Mystery and Horror (U02780)

? Credit Points : 20 ? SCQF Level : 10 ? Acronym : LLC-4-EL0135

The course covers popular fiction of the late 19th and late 20th centuries, look both at genre and history. The course compares texts from both periods, focusing on the figures of the detective, the spy, the serial killer and the scientist. Texts include, for example, The Hound of the Baskervilles, Dracula, The Secret Agent, The Silence of the Lambs and Jurassic Park. In class we will discuss issues of ideology, genre, gender, the unconscious, and the history of surveillance. An element of the course includes Scottish mystery fiction (Conan Doyle, Ian Rankin, R. L Stevenson) and is suitable for students taking a degree including Scottish literature.

Entry Requirements

? This course is not available to visting students.

? Pre-requisites : Passes in English or Scottish Literature 1 and English or Scottish or American Literature 2, with a mark of 50 or above at the first attempt in the second year course. Passes in third year courses in the subject area amounting to at least 40 credits.

? Special Arrangements for Entry : Numbers are limited to 15, with priority given to students taking degrees involving English or Scottish Literature and Visiting Students placed by the Admissions Office. Students not in these categories need the written approval of the Head of English Literature before enrolling. In the case of excess applications places will be decided by ballot.

? Costs : Essential course texts.

Subject Areas

Home subject area

English Literature, (School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures, Schedule G)

Delivery Information

? Normal year taken : 4th year

? Delivery Period : Semester 2 (Blocks 3-4)

? Contact Teaching Time : 2 hour(s) per week for 10 weeks

? Other Required Attendance : 1 hour(s) per week for 10 weeks

All of the following classes

Type	Day	Start	End	Area
Lecture	Tuesday	10:00	12:00	Central

Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes

The course introduces students to the study of popular fiction as it both contributes to and is produced by ideology. The comparison of generically-linked texts from either end of the twentieth century encourages discussion of the changes in social history of the period.

The chosen texts guide students into a basic understanding of important theoretical ideas: the unconscious, post-Marxist concepts of ideology, Foucauldian ideas about surveillance and power. The course encourages discussion of a wider range of film and general reading and an understanding of students' own cultural environment.