VICM2235 - The Twentieth Century and the Victorians

Objectives:

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

1 demonstrate an advanced understanding of Victorianism(s) – i.e. the ways in which the Victorians have been defined, debated, represented, exploited or otherwise rendered significant for a contemporary audience – since Queen Victoria’s death;
2 demonstrate a critical understanding of the relevant theories and techniques of representing the past for example those informed by historicism, postmodernism, and recent historiographic theory;
3 apply an advanced knowledge of the social and cultural contexts in which the Victorians are re-presented (produced, edited, airbrushed, framed, or captured);
4 critically analyse, evaluate and discuss a range of cultural material from within (or across) such media as film, literature, graphic art, digital hypertext, or performance;
5 demonstrate self-direction and critical independence in a sophisticated argument that uses appropriate evidence/illustrations and engages with contextual and critical literature.

Content:

This module will consider modern and contemporary engagements with the Victorian period, its literature, culture and leading figures. It will allow students to consider the ways in which the description ‘Victorian’ and attitudes to the Victorian period have continued to have cultural resonance after Victoria’s death. It will raise questions about why ‘Victorian’ culture, and Victorian identities retained such cultural significance throughout this period. It will do this by examining a variety of post-1901 cultural artefacts, from within (or across) the following areas: literature, history, art, film, museums, or heritage attractions.

Learning and Teaching Information:

Learning and teaching will be via 6 two-hour seminars, and directed preparation. Seminars will make use of a number of learning and teaching methods including: short presentations by tutor; exercises in groups; informal presentations by students; plenary discussions. 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.

Seminars
Contact hours: 12
number of groups: 1

Individual tutorial
Contact hours: 20 minutes

Assessment: