| Unit name | Revenge Tragedy |
|---|---|
| Unit code | ENGL29008 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | I/5 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Dr. Ian Calvert |
| 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 |
. |
| School/department | Department of English |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
Why is this unit important?
Acts of vengeance raise perplexing questions about the ethical meanings of retribution, the consequences of committing acts of violence, and the relationship between mourning and memory. This unit will explore the representation of revenge across a wide range of historical periods, texts, genres and media. This course also examines how authors and their readers use revenge as a means of opening up discussions of key broader social questions and concerns, including managing the tensions between the desires of an individual and the operations of the law, how best to respond to individuals who are both victims and perpetrators of violence, acknowledging the haunting presence of the dead and the responsibilities owed to them by the living.
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
This unit explores the ethics of revenge and its representation, the crises of selfhood that revengers often experience, and the impact that taking revenge has on both individuals and communities as a whole. Starting with foundational revenge texts from classical antiquity (to be read in translation), it then moves (mostly chronologically) through early modern and contemporary depictions of revenge in a range of genres and media, including representations of revenge on stage and film.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit?
On completion of the unit, students will have an increased understanding of how revenge tragedy, a major and highly influential literary genre, has developed and changed across time. By furthering students’ ability to think across different periods and cultures, the unit prepares them for the transhistorical units they will take later in the degree programme, while also consolidating and extending key research skills in contextual and comparative analysis.
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of the unit, students will be able to:
1. recognise, describe and analyse the formal characteristics of revenge tragedy;
2. contextualise texts with regard to the social and cultural conventions that condition their composition and reception;
3. relate texts to relevant ideas of genre and to traditions of representation on page, stage and/or screen;
4. construct and articulate arguments informed by skill in textual analysis and critical interpretation, using evidence from primary texts and secondary sources appropriate to level I/5.
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. ENGL29008).
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.
