EL35EJ: WRITING REVOLT: LITERATURE AND POLITICS IN THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY (2019-2020)

Course Aims: To promote understanding of the relationship between literature and politics in the seventeenth century To introduce students to a range of literary works in a variety of literary forms To develop awareness of the social contexts for literary production and consumption in the period. Main Learning Outcomes: To enhance understanding of key literary works from across the seventeenth century To develop crtiical awareness of the intersection of politics and literature in the period To be able to examine, verbally in writing and speech, how literary works in a range of literary forms respond to their social and political context. Content: Literature has the power to reimagine society. This is nowhere more apparent than in the turbulent times of the seventeenth century, marked by Civil War, the execution of a King, and religious dissent. The poet Andrew Marvell used a metaphor from the arts to describe how these changes 'cast the Kingdom old/Into another mould'. In this course we will explore how poetry, drama and other literary forms across the century sought new literary approaches to meet the challenges of these times. We will examine the different literary strategies adopted by authors to engage with their times, from those who drew upon classical precedent to others who brought new voices, and new publics, into the forum of literature. Texts on the course will vary from year to year, but will feature such authors as Ben Jonson, John Donne, Katharine Philips, John Milton, Lucy Hutchinson and Samuel Daniel.

Information on contact teaching time is available from the course guide.

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There are no assessments for this course.