| Unit name | Poetry in the World |
|---|---|
| Unit code | ENGL20141 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | I/5 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Dr. Kelsi Delaney |
| 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?
In this unit, you will explore poetry’s connection to the world. You will consider questions at the heart of poetry studies: how might we define poetry? What can it do? What are its limits? Together, we will consider an exciting array of modern and contemporary poetry from around the English-speaking world. You will encounter a range of poetic forms and genres, expanding your understanding of what poetry is and how it relates to other modes of expression. Taking a comparative approach, you will deepen your understanding of poetry by considering the wide variety of social, cultural, and political functions it can perform. In doing so, you will question the traditional boundaries of the poetic canon and gain an awareness of the diverse range of perspectives English-speaking poets and critics around the world hold towards their craft.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study?
Specialisation units challenge and empower you to engage with specific elements of advanced literary study. Specialisation units include taught options, which are closely informed by the world-leading research of individual academic staff, as well as final-year dissertation units that will enable you to pursue your own research or creative interests. Specialisation units cultivate ambition and independent learning, and showcase the department’s wide-ranging and varied expertise.
An overview of content
The unit will explore the variety of social functions of global anglophone poetry and investigate its diverse forms. Students will situate modern and contemporary poetry in a global context by closely reading poetry from across Africa, India, the Caribbean, the Pacific Islands, Black and Asian Britain, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and Indigenous and diasporic America and Canada. Each week, students will examine poetry in relation to a different literary or artistic form or cultural practice such as political speeches and manifestos, street signs, artworks, prayers, song lyrics, diary entries, notes, and news articles. The unit will consider the theoretical, cultural, and political contexts that inform how poetry is defined, employed, and received.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit?
Students will be able to situate poetry in a global framework, appreciating the breadth and variety of its forms and functions. They will have expanded their close reading abilities and increased their confidence in comparative, interdisciplinary and contextual analysis, preparing them for more advanced studies in poetry, and in anglophone, transnational, and decolonial literatures.
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of the unit, students will be able 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):
Students will be given the opportunity to submit an outline of your final summative essay, and receive formative feedback.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative)
Essay, 3,000 words (100%) [ILOs 1-4].
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. ENGL20141).
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.
