Undergraduate Course: Devolving the Renaissance (ENLI10102)
Course Outline
| School |
School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures |
College |
College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Course type |
Standard |
Availability |
Available to all students |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) |
SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) |
Credits |
20 |
| Home subject area |
English Literature |
Other subject area |
None |
| Course website |
http://www.englit.ed.ac.uk/studying/undergrd |
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| Course description |
Students will be introduced to the literature of the reigns of Mary Stewart and James VI: the course examines particular literary and cultural issues germane to this period of Scottish literature but which encourage reflection upon ideas and concepts relevant to a broad understanding of Renaissance literature within a European context. The course is thematically constructed around the concept of 'desire', and the chosen literary readings are designed to prompt examination of how 'desire' is made manifest aesthetically and conceptually in a range of writing, erotic, political, and religious in scope. One of the overarching aims of the course is enable students to challenge conventional perceptions of what constituted the 'Renaissance' in Britain and, consequently, to invite reflection about conventional literary categorisation, the idea of 'the canon', and the range of critical perspectives which are open to contemporary readers of Renaissance literature. |
Course Delivery Information
Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes
To understand:
- The distinctive nature of Scottish literature in the period, and how the idea of a 'national' culture was articulated by Jacobean writers.
- The linguistic and rhetorical practice of Scottish writers pre- and post Union of the Crowns, and the ideological reasons informing language choice.
- How the production of poetry in manuscript rather than print influences literary style and content.
- The relationship between politics and literature in Renaissance Scotland. Of particular interest will be the representation of sovereignty and power in the work of James VI and the poetry of his courtiers pre- and post-Union.
- Scottish and European ideas about the nature of literary art in the period
- The rhetoric and philosophy of Renaissance love poetry in general and its Scottish manifestations. Particular attention will be given to the movements of Petrarchism and Neoplatonism.
- The use of European literary movements such as 'mannerism' and 'baroque' as literary and cultural paradigms to help our understanding of Scotland's literature at this time.
- The influence of different doctrinal forms of religion (eg. Catholicism and Calvinism) on literary discourses of the Scottish Renaissance, and the relationship between devotion and aesthetics.
- The relationship between literature and gender in the period: the portrayal of 'feminine' and 'masculine' desires
- The literary and cultural contribution of women in the Scottish Jacobean period |
Assessment Information
1 essay of 2,500 words (25%); 1 examination paper of 2 hours (75%)
Visiting Student Variant Assessment
1 essay of 2,500 words (25%); 1 examination essay of 3,000 words (75%) |
| Please see Visiting Student Prospectus website for Visiting Student Assessment information |
Special Arrangements
| Numbers are limited and students taking degrees not involving English or Scottish literature need the written approval of the head of English Literature |
Contacts
| Course organiser |
Dr Sarah Dunnigan
Tel: (0131 6)50 8304
Email: S.M.Dunnigan@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary |
Mrs Catherine Williamson
Tel: (0131 6)50 3620
Email: Catherine.Williamson@ed.ac.uk |
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copyright 2010 The University of Edinburgh -
1 September 2010 5:59 am
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