| Unit name | Literature 1550-1740 |
|---|---|
| Unit code | ENGL10043 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | C/4 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Publicover |
| 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 English |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
Why is this unit important?
1550 to 1740 saw an explosion of drama on the public stage, a vibrant poetic culture which included experiments in lyric, epic, and many other poetic forms, and innovative examples of prose fiction, travel-writing, and life-writing. The period also witnessed religious upheavals, political, scientific and economic revolutions, and the establishment of England’s first colonies in the new world. It also saw the coming of age of the printing press, and an enormous surge in the production and consumption of literary manuscripts by ever more diverse readerships. This unit will introduce students to a selection of literature from this period, and reflect on its cultural and intellectual contexts. Writers studied include many of those conventionally considered the greatest names of English literature – led by Shakespeare and Milton – but also a wide range of other less canonical and often surprising marginal voices.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study?
Core units provide an accessible and stimulating introduction to university-level English. You will gain knowledge of and insight into literary forms, from poetry and prose to critical essays and drama. You will practice essential academic skills in close analysis and argument, encounter key critical concepts, and develop your confidence as a researcher. Core units will further enable you to understand and appreciate the importance of historical contexts from the medieval period to the present day, and the development of literary studies as a discipline.
An overview of content
The unit considers English literature of the period 1550-1740, taking as representative examples a series of texts from the period. While the exact balance of the literature studied is not fixed, a representative list of authors who feature might include Spenser, Shakespeare, Donne, Raleigh, Mary Wroth, Milton, Marvell, Behn, Pope, and Swift. Poetry, prose, and drama will all be represented. The texts will be considered relative to one another, comparing for instance their formal and generic features, and also relative to the political, social, and cultural history of the period of their composition.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit?
You will encounter a range of imaginative texts which are both familiar and unfamiliar at the same time, many of them very culturally prestigious today. You will be able to think analytically about the features of those texts and others like them, engaging with them in terms of their formal features and their relationship to the history that produced them. You will develop the skills to write about them with confidence and rigour.
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of the unit, students will be able to:
The unit is taught by seminars and a lecture programme. Teaching includes group discussion, research and writing activities, and peer dialogue. Students are expected to attend all timetabled teaching, engage with the reading, and participate fully with the weekly tasks and topics. Learning will be further supported through the opportunity for individual consultation.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
1,000 word commentary (40%) [ILOs 1-3]
2,000 word essay (50%) [ILOs 1-3]
Contribution mark (10%) [ILO 4]
When assessment does not go to plan
When required by the Board of Examiners, you will normally complete reassessments in the same formats as those outlined above. However, the Board reserves the right to modify the format or number of reassessments required. Details of reassessments are confirmed by the School/Centre shortly after the notification of your results at the end of the year.
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. ENGL10043).
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 University 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. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
