Last modified: 22 May 2019 17:07
This course examines the social, political and cultural construction of place in literary texts. The imaginative co-ordinates of places such as ‘Scotland’, or ‘England’ exist in a constant state of flux, refusing to yield an essential, authentic image. Using core texts from the early modern period paired with more recent literary responses we explore the idea of place in its various forms. Key themes and issues to be discussed will include the rural and urban divide; literature and nationhood; the nature of community; the significance of emigration, and displacement; walking texts, metropolitan literature, and ideas of the “new world”
| Study Type | Postgraduate | Level | 5 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Term | First Term | Credit Points | 30 credits (15 ECTS credits) |
| Campus | None. | Sustained Study | No |
| Co-ordinators |
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It is said that a map is a convenient fiction, a representation of the shape a place might take if only one could see it; the co-ordinates of places such as ‘Scotland’, ‘Ireland’, England’ and ‘Australia’, their imaginative latitudes and longitudes, have been in a constant state of flux throughout the ages, refusing to yield an essential, authentic image. Place is often seen as something to be both embraced and abandoned, but it always remains central in any discussion of individual and communal identities. This course examines the social, political and cultural construction of places in literary texts. Key themes and issues to be discussed include: the idea of ‘home’; the rural and urban divide; the intersection of novel and nation; the role of nostalgia and longing in literature; the nature of community; the significance of emigration and displacement; utopian and dystopian communities; diasporic communities and the transatlantic imagination. This course examines how the writer’s sense of place can influence both the choice of subject matter as well as determine his or her approach to it.
Information on contact teaching time is available from the course guide.
1 x 2000 word essay (20%)
1 x 4000 word essay (80%)
There are no assessments for this course.
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