HIS6822 - Presenting the Past

Objectives:

On successful completion of the module, students will be able to:
describe and comment on current arguments concerning key issues relating to the contemporary heritage industry and its role in presenting the past;
describe and comment on current arguments concerning key issues relating to other forms of public/non-specialist history;
critcally evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of individual genres or media through which the past is presented with reference to specific periods;
conduct scholarly reviews of individual representations of the past focusing on specific examples and applying theoretic knowledge to the analysis.
demonstrate a high level of skill in group work, engage in accurate use of analysis and enquiry through independent research, and communicate via poster and oral presentation.

Content:

Students will explore key issues relating to the modern heritage industry and its role in presenting the past, such as access and social inclusion, finance and admission fees, the representation of different classes, genders and ethnicities, and the strengths and weaknesses of various modes of interpretation. They will also critically evaluate the arguments and assumptions surrounding the ways in which the past is represented to specialist and non-specialist audiences through, for example, TV documentaries, historical films and novels. In this way, students will develop a sophisticated understanding of issues such as audience, the impact of visual media, different modes of interpretation, questions of historical authenticity, empathy, realism and narrative construction; and reflect on the limits of scholarly history as a mode of representation.

Learning and Teaching Information:

Learning will be facilitated through a combination of workshops, tutorials, and (in the first semester) fieldwork. A strong emphasis will be placed on the development of independent research skills, the application of theoritical thinking to case-studies, and the exercise of initiative and complex decision-making in initiating and carrying out project work. An extensive amount of digital materials will be utilised, especially in the second semester. In the first semester, a guest session involving curators and others working in the heritage industry may be included to allow students to discuss the issues raised by the module with practitioners and to explore career routes into the sector.

Workshop/Seminars
Contact hours: 18
Intended Group size: 25

Tutorials and Fieldwork
Contact hours: 1 + 6
Intended Group size: 1/2 and 25

Guided independent study
Hours: 175

Further details relating to assessment
In the group oral presentation, students will conduct a comparison of two (or three) sites representing eg Victorian history, one of which will NOT have been visited as part of the module, to consider how effectively the sites represent the past in terms of audience, research, interpretative methods etc. The poster will represent the equivalent of 1,000 words, and may be presented in an electronic format as eg a webpage, blog, if students request to submit accordingly. Groups will consist of four students.
For the independent study, students will be permitted to present the work as either an essay or a report and will either examine the representation via one genre across three or more historical periods, or the representation of one historical period across three or more genres. They will be directed to formulate a clear question/hypothesis, which must be approved before they go on to complete the assignment. Texts (i.e. films, novels etc.) studied for the Level 4 course History in Contemporary Society or Level 5 Writing History may not be used here.

Assessment:

001 Group Oral presentation with Poster 20 minutes end of semester 50%
002 Independant Study 2500 words end of semester 50%


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