| Unit name | Life, Sex and Death in an Age of Capitalism |
|---|---|
| Unit code | GEOG30035 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Day |
| 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 | School of Geographical Sciences |
| Faculty | Faculty of Science |
Why is this unit important?
“It’s the economy, stupid” is a political mantra because economic growth is an expectation. Yet, sustained economic growth has only been the norm since the early nineteenth century, and although many are beginning to question its sustainability, its allure remains irresistible. Yet global economic growth and development has been distinctly uneven and the resulting structural inequalities it has produced – from imperialism to protectionism – continue to reverberate around the world today. Which leaves us with a conundrum. Was industrialisation worth it? Industrialisation has pulled billions out of poverty, plunged others into it, given longer, healthier lives to all, been responsible for climate change and produced wealth – and inequalities – enough to make Midas blush. This unit will therefore analyse the health, wealth and social lives of the world’s first industrial nation to identify the winners – and losers – as the British economy was transformed from an agrarian backwater into an industrial superpower.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study
This unit explores topics in the Geohumanities and Geographic Data Science themes, and in quantitative methods. This unit is designed to firstly consolidate students’ current skills using quantitative and qualitative evidence by introducing them to the pitfalls of a variety of source types and how to identify and interpret biased or incomplete data. This will be a key skill for dissertations, in which students will need to critically evaluate their evidence. Secondly, this unit forms part of a historical geography pathway, that begins in Year 1. It enhances and extends students' knowledge of processes of urbanisation, and decolonisation, and critically engages issues around health, wealth, poverty and inequality, situating them in a long-run perspective.
An overview of content
Students will consider a range of quantitative and qualitative secondary sources to assess the benefits of industrialising in a long-term perspective. To help students navigate this, the course will be divided into three main components; Wealth, Health and Leisure. Students will think about the range of evidence we can use to assess and measure wealth in the past, from historical national accounting, probate inventories and wage books to population estimates. Students will thereby be led to ask how the British
economy sustained a growing population and identify a clear shift in Britain’s economic trajectory. Considering Malthusianism, students will then focus on health. They will be introduced to demographic measures health and the history of epidemics and whether industrialisation helped or hindered.
Students will consider the ‘consumer revolution’, music halls, and the relationship between disposable income, vices and health. This will lead students to think about how to measure ‘quality of life’ and what changes industrialisation brought to it.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit
Thinking holistically about wealth and health, students will appreciate the long- run dependencies between the two. Students will therefore develop a more nuanced appreciation of industrialisation, its costs and benefits, and make them more effective policymakers that recognise both the costs of economic growth and stagnation.
Learning Outcomes
Student will learn transferable skills of critical evaluation of a wide variety of evidence, synthesising evidence to analyses the history of industrialisation and provide an evidence-led critique of continued economic growth. In so doing, you make clear connections between the population, the economy and the individual.
Your learning on this unit will be student-centred and interactive during seminars. You will have the opportunity to challenge the viewpoints presented in the readings, as well as the viewpoints of other students. Be prepared to have your own ideas challenged in a supportive environment, committed to learning and understanding complex processes.
During your lectures, reading and preparation for presentations, you will have the opportunity to reflect on the interdependencies in a complex economy, from individual-level issues such as working conditions and poverty, to population-level issues such as economic growth and epidemics.
While the course uses evidence from the past, you will be equipped to consider the sustainability of economic growth, its winners and losers, and come to a considered analysis of its costs and benefits.
These learning approaches are best suited to a unit that asks students to engage and complex questions. Reflecting on the reading and lectures, interacting with lecturers and students when interpreting and challenging these ideas will sharpen your critical thinking skills and equip you to consider the range of evidence you will engage with when writing the assessments and considering the future of economic growth.
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
Each week, two groups of students (these will alternate each week, so each person presents c. twice during the teaching block, depending on cohort size) will be asked to make a short presentation about two readings which take contrary positions. This will form the basis of a discussion around a core question (e.g., ‘was the Victorian Workhouse a necessary evil?’) Students will develop important rhetorical skills (e.g., how do we define ‘necessary’?) and develop new perspectives that will prepare you to write persuasive essays that balance a range of evidence. Some practical sessions in the Haggett Computer Lab may also be included to help students understand techniques in historical demography and practice making such calculations themselves.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
Synthesis essay (100%). The assessment tests all the ILOs.
When assessment does not go to plan
Students will be offered an alternative assessment for completion in the summer reassessment period. The assessment will have the same format as described above but with different questions.
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. GEOG30035).
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.
