Undergraduate Course: The Black Atlantic (ENLI10183)
Course Outline
School | School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
Summary | A study of racial discourse in American and British literature of the 19th and 20th centuries. In particular, the role of 'race' in constructions of modernity and identity will be evaluated. |
Course description |
This course is concerned with the forging of Black Atlantic identity. Through the literature of Black writers during the 18th and 19th centuries we will study how, beginning with oral traditions that crossed the middle passage, these early writers used a combination of poetry, sermons/pamphlets, short stories, novels, memoir/autobiography and slave narrative to map out new literary and intellectual traditions. The literature of the African Diaspora during these two centuries was marked by an urgency in which women and men sought to represent themselves with dignity; the result was a foundation for discourse that enabled 20th and 21st century writers to look backward, forward and in the present with a clearer sense of who they are. Themes for each week will explore; slavery, abolition and freedom; colonisation and exile, the many manifestations of racism; identity and hybridity, gender and sexuality; citizenship and community; joy and celebration; religion and spirituality; language(s) and cultural memory; and care.
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Information for Visiting Students
Pre-requisites | A MINIMUM of 4 college/university level literature courses at grade B or above (should include no more than one introductory level literature course). Related courses such as cross disciplinary, "Freshman Seminars", civilisation or creative writing classes are not considered for admission 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 four or more literature classes at grade A.
** as numbers are limited, visiting students should contact the Visiting Student Office directly for admission to this course ** |
High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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Academic year 2024/25, Available to all students (SV1)
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Quota: 15 |
Course Start |
Semester 2 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
196 )
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Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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Additional Information (Assessment) |
2000 word coursework essay (30%) submitted mid-semester;
plus 3000 word final essay submitted during exam period (70%).
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Feedback |
Not entered |
No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
Ability to apply a theoretical literary model across disparate texts. Increased knowledge and understanding of transatlantic cultural formations. Enhanced understanding of 'race' as a constructed social/literary category
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Reading List
Mary Prince, The History of Mary Prince (1831)
Mary Seacole, Wonderful Adventures of Mrs Seacole in Many Lands (1857)
William and Ellen Craft, Running A Thousand Miles (1860)
Frederick Douglass, My Bondage and My Freedom (1855)
Ida B. Wells: The Light of Truth: Writings of an Anti-Lynching Campaigner.
Booker T. Washington, Up From Slavery (1901)
Pauline Hopkins, Of One Blood (1902-3).
Anna Julia Cooper, A Voice from the South (1892)
W. E. B. Du Bois, The Souls of Black Folk (1903)
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Contacts
Course organiser | Dr Desha Osborne
Tel:
Email: dosborn2@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Mrs Lina Gordyshevskaya
Tel:
Email: pgordysh@ed.ac.uk |
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