Unit information: Dostoevsky (TB2) in 2022/23

Unit name	Dostoevsky (TB2)
Unit code	RUSS30073
Credit points	20
Level of study	H/6
Teaching block(s)	Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24)
Unit director	Dr. Coates
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	None
School/department	Department of Russian
Faculty	Faculty of Arts

Unit Information

The unit will offer an in-depth analysis of the later fiction of Fedor Dostoevsky, building on exposure to earlier works explored in second-year units such as The Struggle for Russia and Hedgehogs and Foxes. The works will be studied in the context of ideological, political, and social developments in 19th-century Russia, and of Dostoevsky’s own creative and ideological evolution. Attention will be paid to both thematic and formal elements of Dostoevsky’s fiction, and account will be taken of both significant historical and recent critical approaches to his work.

Your learning on this unit

By the end of this unit, students will be able to:

1. demonstrate a detailed knowledge and understanding of Dostoyevsky’s mature fiction;
2. distinguish connections between the novels and the ideological, political, and social context in which they were written;
3. interpret Dostoyevsky’s own worldview within that context;
4. appraise how Dostoyevsky has been received both within Russia and across the West, and how that reception has varied across time;
5. formulate independent judgements and sophisticated written arguments in response to Dostoyevsky’s work;
6. develop effective collaborative skills for a joint presentation project.

How you will learn

Teaching will be delivered through a combination of synchronous sessions and asynchronous activities, including seminars, lectures, and collaborative as well as self-directed learning opportunities supported by tutor consultation.

How you will be assessed

1 x formative group presentation (required to pass), testing ILOs 1-4 and 6

1 x 3000-word essay (60%), testing ILOs 1-5

1 x open-book commentary exercise of 1500 words (40%), testing ILOs 1-5

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. RUSS30073).

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.