| Unit name | Victorian Poetry: Belief, Doubt, and Dissent |
|---|---|
| Unit code | ENGL30143 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Wright |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
n/a |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
n/a |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
n/a |
| School/department | Department of English |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
Why is this unit important?
As a specialist subject option, this unit reflects the research expertise and enthusiasms of the convenor, and offers students the chance to work directly with a member of staff who has strong connections to the subject field. You will have the opportunity to engage in greater depth with a specialised theme or topic, pursue advanced discussions, and develop your own arguments and contributions. Your specialist subject may build directly on work introduced at an earlier stage of study, or branch out in a different direction. It may reflect some of your longstanding interests, or expose you to new and unexpected ideas. In all cases, specialist subject options encourage students to think reflectively, creatively, and with increased independence about their identities and interests as scholars.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study?
Specialist subject options are offered in the second and final years of the English programmes. It is standard practice for single honours students to take two specialist options in each of those years (one per TB), and for joint honours students to take one. Specialist subject options are available to students on Liberal Arts programmes, and may in some cases also be available to taught postgraduates. The portfolio of units available will change from year to year based on staff availability, but it will consistently represent a full range of research strengths across the English department, as well as demonstrating our commitment to supporting choice and providing increased optionality as students progress through their programme.
Overview of content:
This special subject unit explores the work of a wide range of Victorian poets grappling with issues of doubt and dissent, belief and non-belief, and reports of the death of God. Questions about belief during the nineteenth century came up against provocative and newly-defined divisions in knowledge – divisions we recognise now, for example, such as those between the sciences and the arts. This was an age of classification – an age in which not only Biblical hermeneutics and evolutionary theory, but studies in psychology, philology, and anthropology developed apace. Coinciding with central concerns about class, race, and the expression of sexuality, Victorian poets and critics found themselves wondering not only what they could or should believe, but what the nature of belief itself meant for human life. Touching on key debates surrounding Biblical Exegesis and Tractarianism; Darwinism and Natural Theology; questions about death and the afterlife; and philological debates about legal versus evolutionary models of language, the unit will examine a range of related subjects which might include Casuistry and Metaphysics; Paganism, Orientalism, and Judaism; National Identity and Imperial activity; scepticism and atheism; Hellenism; marriage, sexual dissent, and same-sex desire. Throughout the unit, an understanding of historical, social, and critical contexts, will offer readers the opportunity to develop an exciting range of methodological tools for the close analysis of poetry and poetic form, examining innovative uses for the lyric voice, new forms for elegy, development of the dramatic monologue, poetic narrative, and poetry as itself an invitation to self-awareness, productive confusion, retreat, challenge and praise.
You will be given the opportunity to submit a draft or outline of your final, summative essay of up to 1,500 words and to receive feedback on this.
How will you be different:
On completion of the unit, students will have had the opportunity to consider a diverse range of texts and approaches, refine their experience with poetic analysis, and consolidate skills and interests developed throughout the programme.
Learning outcomes:
By the end of the unit, students are expected to
Teaching will involve asynchronous and synchronous elements, including group discussion, research and writing activities, and peer dialogue. Students are expected to 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 help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
1 x 1500 word optional formative draft or plan, submission schedule to be confirmed by the unit tutor
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
1 x 3500 word essay (100%) [ILOs 1-7]
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. ENGL30143).
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 assessment methods listed in this unit specification are designed to enable students to demonstrate the named learning outcomes (LOs). Where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, schools will make reasonable adjustments to support a student to demonstrate the LO by an alternative method or with additional resources.
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.
