VICM2255 - The Victorians and Shakespeare

Objectives:

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

1 demonstrate critical awareness of Victorian interpretations of Shake-speare across a range of different cultural contexts (e.g. the theatre, education, literature, publishing and editing, biography, painting);
2 demonstrate high-level knowledge and critical understanding of the interpretation of Shakespeare in at least one of these contexts; br> 3 research and present a high-level case-study of the significance for the Victorians of a particular Shakespeare text or related topic, and critically evaluate its significance for the Victorian period;
4 demonstrate self-direction and critical independence in a sophisticated argument that uses appropriate evidence/illustrations and engages with contextual and critical literature.

Content:

The first session will provide an introduction to the module and an overview of the different contexts for the study of the Victorians and Shakespeare. Some short poems or passages from literary texts (eg Arnold’s ‘Shakespeare’, Tennyson’s ‘To W. C. Macready’, the ‘Coriolanus’ chapter in Charlotte Bronte’s Shirley) will be analysed and discussed.

Each of the next four sessions will be given over to analysis and discussion of a particular context for study of the Victorians and Shakespeare. For example:
Session 2: Shakespeare in literary texts (eg Dickens, Wilde)
Session 3: Shakespeare in the theatre
Session 4: Shakespeare and scenes from Shakespeare in painting
Session 5: Victorian Shakespeare scholarship: biography, editing, controversy

As part of preparation for assessment, the final session will include a case study of the stage history of The Life and Death of King John during the Victorian period.

Learning and Teaching Information:

The seminars will make use of a number of teaching and learning methods, including: short presentations by the tutor, informal presentations by students, structured exercises and plenary discussion. Students will be set reading to complete before the session and will be expected to bring their own reflections to bear on the exercises and discussion. Learning will be supported by Moodle, and also by occasional use of relevant video extracts and sound recordings. The 20-minute individual tutorial may take different forms as appropriate to the individual student (e.g. face-to-face discussion, e-mail consultations). These tutorials are intended to give students some guidance on their choice of essay question and on researching the topic.br>
Seminars
Contact hours: 6 x 2 hours
Intended group size: 12

Individual tutorials
Contact hours: 20 minutes per student
Intended Group size: 1

Assessment: