| Unit name | I Spy: Literature and Surveillance |
|---|---|
| Unit code | ENGL20140 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | I/5 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Codsi |
| 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?
The spy embodies various identities: political informer or agent of disinformation, a spectral or occult entity, spectator of social conduct, and a figure of satire - to name a few. This unit will consolidate your understanding of modes and genres that intersect with spy literature, including Satire, the Gothic, conduct literature, secret writings, and discourses on privacy, sincerity and protest in eighteenth and early nineteenth-century literature. You will study a range of genres including poetry, fiction, and letters in a range of media including newspapers and satirical caricatures. This unit is unique in considering surveillance theory (e.g. from the Panopticon to recent surveillant technologies like the spycam and CCTV) in its reading of the literature, and draws connections with topical debates about privacy and control. You will learn how visible and invisible surveillance plays out in the literature through the use of coded language and methods, alongside representations of cryptology.
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 interdisciplinary unit examines the figure of the spy in literature – writings about and by spy figures – both fictional and real. More broadly, the unit asks you to explore the uses and implications of surveillance in literature of the eighteenth to the early nineteenth century, alongside contemporary depictions of the spy in film. You will access facsimiles of eighteenth- and nineteenth-century representations of the spy figure across a range of media (e.g., newspapers, satirical caricatures, and letters) and in a variety of genres including poetry, fiction, and film. You will study surveillance theory alongside the literature and make connections with topical debates about privacy and control.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit?
On completion of the unit, students will have an increased understanding of the spy figure and surveillance in eighteenth and early nineteenth-century literature. They will have a critical understanding of topical theories and film representations of surveillance, the application of which will enhance their understanding of the primary literature. Students will refine their understanding of key academic skills and disciplines (comparative and contextual analysis/interdisciplinarity/identification of register) in line with level I/5 expectations.
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 academic 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. ENGL20140).
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.
