Postgraduate Course: Contemporary Scottish Fiction (ENLI11061)
Course Outline
| School | School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course will look at the relationship between Scottish fiction, politics and culture in the context of devolution. We will examine a range of novels published over the last thirty years which showcase the strength and diversity of contemporary Scottish fiction, and consider the ways in which Scottish writing might be seen to reflect larger debates about political and cultural autonomy in the period, issues around cultural identity, and anxieties amongst Scottish intellectuals about the possibilities and dangers of nationalism. However we will also need to consider the ways in which those issues are mediated through the form of the contemporary novel, in particular the nature, variety and extent of contemporary departures from the conventions of realism; even the constitution of the literary field itself. The most striking feature of much of the writing of the period may be its apparent distance from overt political commitment, its distrust of the public realm, suspicion of historical narrative, and its focus on interiority and subjectivity. What does this mean for our understanding of the relationship between literature and society in contemporary Scotland?
*This course is taught jointly with undergraduate students and consequently postgraduate places are limited |
| Course description |
This course will look at the relationship between Scottish fiction, politics and culture in the context of devolution. We will examine a range of novels published over the last thirty years which showcase the strength and diversity of contemporary Scottish fiction, and consider the ways in which Scottish writing might be seen to reflect larger debates about political and cultural autonomy in the period, issues around cultural identity, and anxieties amongst Scottish intellectuals about the possibilities and dangers of nationalism. However we will also need to consider the ways in which those issues are mediated through the form of the contemporary novel, in particular the nature, variety and extent of contemporary departures from the conventions of realism; even the constitution of the literary field itself. The most striking feature of much of the writing of the period may be its apparent distance from overt political commitment, its distrust of the public realm, suspicion of historical narrative, and its focus on interiority and subjectivity. What does this mean for our understanding of the relationship between literature and society in contemporary Scotland?
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | Students on LLC MSc programmes get first priority to this course. If you are not on an LLC programme, please let your administrator or the course administrator know you are interested in the course. Unauthorised enrolments will be removed. No auditors are permitted. |
| Additional Costs | Essential course texts |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2024/25, Not available to visiting students (SS1)
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Quota: 6 |
| 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 )
|
| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
|
| Additional Information (Assessment) |
1 coursework essay of 4000 words (100%)
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| Feedback |
Not entered |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
| By the end of the course students should expect to be able to demonstrate their familiarity with a range of contemporary Scottish writers and to critically evaluate their work considered against its social and cultural background. Students should be able to discuss the political and ethical dimensions of narrative technique and genre, and suggest why particular works adopt specific formal strategies.
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Reading List
Janice Galloway, The Trick is to Keep Breathing (1989)
Andrew O'Hagan, Our Fathers (1999)
Alasdair Gray, 1982 Janine (1984)
James Kelman, How Late It Was How Late (1994)
Alan Warner, Morvern Callar (1995)
James Robertson, Joseph Knight (2003)
Jackie Kay, Reality, Reality (2011)
Luke Sutherland, Venus as a boy (2004)
Jenni Fagan, The Sunlight Pilgrims (2016)
Selected Short Stories (pdfs provided) |
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Special Arrangements |
Jointly taught with undergraduate students (ENLI10280) |
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Gerard McKeever
Tel:
Email: Gerard.McKeever@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Miss Hope Hamilton
Tel: (0131 6)50 4167
Email: hope.hamilton@ed.ac.uk |
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