SEL2201 : Renaissance Bodies
- Offered for Year: 2024/25
- Module Leader(s): Dr Emma Whipday
- Lecturer: Dr Ruth Connolly, Dr Kate De Rycker
- Owning School: English Lit, Language & Linguistics
- Teaching Location: Newcastle City Campus
- Capacity limit: 150 student places
Semesters
Your programme is made up of credits, the total differs on programme to programme.
| Semester 2 Credit Value: | 20 |
| ECTS Credits: | 10.0 |
| European Credit Transfer System | |
Aims
The Renaissance ‘rebirth’ of intellectual and artistic activity across Western Europe gave rise to new genres, onstage and on the page. From closet drama to Shakespearean tragedy, and from elite sonnets to popular printed prose, we will explore how writers aimed to stimulate the sensory experiences of their audiences. What did it feel like to be a body in Renaissance England? What did writers, readers, and audiences see, hear, touch, and smell? This module will trace how the rich and various genres of Renaissance literature imagine, represent, and affect the Renaissance body, in print, manuscript, and performance.
Outline Of Syllabus
Texts may change from year to year, but we will always have plays by Shakespeare and other early modern playwrights. Poetry will include works by female poets, such as Hester Pulter. Our prose choices will be taken usually from 'popular' print intended for a 'mass' audience.
Teaching Methods
Teaching Activities
| Category | Activity | Number | Length | Student Hours | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guided Independent Study | Assessment preparation and completion | 1 | 44:00 | 44:00 | N/A |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Lecture | 9 | 2:00 | 18:00 | N/A |
| Guided Independent Study | Directed research and reading | 1 | 40:00 | 40:00 | N/A |
| Structured Guided Learning | Structured research and reading activities | 10 | 4:00 | 40:00 | N/A |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Small group teaching | 10 | 1:00 | 10:00 | Weekly seminars |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Workshops | 5 | 1:00 | 5:00 | Assessment Preparation Workshops |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Workshops | 4 | 2:30 | 10:00 | Watch parties (with live chat) |
| Guided Independent Study | Student-led group activity | 1 | 10:00 | 10:00 | N/A |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Drop-in/surgery | 1 | 1:00 | 1:00 | N/A |
| Guided Independent Study | Independent study | 1 | 22:00 | 22:00 | N/A |
| Total | 200:00 |
Teaching Rationale And Relationship
The Learning Outcomes are intended to illustrate that texts in this period are read in dialogue with one another, and are intended to encourage discussion, analysis and debate among their readers. By co-teaching lectures and by examining texts comparatively, that dialogue is embedded into the course structure.
Assessment Methods
The format of resits will be determined by the Board of Examiners
Other Assessment
| Description | Semester | When Set | Percentage | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | 2 | A | 70 | EITHER an essay OR a creative portfolio (both 2,500 words) |
| Written exercise | 2 | M | 30 | 1,500 words |
Assessment Rationale And Relationship
The mid-module assessment asks students to close read an extract from one of the module texts and to show how it illuminates some aspect of that text. It helps students to use their close-reading and analytic-organisational skills, and asks them to think through the organisation of an argument based on close textual analysis. That prepares them to do better in the longer end-of-module assessment, which is an essay.
The ‘creative portfolio’ offers an alternative to the essay paper. Students may choose from one of the following three options:
1) Design a programme for an imagined production based on one of the course plays, with accompanying explanation of rationale
2) Design an exhibition guide for an imagined exhibition inspired by one of the course texts with accompanying explanation of rationale
3) Write a short, public-facing digital project relating to course texts, with accompanying explanation of rationale
Reading Lists
Timetable
- Timetable Website: www.ncl.ac.uk/timetable/
- SEL2201's Timetable