Last modified: 27 Feb 2018 19:46
The Gilded Age was a time of glamour, hardship, renewal and corruption in American society. This fourth-year course looks at the literature of this formative period in the history of the United States, between the Civil War in the 1860s and the Great Depression in the 1920s. It explores how the writers of this period helped to shape, but also at times resisted the formation of a modern American identity.
| Study Type | Undergraduate | Level | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Term | Second Term | Credit Points | 30 credits (15 ECTS credits) |
| Campus | Old Aberdeen | Sustained Study | No |
| Co-ordinators |
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The late nineteenth century brought industrialisation and a new sophistication into American culture. This course focuses on American writing at this time of astonishing social and intellectual change. Covering the historical period from the end of the Civil War in 1865 to the Wall Street Crash of 1929, this course explores issues such as innocence and decadence, the urban environment, the First World War, and the changing place of women in society. This course aims to examine the response of writers to these issues, and the new forms of literature which they developed in an increasingly modern age. Authors to be studied include Henry James, Edith Wharton, Theodore Dreiser, F Scott Fitzgerald, Willa Cather and E. E. Cummings.
One two-hour seminar per week.
Information on contact teaching time is available from the course guide.
1st Attempt: 2 essays 3,000 words (40%) each.
Formative assessment take place through the marking of written work throughout the semester.
Written feedback will be given on written work and on participation in class. Students will also have opportunities throughout the semester to discuss their progress with tutors.
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