Undergraduate Course: Discourses of Desire: Sex, Gender, and the Sonnet Sequence in Tudor and Stuart England. (ENLI10298)
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/undergraduate/Honours/ThirdYear/3rdYearHome.htm |
Taught in Gaelic? | No |
| Course description | Generally acknowledged to be the most difficult verse form, the sonnet flourished in England from the late sixteenth to the early seventeenth centuries. Initially entering the English language via Wyatt and Surrey=s translations of individual poems from the Italian poet Petrarch=s Canzoniere, the form of the sonnet was most famously honed and adapted for English usage by Sidney, Spenser and Shakespeare. While obviously poetic in form, the sonnet sequence is simultaneously a narrative. Traditionally, the Petrarchan origins of the sonnet sequence have been perceived as establishing the conventions of the genre as the articulation of the male poet-personae=s love for an absent and/or unattainable woman. While this is complicated by Shakespeare=s dual audience of a ?fair youth= and a ?dark lady,= until recently it was taken for granted that women were only the recipients or objects of such literature. The ubiquity of sonnet writing famously caused Virginia Woolf to ponder the ?perennial puzzle= of ?why no woman wrote a word of that extraordinary literature when every other man, it seemed, was capable of song or sonnet= (A Room of One=s Own). Yet more recent research reveals that the ?first= and the ?final= such sequences in English were written by women. By examining the similarities and differences between the form, content and structure of sonnet sequences by Locke, Sidney, Daniel, Spenser, Shakespeare and Wroth, this course will result in an understanding of the gendered historical development of the sonnet sequence. By examining texts by both male and female authors, this course will also explore how (or if) the sex of the writer influences the way in which desire is articulated and to what extent this has political implications. |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | A MINIMUM of three college/university level literature courses at grade B or above (should include no more than one introductory level literature course). Related courses such as civilisation or creative writing are not considered for admissions to this course. Applicants should also note that, as with other popular courses, meeting the minimum does NOT guarantee admission. In making admissions decisions preference will be given to students who achieve above the minimum requirement with the typical visiting student admitted to this course having three to four literature classes at grade A.
** as numbers are limited, visiting students should contact the Visiting Student Section directly for admission to this course **
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| Displayed in Visiting Students Prospectus? | Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Delivery period: 2011/12 Semester 1, Available to all students (SV1)
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WebCT enabled: Yes |
Quota: 15 |
| Location |
Activity |
Description |
Weeks |
Monday |
Tuesday |
Wednesday |
Thursday |
Friday |
| Central | Seminar | | 1-11 | | 09:00 - 10:50 | | | |
| First Class |
First class information not currently available |
| Additional information |
1 hour(s) per week for 10 week(s). Autonomous Learning Group one hour a week at times to be arranged. |
| Exam Information |
| Exam Diet |
Paper Name |
Hours:Minutes |
|
|
| Main Exam Diet S2 (April/May) | | 2:00 | | |
|
| Delivery period: 2011/12 Semester 1, Part-year visiting students only (VV1)
|
WebCT enabled: No |
Quota: 6 |
| Location |
Activity |
Description |
Weeks |
Monday |
Tuesday |
Wednesday |
Thursday |
Friday |
| Central | Seminar | | 1-11 | | 09:00 - 10:50 | | | |
| First Class |
First class information not currently available |
| Additional information |
1 hour(s) per week for 10 week(s). Autonomous Learning Group one hour a week at times to be arranged. |
| No Exam Information |
Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes
- An understanding of the historical development of the sonnet sequence in the Tudor and Stuart periods.
- An ability to engage in detail with the various formal properties of the sonnet/sonnet sequences.
- A capacity to explore the significance of sexual difference in Tudor and Stuart authorship strategies.
- An awareness of the political inflections of the articulation of desire during this period.
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Assessment Information
One term essay (2500 words) (25%); and one two-hour examination (75%)
Visiting Student Variant Assessment
One term essay (2500 words) (25%); and one 3,000 word take-home exam essay (75%) |
Special Arrangements
| Numbers are limited to 15, with priority given to stundets taking degrees involving Englis 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. |
Additional Information
| Academic description |
Not entered |
| Syllabus |
Not entered |
| Transferable skills |
Not entered |
| Reading list |
Not entered |
| Study Abroad |
Not entered |
| Study Pattern |
Not entered |
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Suzanne Trill
Tel: (0131 6)50 4291
Email: S.Trill@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Ms June Haigh
Tel: (0131 6)50 3612
Email: j.haigh@ed.ac.uk |
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© Copyright 2011 The University of Edinburgh - 16 January 2012 6:06 am
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