Undergraduate Course: Literary Studies 1A (ENLI08020)
Course Outline
| School | School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 8 (Year 1 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course introduces students to reading literature at university level. Students will be invited to reflect on how meaning is produced in the genres of poetry and prose fiction. For example, how do we identify metre and rhythm? How do we approach imagery? In fiction, what is the difference between the story and the plot? Is the narrator reliable? This course will explore the key terms and concepts needed to address such questions and enable students to read previously unseen texts confidently at a first reading. |
| Course description |
You will acquire the key specialist terminology associated with each genre through the study of the technical vocabulary you need to identify and explain how a literary text engages and plays with aesthetic conventions. Lectures will provide you with appropriate terminology and demonstrate how this is used in practice; to consolidate your understanding, you will undertake regular, formative exercises in small groups to prepare for broader discussion in weekly 50-minute tutorials. In your assessments, you will be expected to demonstrate how you can reflect upon and apply what you have learned through close readings of poems and extracts from novels.
The poems to be studied on this course will be selected from the e-text anthology provided via LEARN and the Library Resource List (additional poems might be added on LEARN). The essential texts for Fiction (and recommended editions) are:
- Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice (1813). Ed. Donald J. Gray and Mary A. Favret. Norton Critical Edition, 4th ed. W.W. Norton, 2016.
- Selvon, Samuel. The Lonely Londoners (1956). New ed. Penguin, 2006.
- Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein (1818). Ed. J. Paul Hunter. Norton Critical Edition, 3rd ed. W. W. Norton, 2022.
- Spark, Muriel. The Driver's Seat (1970). Penguin, 2025.
- Woolf, Virginia. Mrs. Dalloway (1925). Ed. Anne E. Fernald. Norton Critical Edition, new ed. W. W. Norton, 2021.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
|
Co-requisites | Students MUST also take:
Literary Studies 1B (ENLI08021)
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| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | AH/A level English or Scottish Literature or equivalent. |
| Additional Costs | Course Texts |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2026/27, Available to all students (SV1)
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Quota: 0 |
| Course Start |
Semester 1 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 22,
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 11,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
163 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
60 %,
Coursework
40 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
- Coursework Essay on Poetry (40%) [LOs 1, 3, 4]
1,600 words; take-home, time-limited assessment.
- Final 2-hour Examination (60%) [LO 1, 2, 3, 4]
Section A: Poetry
Section B: Fiction
Overall, you will be asked to write one close reading essay on fiction (in the exam) and two close reading essays on poetry (one for the mid-semester coursework, one in the exam). Close Reading assessment of poetry is based on unseen poems in both the coursework and the exam. The close reading of fiction in the exam is based on extracts from the set novels.
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| Feedback |
Autonomous Learning Group activities (weekly) LO 1, 2, 3, 4; Weekly individual preparation exercises LO 1, 2, 3, 4. |
| Exam Information |
| Exam Diet |
Paper Name |
Minutes |
|
| Main Exam Diet S1 (December) | Literary Studies 1A: Examination on Poetry | 120 | |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Identify and employ literary critical terms to analyse poetry
- 2Identify and employ literary critical terms to analyse prose
- Produce critical close readings that show understanding of genre and varieties of form
- Provide textual evidence to critically evaluate how texts produce different literary effects
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Communication skills (verbal and written); interpersonal skills; critical thinking; team working; independent learning and development. |
| Additional Class Delivery Information |
2 one-hour Lectures per week, plus one-hour tutorial. |
| Keywords | Literary studies,poetry,drama,close reading,technical language |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Alan Gillis
Tel: (0131 6)50 3050
Email: Alan.Gillis@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Mrs Lina Gordyshevskaya
Tel:
Email: pgordysh@ed.ac.uk |
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