Module Details

The information contained in this module specification was correct at the time of publication but may be subject to change, either during the session because of unforeseen circumstances, or following review of the module at the end of the session. Queries about the module should be directed to the member of staff with responsibility for the module.
Title FIRST FICTIONS: FROM ROMANCE TO THE NOVEL
Code ENGL734
Coordinator Dr GJ Lynall
English
G.J.Lynall@liverpool.ac.uk
Year CATS Level Semester CATS Value
Session 2019-20 Level 7 FHEQ Second Semester 15

Aims

This module aims to: He lp students develop an informed and sophisticated  understanding of a selection of Renaissance and 18th-century works of fiction. It allows for the detailed study of prose romances and tales from the sixteenth  and seventeenth centuries, and also of the version of ‘Romance’ most popular in the late eighteenth century: the ‘Gothic novel’, with which the period was  especially fascinated. En hance students' understanding of the history of prose fiction and the  emergence of the ‘novel’ as a literary form, and the module will examine works by a number of writers from George Gascoigne and Thomas Nashe to Samuel  Richardson and Ann Radcliffe. Add ress how prose narrative across both periods relates to issues of gender, identity, and the ‘self’ as well as the stuff of sensationalism, and it asks why, for  example, ‘Romance’ and later the novel have traditional ly been considered  ‘feminine’ – and not always reputable – forms. De velop critical readings of a selection of Renaissance and 18th-century fictions in relevant literary, cultural, historical and critical contexts . Ad vance students' critical   understanding of literary history, and also of some related aspects of cultural and social history, over the course of both the Renaissance and eighteenth-century periods. Develop students' critical awareness of the problems and insights raised by an interdisciplinary approach to the study of literature in the contexts both of the Renaissance and of the eighteenth century.


Learning Outcomes

(LO1) By completion of the module, students should be able: To demonstrate a critical understanding of a range of Renaissance and eighteenth-century literary works of fiction, romance, and the early novel by key authors of both periods.

(LO2) To demonstrate an understanding of some early modern ideas and debates concerning fiction, romance and the novel, as well as some of the contexts for these issues.

(LO3) To demonstrate an informed critical engagement with some of the relevant literary, cultural and historical contexts of the works examined.

(LO4) To put into practice advanced skills in textual analysis, critical reading, and writing.

(LO5) To research, read, and think both independently and sensitively about the works studied at a more specialised level.

(LO6) To evaluate and communicate effectively both their own and others’ ideas.

(LO7) To demonstrate an enhanced ability to read and engage critically with literary and, where relevant, historical and cultural sources for both the Renaissance and eighteenth-century periods.

(LO8) To demonstrate an enhanced understanding of literary history and of some related aspects of cultural and social history over the course of the Renaissance and eighteenth-century periods.

(LO9) To demonstrate an ability to evaluate critically advanced scholarship and research of the Renaissance and eighteenth-century periods.

(S1) Communication (oral, written and visual) - Academic writing (inc. referencing skills).

(S2) Critical thinking and problem solving - Critical analysis.

(S3) Communication (oral, written and visual) - Presentation skills – oral.

(S4) Communication (oral, written and visual) - Listening skills.

(S5) Information skills - Critical reading.

(S6) Research skills - All Information skills.

(S7) Skills in using technology - Using common applications (work processing, databases, spreadsheets etc.).

(S8) Research skills - Awareness of /commitment to academic integrity.


Syllabus

 

Primary texts for this module may include: Edmund Spenser’s The Faerie Queene  ( Bo ok VI only); Thomas Nashe’s The Unfortunate Traveller; Sir Philip Sidney’s (Old)  Arcadia; John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress; Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe;  Henry Fielding’s Tom Jones; Oliver Goldsmith’s The Vicar of Wakefield; Laurence  Sterne’s The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy (Books 1-4 only); and Matthew  Lewis’s The Monk. Selections from other texts and sources may also be provided.  Most texts are available in Penguin/World’s Classics editions. For early fictions,   especially useful is An Anthology of Elizabethan Prose Fiction, ed. Paul Salzman  (Oxford UP/World’s Classics, 2009): this has Nashe’s The Unfortunate Traveller,  alongside other key Elizabethan prose fictions and romances  Most texts are available in Penguin/World’s Classi cs editions. Especially useful is An  Anthology of Elizabethan Prose Fiction, ed. Paul Salzman (OxfordUP/World’s Classics,  2009): this contains both Gascoigne’s The Adventures of Master F.J. and Nashe’s The  Unfortunate Traveller. Resources such as Literature Online and EEBO will also be  available.


Teaching and Learning Strategies

Teaching Method 1 - Seminar
Description: Group discussion of texts
Attendance Recorded: Not yet decided
Notes: 6 x 2 hours


Teaching Schedule

  Lectures Seminars Tutorials Lab Practicals Fieldwork Placement Other TOTAL
Study Hours   12

        12
Timetable (if known)              
Private Study 138
TOTAL HOURS 150

Assessment

EXAM Duration Timing
(Semester)
% of
final
mark
Resit/resubmission
opportunity
Penalty for late
submission
Notes
             
CONTINUOUS Duration Timing
(Semester)
% of
final
mark
Resit/resubmission
opportunity
Penalty for late
submission
Notes
Assessment 1 There is a resit opportunity. Standard UoL penalty applies for late submission. This is an anonymous assessment. Assessment Schedule (When) :Week 13 or 14 (negotiated with other MA  5000 words    100       

Recommended Texts

Reading lists are managed at readinglists.liverpool.ac.uk. Click here to access the reading lists for this module.