CC4301 is a pre-requisite for all literature modules in Years 2 and 3

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1 CORE MODULES YEAR 1/LEVEL 4 CC4301 Introduction to Literature: Form and Theory How do we interpret what we read? Why do two people reading the same text have different interpretations of it? The study of literature encompasses a range of forms, and this module focuses on two of the most familiar: poetry and the novel. We study some of the ways that structure and language create meaning, focusing on the importance of textual analysis as part of wider debates about interpreting literature. The module also introduces the key interpretive frameworks that help us make sense of literary texts. We look at how these frameworks theories can be applied to literature in order to produce different interpretations, and in how theories of literature and culture have changed. Theories we will study include structuralism, Marxism, psychoanalytic theory, feminism, postcolonial theory, queer theory and deconstruction Indicative reading: Tyson, Critical Theory Today; Boyle, The Tortilla Curtain; Reid Banks, The L-Shaped Room; Selvon, The Lonely Londoners; selection of poetry from the nineteenth to twenty-first centuries Assessed by one textual analysis, one essay and one exam CC4301 is a pre-requisite for all literature modules in Years 2 and 3 CC4303 Popular Fiction What s popular books, music, television, fashion has something to tell us about the context in which it was produced, read, re-read and critiqued. Popular and populist texts are important precisely because they articulate particular interests, fears and desires. We also consider the relationship between various genres and culture more widely, to understand their social significance. In this module we look at forms of genre fiction, including science fiction and fantasy, young adult fiction, intercultural literature, detective/crime fiction and romances. We examine the key aspects of each form, including style, theme, plot and character. Indicative reading: du Maurier, Rebecca; Hosseini, The Kite Runner, Martin, A Game of Thrones; Conan Doyle, The Speckled Band and Other Stories; LeCarre, The Spy Who Came in from the Cold; Asimov, I, Robot; Poe, The Tell-Tale Heart Assessed by one textual analysis, one essay and one group presentation CC4305 Approaches to Shakespeare William Shakespeare is one of the most significant writers in the English language, and his work is a cornerstone of the study of literature in higher education. Why has Shakespeare remained so important, and what can his work and his enduring popularity tell us about our contemporary world? We study a range of

2 Shakespearean drama in order to understand its importance both historically and culturally. In addition to a close analysis of the texts, we will consider some of the many possible interpretations of these plays both in theory and in practice. Indicative reading: Shakespeare, The Tempest; Richard III; Henry V; Much Ado About Nothing; Macbeth; Othello; The Merchant of Venice; McEvoy, Shakespeare: The Basics; Ryan, Shakespeare; Wells and Orlin, Shakespeare: An Oxford Guide Assessed by one critical analysis portfolio and one essay OPTION/STRAND MODULES YEAR 1/LEVEL 4 CC4302 Tradition and Change in Western Literature What is literature, and how has our understanding of changed over time? How did literature begin? What are the key texts that we should be familiar with as scholars of literature and who decided which texts are most important? This literature module explores the origins of western literature and signposts some of the important issues and ideas we ll examine in more detail in the second and third years of the degree. In the second half of the module, we look at literature that challenges the established traditions of western literature, in form, content and authorship. Indicative reading: Homer, Odyssey; Sophocles, Oedipus the King; Sir Gawain and the Green Knight; Dante, Inferno; Tennyson, The Lotus Eaters; Mansfield, Bliss, Ionesco, The Chairs; Lamming, In the Castle of My Skin; Borges, The Secret Miracle; poetry by Pound, Moore, Stevens, Cobbing, Morgan, Phillips Assessed by one textual analysis portfolio and one essay CC4101 Creative Writing: Creative Practice I How do writers begin to imagine? This Creative Writing module introduces different processes and approaches in the development of fiction. Students will examine poetry, prose and scripts to explore the strategies that support creative writing. Assessment: portfolio, revised essay, critical reflection MS4202 Film: Film Analysis How do we make sense of visual imagery? What different approaches can we take to analysing film? This module examines a range of films and interpretive strategies. CC4406 History: Britain and Europe in the Long 19 th Century Why is the nineteenth century so important to our understanding of Britain and the rest of Europe, both historically and in contemporary life? This History module explores industrialisation, democratisation and imperialism to assess their impact on social and cultural life in relation to class, gender and empire.

3 CORE MODULES YEAR 2/LEVEL 5 CC5302 Writing Early Modern England The chronological path of the degree begins with this module, which introduces the poetry and drama of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and some of the critical debates around this literature. The English renaissance produced some of Britain s most enduring and valued literature, and we situate our analysis of this poetry and drama within the fascinating religious, political and social turmoil of the Elizabethan and Jacobean periods. Among the issues we will explore are gender, power, sexuality, the self, nation and national identity and religion. Indicative reading: selected poetry by Donne, Herbert, Jonson, Wroth, Marvell, Shakespeare, Sidney, Herrick, Lanyer and others; Shakespeare, Hamlet; Marlowe, Dr Faustus; Webster, The Duchess of Malfi; Milton, Paradise Lost Assessed by an analysis/review portfolio and essay CC5301 English Literature: Defoe to Dickens When we think about reading or studying literature, the novel is the form that often springs to mind. How did the novel evolve to become the dominant literary form? What social and historical forces shaped its emergence? Alongside a survey of key texts in eighteenth and nineteenth century literature, this module examines the development of the novel as a literary form. Our study of the origins of the novel brings together the cultural significance of the novel, literary movements including the gothic, romanticism and realism, and issues such as race, class and gender. Indicative reading: Defoe, Robinson Crusoe; Richardson, Pamela; Fielding, Tom Jones; Radcliffe, The Italian; Austen, Pride and Prejudice; Collins, The Woman in White; Dickens, Hard Times; Eliot, Silas Marner; Shelley, Frankenstein; Wordsworth and Coleridge, Lyrical Ballads Assessed by two essays and an exam CC5304 Danger and Desire Urbansiation, empire, decadence, deviance, questions about established ideas in religion and science: the end of the nineteenth century is a significant period in European culture and literature. We look at the way some of the key concerns of the fin-de-siecle including science, sex, religion and doubt were represented in various literary movements in the later nineteenth century. Danger and Desire focuses on the British tradition, but opens debate out to include continental European literature as well. Among the movements and genres we will study are aestheticism, decadence, science fiction and imperial adventure.

4 Indicative reading: Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray; Stoker, Dracula; Wells, The Island of Dr Moreau; Conrad, Heart of Darkness; Haggard, She; Strindberg, Miss Julie; Schnitzler, Round Dance; Luckhurst, Late Victorian Gothic Tales; Romer, French Decadent Tales Assessed by one group presentation, one research project and employability portfolio OPTION/STRAND MODULES YEAR 2/LEVEL 5 CC5307 American Literature In 1941, Time publisher Henry Luce described the twentieth century as the American century. One of the most interesting ways to understand the continuing impact and significance of American culture is through the study of literature. This module explores literature from the nineteenth, twentieth and twenty-first centuries in order to understand some significant issues in US culture. These include the American dream, the frontier, individualism, place and space, and the literary legacies of the Atlantic slave trade. We also examine the emergence of regional and ethnic literatures as part of the continually shifting landscape of the American imagination. Indicative reading: Melville, Bartleby, the Scrivener; Crane, The Blue Hotel; Didion, Some Dreamers of the Golden Dream; Albee, Who s Afraid of Virginia Woolf; Faulkner, A Rose for Emily; O Connor, Good Country People; Alvarez, Yo!; Jackson, The Lottery; Lardner, Haircut; Moore, You re Ugly, Too; Rash, Back of Beyond; Cheever, The Swimmer, selected poems by Cullen, Hughes, Baraka, Clifton, Jordan, Giovanni, Snyder Assessed by one textual analysis portfolio and one essay CC5101 Creative Writing: Creative Practice II This Creative Writing module builds on approaches developed in the first year of study. Students will engage with the processes of writing poetry, short prose and extended prose fiction. Assessment: portfolio, critical reflection Pre-requisite: Creative Practice I MS5204 Film: Critical Theory This Film module draws on different cinematic genres to examine the relationship between films, audiences and various theoretical/interpretive frameworks. Pre-requisite: Film Analysis CC5407 History: Reformation to Revolution

5 This History module charts the sweeping changes across a fascinating historical period, identifying the key issues the structure the move from the English reformation to the French Revolution. Assessment: portfolio and two essays Pre-requisite: Britain and Europe in the Long 19C