner).

LITERATURE DISSERTATION: POST-1789 (AUT)

Code LDCL6018A

Credits 30

You’ll be provided with the opportunity to write an 8000-word dissertation on literature of the period from 1789 to the present day (excluding American literature). The dissertation topic must be agreed by a supervisor, and both topic and supervisor approved by the module organiser.

LITERATURE DISSERTATION: POST-1789 (SPR)

Code LDCL6019B

Credits 30

LITERATURE DISSERTATION: (pre-1789) (AUT)

Code LDCL6061A

Credits 30

You’ll be provided with the opportunity to write an 8000-word dissertation on literature of the period before 1789 (excluding American literature). The dissertation topic must be agreed by a supervisor, and both topic and supervisor approved by the module organiser.

LITERATURE DISSERTATION: (pre-1789) (SPR)

Code LDCL6062B

Credits 30

Optional B Modules

(0-60 credits)

CONTEMPORARY DRAMA AND FILM

Code LDCD6103B

Credits 30

In this module you will examine emergent voices and trends in recent theatre, film and television (mainly British but with some American or European contributions). Topics covered include the (questioned) demise of explicitly political drama and the appearance of previously silenced voices (e.g. gay and lesbian themes, feminist playwrights and writing ethnicity, physical theatre practitioners). In this course you will also examine recent works related to representations of (for example) religious controversy, sexual identity, politics and the social impact of scientific discovery.

TRAGEDY (pre-1789)

Code LDCD6106A

Credits 30

You will look at the long history of tragedy in an effort to understand what, if anything, allows us to call both Oedipus Rex and Death of a Salesman tragedies. We will begin with the age-old question of what is the difference between tragedy in “real life” and on stage. Our answers to this question will help us isolate what it is that makes a performance specifically tragic rather than “merely” dramatic, moving, emotional. Our first readings will focus on the ancient Greeks, the inventors of tragedy, and the religious, artistic, and political circumstances that helped create this genre. Throughout the semester we will repeatedly return to the Greeks to see how more modern tragedies adapted or rejected their notions of the tragic and created new tragic criteria particular to their own time and place. We will look at the ways in which ancient tragic notions of personal responsibility are affected by new ideas about mental health, socioeconomic pressure, nature, and Christianity. Also, as we see tragedy moving into different media, such as opera, the novel, and film, we will examine the ways in which the different media of music, prose, and cinema affect the tragic effect.

SPECIAL TOPIC IN DRAMA

Code LDCD6108B

Credits 30

This module is designed to help you deepen your confidence and practice in the acting skills you've encountered up to and including the 3rd year. It is not a requirement that you should have done the Drama Production module in the Autumn semester. Building on the foundations of the 1st year and following 2nd year modules such as Actor and the Text, and The Director, the Actor and the Script, this weekly seminar-workshop allows you to review and deepen your creative tool-kit as a performer. You will be working on exercises, both new and familiar, which stretch your acting and strengthen your craft. You will be guided in the development of a confident, personal approach to your acting process which will serve you after you graduate. Your weekly classes will be supplemented by additional, focused workshops, outside the timetable. Come prepared to dig in: the work will be revealing, vulnerable-making, enlivening, playful, fun, scary, joyous and life-affirming.

THROUGH THE LOOKING-GLASS: NONSENSE AND MODERN WRITING

Code LDCL6015A

Credits 30

It's widely recognised that modernist literature is characterised by a revolution of the word. Less widely recognised, and little explored, is the relationship between modernist linguistic experimentation and literary nonsense. Beginning with two 19th-century writers, Carroll and Dickinson, you will go on to explore various of the radical disruptions in ordinary sense and meaning practiced across 20th-century writing, asking about their purposes and possibilities, and inquiring into what they tell us about ordinary language. You will take in such subjects as William’s Empson’s analysis and practice of poetic ambiguity; surrealism’s Freudian inquiry into the illogical language of the unconscious; Joyce’s invention of new words to express this illogic; Plath’s surrealist play with metaphor; the early Auden’s distortion of syntax, pronoun, and tense; and Ashbery’s indeterminacy. We will read such work against various theories of nonsense, laughter, and play. Your principal focus will be on poetry and language itself and there will be detailed discussions of word-history, ambiguity, broken syntax, incomplete metaphor. Major topics will include the relation of nonsense to dreams, jokes, games, and madness, and this will be informed by psychoanalytic theory, especially in Freud’s writing. This is not a course on children's literature, but on some very challenging modern literature, mostly poetry. You will need to enjoy uncertainty and have good close-reading skills. There will be opportunities for creative writing of nonsense and creative writers are encouraged to take the module. By the end of the module you should have an understanding of the various ways in which modern writers have revolutionised and distorted language, and the reasons why they did so. You should be able to analyse the differences to meaning made by such distortions, and to trace the gaps in sense that they open. You should be able to draw on relevant theories of nonsense, laughter, play, childhood, and language, to enrich your analysis. You could offer your own creative writing in the same mode of nonsense, and if so, this will show an understanding of the techniques of the writers studied. In either case, you will have done some of your own original reading, thinking, and research, beyond the texts and topics covered in seminars.

WRITING LIFE: BIOGRAPHY AND CREATIVE NON-FICTION

Code LDCL6026B

Credits 30

‘Truth is stranger than fiction’ and it’s often more moving, powerful, inspiring and funnier too. You’ll have plenty of opportunity to discover some extraordinary ‘true’ stories on this module as well as the possibility to write one of your own. You’ll think about the ever-shifting boundaries between ‘truth’ and ‘fiction’ as well as the ethical questions that arise when you’re writing about real people and situations. This is a module that enables you to do something very different in your final semester at UEA. During this module you’ll consider if and how non-fiction writing differs from fictional literature. You’ll learn about research, how to read and interrogate personal documents and the challenges presented by memory and anecdote. How do you assemble facts so that the resulting story is as compelling as fiction? What clothes can the non-fiction writer steal from the novelist’s wardrobe? Throughout the module you’ll read different types of non-fiction and think about how individual authors weave their research material into narrative form. You will have the opportunity to write your own piece of non-fiction for your summative assessment if you wish. This is a 5,000 word creative or critical piece which everyone will workshop during the semester. There will also be tutorials in which you can discuss your summative work. By the end of the module you’ll have gained an understanding of the craft of non-fiction and you’ll have developed your ability to ask pertinent questions of any non-fiction you read, be it a newspaper story or a highly researched account of a life or situation. You’ll have honed your research abilities and perhaps your interview skills too if you decide to write something that involves interviews. You’ll also have thought about the ethical implications that may arise when writing about ‘real life’ - all qualities that are highly valued by employers.

QUEER LITERATURE AND THEORY

Code LDCL6033B

Credits 30

This module offers you the chance to learn about LGBTQ literature and its development in English-speaking countries, as well as approaches to queer theory, and the relationship of both literature and theory to culture and current events. This means analysing sexuality and gender and the representation of such identities in literature and society, and discussing topics such as intersectionality, the body, and heteronormativity. Authors studied may include James Baldwin, Alison Bechdel, Gore Vidal, and Sarah Waters, as well as children’s books and young adult novels by Nancy Garden, Ellen Wittlinger, and Marcus Ewert. Authors of theoretical texts looked at may include Nikki Sullivan, Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick, Luce Irigaray, Judith Butler, Leo Bersani, and Teresa de Lauretis. Understanding how LGBTQ characters are featured in literature also helps us to see how queer people are understood in a given society in general, so you will also discuss current events and their links to literature and theory. You will look at a variety of genres in order to see how these different text types work, how they queer genre, and how they approach similar themes in different ways.

NERVOUS NARRATIVES

Code LDCL6046A

Credits 30

‘We all say it’s nerves, and none of us knows what it means’, says a character in Wilkie Collins’ 1860 novel, The Woman in White. Our aim is to think about how a discourse of the ‘nerves’ – the ‘nervous temperament’ and nervous illness – can be both so pervasive culturally and so slippery in its meaning. This interdisciplinary module takes you from the late 17th century, when the concept of ‘neurologie’ first emerged, to the 21st century, linking literary, medical and philosophical writing to explore the representation - the discursive formation - of the ‘nerves’. The historical range of the module is not meant to imply a transhistorical understanding of nervous illness or temperament, but rather will enable us to analyse the historically specific nature of the nervous body and what it is made to mean, culturally, within different contexts. In this way, we will be working with issues as diverse as religious ‘enthusiasm’, hysteria and hypochondria, sensibility, sensation, fear of modernity, neurasthenia, manliness and effeminacy, shell-shock, PTSD and the concepts of the healthy or fragile body of the nation. Spanning time and genre, the literary texts studied will take us from the earliest, Jonathan Swift’s satire, A Tale of a Tub (1704) up to Siri Hustvedt’s analytical memoir, The Shaking Woman, Or, A History of My Nerves (2010). The module equips you to work within an interdisciplinary frame and across historical periods from the late 17th century to the present.

SHAKESPEARE: SHADOW AND SUBSTANCE (pre-1789)

Code LDCL6056B

Credits 30

Platonist epistemology permeated Elizabethan culture: the aim of this module is to explore the relationship of Shakespeare's topic of the world as a stage to Neoplatonic conceptions of perception, politics, poetry and love. We will consider Plato as a poetic philosopher and Shakespeare as a philosophical poet by asking what difference the ‘dramatic’ form of Plato's Socratic dialogues makes to their 'ideas', and, conversely, how in Shakespeare's plays, particularising plots unfold into generalising arguments. In both cases, the concern is with how dramatic form with its special mixture of what is seen, what is said, what is known and what is enacted, can clarify perennial philosophical questions. We'll also touch on several possible mediators between Plato and Shakespeare, including Castiglione, Erasmus and Sir Philip Sidney.

MEDIEVAL MONSTROSITIES (pre-1789)

Code LDCL6081B

Credits 30

Did medieval people really believe in monsters? Giants, dragons and half-human hybrids are just some of the fantastical creatures that populate Middle English literature. Too readily dismissed by modern readers as mere whimsy, or else the product of credulous minds, instead this module takes monsters seriously as revealing facets of a sophisticated myth-making society. You will consider monsters in a range of genres such as romance, saints' legends, travel writing and visual imagery, as well as their reception by medieval and modern readers and critics. You will interrogate the various discourses of monstrosity and consider what makes a monster through consideration of topics such as: the horror and allure of the monstrous body; monstrous appetites; sexuality and sexual deviance; geography and racial alterity. You will also explore the literary and cultural construction of 'human monsters' (women, pagans, Jews) rendered 'other' due to their perceived divergence from societal and religious norms. You will be able to apply your developing understanding of the discourse of monstrosity in a range of practical contexts such as field trips. Previous experience of Middle English literature will be an advantage but is not required. By the end of the module you should have a more nuanced understanding of the place of monstrosity in medieval literature and have an increased awareness of the ways in which language is used to both shape and respond to perceived differences.

THE ART OF MURDER

Code LDCL6130A

Credits 30

Crime, like death, has always been with us, yet it was only in the 19th century that de Quincey proposed considering murder as one of the fine arts and Poe established many of the central tenets of crime fiction with his 'tales of ratiocination'. Currently, crime fiction is the most bought, and read, literary genre and one diverse enough to include 'whodunits'; Baker Street's most notable resident; the genteel amateur detectives of the 'Golden Age'; hard-boiled thrillers; noir; psychological fiction and even the post-modern iterations of anti-detective fiction. Narratives about crime and criminals, detection and sleuths (not forgetting the violence and victims) can be both conservatively formulaic and radically diverse. It can articulate dangerous and disturbing transgressions against society (the crime) while also revealing the ideological forces of law (what constitutes a crime) order (the various detective figures) and the systems of justice and ill-justice (courts and punishment, state and government) with which a society protects and proscribes itself. Crime fiction is also concerned with interpreting clues, discovering secrets and solving enigmas, much in the way that critical theory investigates and analyses literary texts. In this module you will explore key texts and writers in the development of crime fiction as well as examining critical and theoretical responses to such texts. It will allow you to respond both creatively and critically to the concerns of, and thinking about this diverse genre.

FEMINIST WRITING

Code LDCL6132B

Credits 30

We are witnessing an upsurge in feminist activism which some claim is forming the fourth wave of feminism. It is timely then to reconsider how feminist writing (literary texts, literary theory, and literary criticism) has helped to shape, influence, and articulate debates about gender, sexuality, and society in the past and how contemporary feminist writing is continuing to be part of that conversation now. You'll have the opportunity to read and analyse some of the most influential feminist literary texts and literary theory. Writers studied on the course may include Margaret Atwood, Henrik Ibsen, Angela Carter, Jean Rhys, Jeanette Winterson, Sylvia Plath, Virginia Woolf, Ali Smith, Beyoncé, and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. You'll study the ways in which feminist criticism and theory (including Kristeva, Cixous, bell hooks, Haraway, and Butler) has reshaped the canon, challenged the ways literature is taught as well as making us consider what literature can, might and ought to be. Feminism has also exacted different forms of writing and challenged dominant modes of representation. We will take a particularly close look at the relationship between feminism and the gothic, the short story, and experimental writing. Assessment will be by course work and project and you'll be assessed in both critical and creative modes. Students of all genders are equally welcome.

URBAN VISIONS: THE CITY IN LITERATURE AND VISUAL CULTURE

Code LDCL6138A

Credits 30

This interdisciplinary module explores how 'the city' has been thought about and represented through a selection of writings (fiction, poetry, theory), visual material (painting, photography, film, street art) and occasionally other sensory material (sound, smell), spanning around 1850 to the present day and focused on two particular cities and great capitals of modernity, Paris and London. In this period the growth of the great European cities has created a new and diverse set of environments and possibilities. Utopias, dystopias, sites of ruin and construction of all kinds; what different, contradictory or coherent versions of urban experience do these texts and images offer? We'll investigate what kinds of writing, art, discourses and attitudes cities seem to generate. Was modernism, for example, as Malcolm Bradbury asserts, an ‘art of cities'? How do textual and pictorial techniques intersect, for example, in the case of nineteenth-century Impressionist art and writing, twentieth-century Surrealism, Situationist provocations, or contemporary street art and photography? What is ‘psychogeography’? In the company of the flâneur/flâneuse, the detective and other urban wanderers, we'll consider aspects such as space, place, urban being and time, love and eroticism, hauntings, crime, memory and the presence of the past, the individual and the crowd, consumption, nature and the natural, urban Gothic, and the pressures, preoccupations and thrills peculiar to urban living and imagining. The main mode is seminar discussion, supported by short lectures, virtual gallery visits and film viewings. Assessment is by means of an individually designed project which is supported by individual tutorials and formative work of various kinds, including the opportunity to practise reading images and spaces, as well as literary texts. There is scope to produce creative-critical (including visual) work as part of your assessment.

GHOSTS, HAUNTING AND SPECTRALITY

Code LDCL6160A

Credits 30

From Defoe’s True Relation of Mrs Veal’s posthumous visit to her friend Mrs Bargrave through the classic English ghost stories of MR James to the ghosts in the machine of modern media, the ghost, shade, revenant or spectre continues to haunt human imagination. Subtle shadings of the spectre materialise at different times, in different contexts – materialised reminder of unquiet remains; manifestation of memory or the unconscious; physiological disturbance; psychical stain. These undecidable and ambivalent presences, or uncanny sensations of hauntedness, will be explored in this module. Writers studied on the module might include Daniel Defoe, M.R. James, Henry James, Margaret Oliphant, May Sinclair and Susan Hill. The module will draw on studies mapping the development of the belief in ghosts (Sasha Handley’s Visions of an Unseen World) and exploring the cultural history (Andrew Smith’s The Ghost Story 1840 – 1920). It will also consider critical engagements, such as Jacques Derrida’s Specters of Marx and Jodey Castricano’s Cryptomimesis.

AFTER NATURE: LITERATURE AND THE ENVIRONMENTAL CRISIS

Code LDCL6164B

Credits 30

Where do debates in environmentalism, cultural geography and literary criticism meet? What does contemporary literature have to tell us about our relationship with space, place, landscape, nature, rurality, ecology, and even a ‘sense of planet’? On this module you will encounter a range of post-war and contemporary forms, from poetry, short stories, the novel, and literary non-fiction to visual art, the radio essay and film. Each will offer fresh and surprising ways of thinking about a range of different contemporary environments and about our place in a changing world. We will consider in what ways literary genres and traditions have helped to create and produce our understanding of geography in the past and how recent literary works have reworked some of these genres and traditions to mark contemporary changes. We will consider, for example, how authors since the environmental crisis have engaged with/inherited/reworked early modern chorography, the Romantic travelogue, the naturalist’s journal, and the rural essay. To what new ends are these forms put in an uncertain and unstable modern world? Among others, the course will explore work by Alice Oswald, Rana Dasgupta, Tim Robinson, Kathleen Jamie, Patrick Keiller, J.G. Ballard, and Robert Macfarlane. It will also include trips to investigate the nature writing holdings at UEA’s British Archive for Contemporary Writing. Assessment will give you the opportunity to, initially, create your own critical or creative radio essay/podcast (formative) and, later, develop a deeper knowledge of one of the week’s themes, building your own critical (or creative non-fiction) project around it (5,000 word summative). While there are no pre-requisites, this module complements and develops themes explored on level 5 ‘Writing the Wild’ and level 6 ‘Urban Visions: The City in Literature and Visual Culture’.

LITERATURE AND SCIENCE 1660-1750 (pre-1789)

Code LDCL6170A

Credits 30

What is science? What is scientific language? Did you know that there was no such thing as a scientist until 1833? We’re accustomed to thinking of literature and science as separate disciplines – science deals with cold hard facts, literature with the imaginary and fictional – but to the occupants of the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries, such a distinction would have been strange and unfamiliar. On this module, you’ll investigate how the current separation between literature and science came about. You’ll explore the social, cultural, and ideological imperatives that secured the dominance of science in intellectual discourse; you’ll examine how notions of scientific objectivity emerged; and you’ll discover how the new and allegedly more ‘rational’ knowledge produced by scientific practice was received by its first audiences. You’ll read a variety of texts, ranging from advocates of the new science (such as Thomas Sprat, part founder of the Royal Society in 1660, and Richard Bentley, proponent of later Newtonian philosophy); to early modern scientific writing (such as Robert Hooke, who famously described a fly’s eye seen through a microscope, and Robert Boyle, whose experiments with a bird inside an air pump became one of the most well known images of the enlightenment); to literary estimations of the value (or otherwise) of scientific knowledge. This module will provide you with a sense of historical perspective, and an understanding of the kinds of agenda implicit in the modern claim that STEM subjects make the humanities seem both impracticable and unprofitable.

NEW NARRATIVE

Code LDCL6172A

Credits 30

New Narrative began as a late 20th century creative rebellion. From its origins in 1970s punk, second-wave feminism and the gay rights movement, New Narrative writers explored and exploited the relationship between the personal and the political, gossip and literature, high and low art. It is the place where the tell-all memoir meets critical theory, and the place from which writers talked about their own desires and their own experiences in order to challenge the status quo. It is also a writing of friendship and coterie, a place to collaborate and to be influenced: many texts from the New Narrative movement were worked on in workshops that took place in the back rooms of bookshops or in each others’ apartments in San Francisco. Over the last 40 years, New Narrative has spawned generations of radical, experimental, genre-defying writers, from Kathy Acker to Chris Kraus to Maggie Nelson. You'll explore the major themes of New Narrative through reading key texts from the movement. You'll also explore the theoretical and cultural influences surrounding the movement. You will think carefully about the role of the writer in relation to the text, particularly the phenomenon of the ‘cult’ writer; you'll be encouraged to focus your critical studies on one particular New Narrative author in order to explore their life and legacy alongside their body of work. Finally, there will be opportunities to produce your own ‘freak’ and genre-defying texts.

THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE: TRANSLATING LOVE, DEATH AND ADVENTURE (pre-1789)

Code LDCL6188A

Credits 30

For something to be reborn it must first die. The Italian Renaissance ('rebirth') sought to disinter the past in order to reanimate the present, but in order to do so the present had to come to terms with its loss – as Petrarch asked, 'who can doubt that Rome would rise again instantly if she began to know herself?'. How can we best understand this process of loss and reanimation? How did Renaissance writers understand it, and how did they bridge the gulf between death and rebirth? And can we do the same? In order to answer these questions, you’ll examine the twin practices of imitation and translation in English responses to some of the most exciting and influential texts of the Italian Renaissance. It does so in two ways: through a sustained analysis of those practices in their diverse forms and genres (sonnets, epic, dialogue, drama), and by imitating the process of creative imitation ourselves. In other words, we step into the shoes of the Renaissance imitator. The module allows us to understand how Italian poets such as Dante, Petrarch and Ariosto responded to the classical past (and each other), and how English poets and playwrights such as Wyatt, Spenser, Shakespeare and Jonson responded to Italian models. By imitating the imitators – for example by writing sonnets – we gain a deeper understanding of how imitation is both a creative practice and a critical process, both a reading and a rewriting. Students are not expected or required to know any Italian in advance.

Optional C Modules

(0-30 credits)

ADAPTATION AND SCRIPTWRITING

Code AMAM6116B

Credits 30

Today more films are made from adaptations than wholly original screenplays. All scriptwriters preparing for work in the business today should therefore be aware of the process and nature of script adaptation. You will explore the practice of scriptwriting, dramaturgy and story structure; and explore key theories of adaptation, from the earliest ideas of ‘fidelity’ to the source, to later approaches emphasising intertextuality, and the movement of narratives across media. You can examine a series of different examples of narrative adaptation across literary and media contexts.

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Entry Requirements

A Levels

BBB or ABC including an English Literature or BBC including English Literature with an A in the Extended Project

BTEC

DDM in an Arts/Humanities subject (usually Performing Arts) alongside a grade B in English Literature. BTEC Public Services, Uniformed Services or Business Administration not accepted

Scottish highers

AABBB including English Literature

Scottish highers advanced

CCC including English Literature

Irish leaving certificate

2 subjects at H2 and 3 subjects at H3 including English Literature

Access course

Pass the Access to HE Diploma with Merit in 45 credits at Level 3 including 12 credits in English Literature or Theatre Studies at Merit

European Baccalaureate

70% overall including 70% in English Literature

International Baccalaureate

31 points including Higher Level 5 in English

GCSE offer

You are required to have Mathematics and English Language at a minimum of Grade C or Grade 4 or above at GCSE.

Additional entry requirements

If you do not meet the academic requirements for direct entry, you may be interested in one of our Foundation Year programmes.

Alternative Qualifications

UEA recognises that some students take a mixture of International Baccalaureate IB or International Baccalaureate Career-related Programme IBCP study rather than the full diploma, taking Higher levels in addition to A levels and/or BTEC qualifications. At UEA we do consider a combination of qualifications for entry, provided a minimum of three qualifications are taken at a higher Level. In addition some degree programmes require specific subjects at a higher level.

Students for whom english is a foreign language

Applications from students whose first language is not English are welcome. We require evidence of proficiency in English (including writing, speaking, listening and reading):

IELTS: 6.5 overall with a minimum of 5.5 in each component

We also accept a number of other English language tests. Please click here to see our full list.

If you do not yet meet the English language requirements for this course, INTO UEA offer a variety of English language programmes which are designed to help you develop the English skills necessary for successful undergraduate study:

Pre-sessional English at INTO UEA

English for University Study at INTO UEA

Interviews

If your application tells us that you're capable and enlivened by your chosen course, we will invite you to a one-to-one workshop with an academic. This is a chance to meet us, discuss the course and work on a monologue from a play you love, giving you a taste of what it would be like to study Drama here at UEA. Workshops take place on Applicant Days and include opportunities to look around the campus, view accommodation, meet current students, talk to staff members and find out more about what happens here. You'll be asked to bring a monologue that you enjoy so that you can work on it together with an academic. We'll also talk about your current studies, extra-curricular interests and the theatre that excites you.

Gap year

We welcome applications from students who have already taken or intend to take a gap year. We believe that a year between school and university can be of substantial benefit. You are advised to indicate your reason for wishing to defer entry on your UCAS application.

Intakes

This course is open to UK, EU and International applicants. The annual intake for this course is in September each year.

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Course Reference Number: 1546073

BA ENGLISH LITERATURE AND DRAMA