Module Directory

The aims of this module are:

• To encourage students to develop interest and enjoyment in literary studies.


• To develop students' understanding of works in different genres, from different periods.


• To provide students with the opportunity to explore the relationship between literary form and expression.


• To enable students to think about the importance of the historical, literary and philosophical contexts of the text.


• To encourage students to express their responses effectively and with appropriate terminology.

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

1. Communicate clearly the knowledge, understanding and insight appropriate to literary study, using appropriate terminology and accurate and coherent written or oral expression.


2. Evaluate the significance of cultural, historical and other contextual influences on the literary texts being studied.


3. Show a detailed understanding of the ways in which writers’ choice of form, structure and language shape meanings.


4. Engage fully with the study of literature through the taking of lecture notes, participation in class discussion and the undertaking of independent study.


5. Analyse assignment questions, research and construct a response using appropriate terminology, and in the suitable academic register.


6. Analyse take-home exam questions and formulate an appropriate response using appropriate terminology, and in the suitable academic register.


7. Articulate independent opinions and judgements on the texts being studied in order to present information to a wider audience.


8. Reference all reading sources correctly and construct an accompanying bibliography.

Skills for your professional life (Transferable Skills)

By the end of this module, students will have practised the following transferable skills:

1. Discussions in small groups and the chance to exchange opinions on a range of issues as they may be suggested in each text studied. It is hoped this will build confidence as students are encouraged to participate fully.


2. Time management: keeping up with weekly tasks and meeting assignment deadlines.


3. IT skills relating to undertaking the tasks set, i.e. the reading requirements, watching of performances online, researching authors, production of assignments and so on.


4. Elements of reflective practice are present in engaging with feedback and in the reflective essay component of the Spring Term final assignment. It is hoped that this will contribute to the building of the students’ own ‘growth mindset’.

Syllabus

• Vocabulary of Drama.


• Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night.


• George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion.


• Vocabulary of Poetry.


• Introduction to Romanticism: Burns, Blake, Coleridge, Keats, Wordsworth.


• World War I poetry: Owen, Rosenberg, Sassoon, Thomas.


• Comparisons with Modern Poetry: Heaney, Hughes, Larkin, Plath.


• Vocabulary of Prose Fiction.


• Background to the Novel.


• Andrea Levy Small Island.


• Modern and contemporary short stories: Angela Carter, Raymond Carver, Kazuo Ishiguro, Zadie Smith.


• Contemporary poetry: Simon Armitage, Carol Ann Duffy, Kathleen Jamie, Daljit Nagra, Alice Oswald.


• Performance Poetry: Patience Agbabi, John Cooper Clarke, Luke Wright, Benjamin Zephaniah, Lemn Sissay, Kae Tempest, George the Poet, Dave. that this will contribute to the building of the students’ own ‘growth mindset’.

This module will be delivered via:

• One 1-hour lecture per week.
• One 2-hour seminar per week.
• One 1-hour tutorial per week.

Teaching and learning on Essex Pathways modules offer students the ability to develop the foundation knowledge, skills, and competencies to study at the undergraduate level, through a curriculum that is purposely designed to provide an exceptional learning experience. All teaching, learning and assessment materials will be available via Moodle in a consistent and user-friendly manner.

Some class time may be dedicated to watching texts in performance via Drama Online and BOB Learning On Screen, available through our Library website.

Students are expected to prepare thoroughly for and participate fully in seminar discussions. All class materials will be made available to students on Moodle, including assessment details, links to set reading, slides from the lecture and weekly task sheets with discussion questions. There will also be an opportunity for guided exam practice before the end-of-the-year exam. This information will be made available on Moodle.

Learning support

The majority of the primary texts we study are widely available online, or through a link with the Essex University Library, TALIS Aspire. Access to recordings of relevant texts will also be available to the students to enhance their enjoyment and comprehension of the texts being studied. This is particularly relevant to the study of performance in drama and in performance poetry. We will use resources such as Drama Online and BOB Learning On Screen. Students are offered one-to-one tutorials to support their preparation for assignments and to discuss feedback.