| Unit name | The History of the Language of English Literature |
|---|---|
| Unit code | ENGLM0081 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | M/7 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Professor. Putter |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
none |
| Co-requisites |
none |
| School/department | Department of English |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
The unit traces the evolution of the language of English literature. Beginning with Old and Middle English writers, we follow the development of a written standard, and consider how and why Standard English and other varieties have changed and will continue to change. Seminars will explore the social and cultural factors that have shaped English in different periods, and will examine past and present attitudes to different aspects of language, including pronunciation, spelling, dialects, and punctuation. We also consider the mechanisms that drive language change.
Seminars will broadly follow a chronological course, and texts from all periods will be examined (e.g. Caedmon, Beowulf, Chaucer, Shakespeare, Austen, DH Lawrence).
Unit Aims:
1)To give students insight into the characteristic features of the language in the medieval, Early Modern and Late Modern periods.
2)To encourage students to consider language from a diachronic perspective, and to improve their understanding of the hows and whys of language change.
3)To provide a historically informed understanding of the linguistic choices made by, and available to, writers from different periods.
4)To help students increase their awareness of the origins of English words and their changes of meaning over time.
On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
1 x two hour seminar
One 5,000 word essay (ILOs 1-5)
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. ENGLM0081).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the Faculty workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. If you have self-certificated your absence from an
assessment, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (this is usually in the next assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any extenuating circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
