ENGM5235 - Victorian Ethics II

Objectives:

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

1 demonstrate advanced knowledge and critical understanding of the relation of ethical debates to a range of cultural and literary artefacts;
2 apply an appropriate range of advanced critical and theoretical approaches to analyse these ethical debates;
3 demonstrate a sophisticated understanding of the texts chosen for study, including an awareness of the extent to which these texts were shaped by the social and intellectual conditions of the Victorian world, and the extent to which these texts aimed to effect a reorganisation of that world;
4 demonstrate detailed knowledge and critical understanding of the relation of ethical debates to a range of cultural and literary artefacts;
5 demonstrate self-direction and originality in a sophisticated extended argument that uses a suitably wide range of evidence/illustrations for a 6,000-word essay, and also engages with contextual and critical literature.

Content:

This module aims to place a selected Victorian ethical writer within the appropriate social, cultural and intellectual contexts of the Victorian age. The module will pay particular attention to the local and wider social conditions in which the chosen writer worked: both the impact of those conditions on the writing, and the intended impact of that writing on the social conditions. It will also consider how particular preoccupations of the Victorian age were reflected in their writing, covering such topics as the role of human nature in ethical discourse, the influence of social and economic conditions, the changing position of women, and attitudes towards religion. The focus of the six sessions will be on a sustained analysis of a representative selection of the ethical writer’s work. Students will be encouraged to engage in critical analysis of these works, but also to attempt a sympathetic recreation of the Victorian aspirations that the texts reveal.

Learning and Teaching Information:

Students taking this module will already have taken seminars for ENGM 5135. Once they have upgraded to ENGM 5235, they will be allowed an additional 45 minutes of individual tutorial time. This time may be used in a combination of different ways (e.g. face-to-face discussion, e-mail consultations) as appropriate to the individual student. Students will be required to submit a proposal to register for the module, and encouraged to submit drafts for feedback before final submission.

Individual tutorial
Contact hours: 45 minutes per student
Number of Groups: 1

Assessment: