Undergraduate Course: An Introduction to Scottish Literature: The Literature of Edinburgh (LLLG07139)
Course Outline
| School | Centre for Open Learning |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 7 (Year 1 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 10 |
ECTS Credits | 5 |
| Summary | This course explores the rich literary heritage of Scotland, examining the work of some of the country's most celebrated literary works. We shall consider the importance of the city of Edinburgh, the world's first UNESCO designated city of literature, in shaping the country's literary landscape and compare and contrast the literary heritage of other Scottish cities, towns and rural areas. We shall read a wide variety of texts from the 19th Century to present day, and consider the common themes which emerge.
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| Course description |
A student on this course can expect to explore a range of texts inspired by, or written in, Edinburgh. For each text we shall examine the presentation of Edinburgh, and consider how the local setting may have influenced the development of the text. Where possible, we shall examine contextual information to evaluate the part individual texts have played in shaping Scottish Literature more generally.
From the outset, we shall examine literary texts as well as other materials such as journalism and correspondence, locating the authors within the country's cultural and historical context. Discussion of the work of Robert Louis Stevenson will expose one of the key themes of the course, that of 'duality'. Students will be asked to continue to consider the theme of duality and also that of frailty as we explore the writings of short-term residents of Edinburgh: Robert Burns, Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfred Owen. Students will be asked to consider the enduring appeal of their poems, and the social and political critiques they present.
Language and identity will be key themes for exploration throughout the course as we examine writers¿ use of Scots and dialect, and consider the influence and importance of linguistic devices.
Throughout the course, both in formative and summative assessment and also in group discussion, students will be encouraged to identify literary devices and refer to them using recognised literary terminology, so as to develop an academic vocabulary.
The course will be taught in a small seminar setting, where participation will be supported and encouraged. The course comprises 10 two-hour classes plus approx. 80 hours of individual study.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Evaluate, compare and contrast a wide range of texts, demonstrating knowledge of Scotland's linguistic, literary, cultural and socio-political contexts;
- Analyse literary texts by applying close-reading techniques and referring to recognised literary terminology to illustrate arguments;
- Construct, present and evaluate arguments coherently by assessing, analysing and responding to secondary reading;
- Analyse contemporary responses and reactions to texts by evaluating and assessing ideas from non-literary texts such as letters, criticism or journalism.
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Reading List
Stevenson, Robert Louis., 2008. Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and Other Tales. Oxford: Oxford World Classics.
Atkinson, Kate., 2011. Case Histories. London: Black Swan.
Glover, Sue. 2005. Bondagers and The Straw Chair. London: Methuen.
Burke, Gregory., 2007. Black Watch. London: Faber.
Poetry to be provided as pdf handouts.
9.3.2 Recommended
Mullan, John, 2008. How Novels Work OUP, Oxford.
Wallace, Gavin and Stevenson, Randall, eds., 1993. The Scottish Novel Since the 1970s. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
Stevenson, Robert Louis (2003) Stevenson's Scotland Edinburgh, Mercat Press.
Skoblow, Jeffrey, 2001 Dooble Tongue: Scots, Burns, Contradiction. Newark: University of Delaware Press.
Roberts, David, 1996. Minds at War: The Poetry and Experience of the First World War. Burgess Hill: Saxon Books.
Stephen, Martin, 1996. The Price of Pity: Poetry, History and Myth in the Great War. London: Leo Cooper.
Barker, Pat, 2008. Regeneration. Harmondsworth: Penguin.
Priestman, Martin ed. 2003 The Cambridge Companion to Detective Fiction. CUP, Cambridge.
Scaggs, John. 2005 Crime Fiction. Routledge, London.
Rennison, N., 2005. Contemporary British novelists. London: Routledge.
Brown, I., 2011. The Edinburgh Companion to Scottish Drama, Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
McGuire, M. & Nicholson, C., 2009. The Edinburgh Companion to Contemporary Scottish Poetry, Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
Robinson, R., 2012. The National Theatre of Scotland's Black Watch. Contemporary Theatre Review, 22(3), pp. 392-399.
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Confidence in discussing texts
Ability to articulate knowledge and arguments coherently
Ability to assess secondary material |
| Keywords | Scottish Literature Edinburgh |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Ms Rachael King
Tel:
Email: Rachael.King@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | |
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