ENG5842 - Life Writing: Writing the Self, Writing Others

Objectives:

On successful completion of this module, students will be able to:

(1) Demonstrate an understanding of a range of literature dealing with autobiography and biography
(2) Analyse the ways in which different writers have approached and structured personal narrative
(3) Demonstrate an understanding of how non-fictional forms can be used for innovation in life narrative
(4) Gain a greater understanding of the structuring of narrative through the development of parallels between published writing and their own creative practice
(5) Apply the above in researching and writing a life narrative

Content:

Semester 1: Autobiography – writing the self<\b>
Students will begin the module with a range of writing exercises that will help them think about different ways of writing the self. They will then work with a range of published texts and use these as starting points to explore autobiography.

Semester 2: Biography – writing others<\b>
In Semester 2 students will apply what they have learned about autobiography to writing about the lives of others, working with published texts, writing exercises and methods for researching and representing life stories. Towards the end of the module they will work on a two-part project of their own choosing: (a) researching and writing a particular life narrative and (b) relating their completion of this project to a relevant published text which may serve as a model for the project.