Skip to main content

Unit information: Hamlet: Text and Interpretation in 2022/23

Please note: you are viewing unit and programme information for a past academic year. Please see the current academic year for up to date information.

Unit name Hamlet: Text and Interpretation
Unit code ENGLM3012
Credit points 20
Level of study M/7
Teaching block(s) Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24)
Unit director Dr. Lee
Open unit status Not open
Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units)

None

Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units)

None

Units you may not take alongside this one
School/department Department of English
Faculty Faculty of Arts

Unit Information

This Unit involves an in-depth study of Hamlet. Particular emphases are placed on the interpretative history of the play, in both discursive and creative forms, and on the textual problems which the play presents. The unit examines intertextual Shakespeare by way of a number of categorizations current in literary study including history, gender, and genre. The last mentioned includes Shakespeare and poetry, Shakespeare and the Novel and Shakespeare and Film. Specific texts studied will vary from year to year.

Your learning on this unit

  • A better understanding of Shakespeare’s Hamlet and issues surrounding its interpretation.
  • A better understanding of the different texts of Hamlet and how they have been understood by critics and editors.
  • A knowledge of the different ways Hamlet has been interpreted in literary criticism over time.
  • Developing an appropriate style of critical writing for the discussion and analysis of Shakespeare's Hamlet Developing an appropriate style of critical writing for the discussion and analysis of Shakespeare and intertexuality.

How you will learn

Teaching will be delivered through a combination of synchronous and asynchronous activities. These can include seminars, lectures, class discussion, formative tasks, small group work, and self-directed exercises.

How you will be assessed

1 x 4000 word essay (100%) [ILOs 1-4];

Resources

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. ENGLM3012).

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.

Feedback