Ways of Reading provides an overview of the skills and approaches necessary for the interpretation and evaluation of poetry, prose and drama. You will be introduced to a range of influential critical theories to literary texts from the early and mid 20th century. The module also encourages you to make practical applications of these approaches to the primary literary texts.

Critical Theories is based around the study of critical essays which have had a lasting impact on literary studies. The module introduces you to significant and contemporaneous ideas in literary criticism which scholars still implement in the 21st century. The content of the module has been selected to highlight the difference in literary studies between reading for understanding and interpretive readings.

Literary History introduces the development of English Literature. Beginning with the classical and biblical background which inspired examples of English Literature, the module will first focus upon international literature(which might include, but is not limited to, books of the Bible, classical epic and drama, and significant poetry and prose. You will then turn to the development of English literature from early examples to the eighteenth century/Romantic period, such as Old and Middle English, Renaissance drama, and significant poetry and prose.

Form outlines the formal features and development of poetry, prose and drama. The module is divided into three parts, enabling you to consider the formal developments, influences and historical/critical contexts which have shaped the development of literature from the Renaissance to the postmodern period. You will also consider how form is instrumental in providing meaning in a text.

Introduction to Poetry guides you in the art of non-metrical poetry by concentrating upon shorter poems and upon building up techniques of perception, language and effect. This will be done in combination with the reading of poetry with the aim of integrating reading as a poet into an on-going practice of reflection. Emphasis will be placed upon journal writing and workshop practice.

Introduction to Fiction outlines the art of fiction by concentrating on shorter pieces, often referred to as ‘microfiction’. The module also builds up techniques of perception, language and effect, in combination with the reading of fiction, with the aim of integrating reading as a fiction writer into an on-going practice of reflection. Emphasis will be placed upon journal writing and workshop practice.

The Art of Poetry enables you to write in, and experiment with, a variety of styles, to read a range of contemporary and recent poetry, and to relate that reading to an on-going process of reflection that will feedback into a robust and inventive writing practice. Emphasis will be placed upon continuous journaling, intensive reading and workshop participation.

Writing Short Stories explores the nature of the short story form and its specific demands on the writer. You will produce your own short fiction, responding to the diversity of styles and genres adopted by short story authors. You will also be given guidance on potential outlets for your work.

Literature Dissertation Project provides an opportunity to study a topic of your choice in depth and develop your own ideas through individual research, culminating in the production of a 5,000-word long essay or ‘mini-dissertation’. The topic may develop a particular, pre-established interest or arise from a desire to study an issue or subject in more depth.

Pilgrim’s Progress: British Children’s Literature from the 18th Century to the Present Day explores British children’s literature from its origins in the eighteenth century. The module progresses through the Romantic period’s celebration of childhood and Victorian ambiguities about the angelic versus the feral child, to the Golden Age of the Edwardian period and beyond into territory darkened by war, overshadowed by the implications of empire, and the oncoming of adolescence. The module will analyse the relationships between children and adults, nature, animals, class, gender, race and sexuality, underpinned by theoretical and methodological approaches to the history and representation of childhood in literature.

Renaissance Drama explores the drama of the English Renaissance, a period of extraordinary civil and cultural change. The module evaluates the dramatic literary output of the reigns of up to ten monarchs beginning with the Tudors.  The diversity of Renaissance drama will be acknowledged and the period problematised as much as it is defined. You will explore canonical and non-canonical drama by male and female authors. Central themes and concepts under study may include monarchy, rebellion, class, nationalism, religion, heresy, superstition, witchcraft, gender and sexuality, power and self-fashioning.

Romanticism provides an introduction to texts, authors, genres and central themes from the first stirrings of what has been traditionally conceived of as the Romantic age in the 1760s, until the dawn of the Victorian age seventy years later. Poetry, the prose essay and the novel are all studied on this module.

Special Author 1 focuses on a single author (such as Hardy or Dickens) or a related group of authors (such as the Brontës) whose works are sufficiently extensive to merit a whole semester’s study. You will examine the author’s work in the light of recent critical and theoretical approaches to authorship and canonicity and develop an ability to theorise the relationship between an author and his/her literary work. You will acquire a specialist knowledge of a literary period and a major writer through examination of the author’s development in relation to relevant historical, cultural and literary contexts.

Contemporary American Literature enables you to study a range of significant contemporary American literature from post World War 2 onwards. The module enables you to examine a variety of ways in which America is imagined and constructed within fiction. You will explore how persistent figures, landscapes, and mythic concepts are engrained in American culture and embedded in the wider world’s imagination. Such concepts retain imaginative power because of frequent re-enactments in popular cultural productions. This module will trace the complex histories and fictional appropriations and discursive shifts that form these literary productions. The aim is to concentrate specific study on American fiction within its historical, social, cultural, political, critical and theoretical contexts.

Special Topic 1 enables you to begin to develop your independent research skills within a structure which provides a clear and continuing framework of support. The module will take you through weekly subject-based sessions to structured study of your chosen extended special subject research. You will have considerable choice of subject matter within three broad pathways which draw on current staff research specialisms. You will work towards producing a guided but independent research project, with specialist staff support.

The Graphic Novel acts as an introduction to the contemporary graphic novel, examining the cultural and political impact of some key examples of the form. You will be encouraged to read these works as a writer, examining the elements of character development, structure, and use of research and developing those with specific reference to the demands and opportunities available in the graphic novel format. The module is both critical and creative. You will study examples of draft scripts for graphic novels, with your final assessment being a mock script for a proposed graphic novel, replete with artistic direction. There will be at least one visiting graphic novelist due to give a talk as part of the module and one visiting collaborative artist.

Literature Dissertation provides you with the opportunity to study any topic of your choice in depth, developing your own ideas through individual research. The topic may be a particular interest of yours or arise from a desire to study an issue or subject relevant to English Literature in greater detail. You will plan, develop and write an individually conceived and researched independent critical investigation culminating in the production of an extended dissertation.

The Victorians at Work recognises that Victorians saw literature as a form of social commentary. This period survey module explores Victorian prose and poetry that addressed the pressing social and cultural questions of the period, such as the impacts of industrialisation, urbanisation, scientific advance and secularisation. You will examine the work of a range of canonical and popular Victorian authors and place their writing in the relevant literary, cultural and historical contexts.

Modernisms develops your understanding and appreciation of the key features of early 20th century movements in the literary arts. The module will examine a range of different forms, styles and practices in order to focus on the heterogeneous interpretations of the term modernism and engage with ongoing debates in modernist studies.

Contemporary Literature in English develops your understanding and appreciation of the key features of late 20th century and early 21st century movements in the literary arts. The module examines aesthetic paradigms relevant to the period including realism, the postmodern, late modernism and metafiction. The aim is to understand the continuations and reactions to the earlier Modernist period.

Hosting a Literary Festival enables you to make a direct connection between the subject matter of your degree and your plans for a graduate career by engaging with workplace practice via a group project. You will work collaboratively to research, plan and initiate an in-house literary festival while reflecting on and evaluating your ability to do so.

Special Author 2 focuses on a single author (such as Christopher Marlowe, Jane Austen or Angela Carter) or related group of authors (such as the Brontës) whose works are sufficiently extensive to justify a whole semester’s study. The module will examine the author’s work in the light of recent critical and theoretical approaches to authorship and canonicity, and develop an ability to theorise the relationship between an author and his or her literary work. You will acquire a specialist knowledge of a literary period and a major writer through examination of the author’s development in relation to relevant historical, cultural and literary contexts.

Sexuality and Subversion is devoted to the critical analysis of textual representations of sexuality and especially of same-sex desire and sexual dissidence in British prose. The module focuses mainly on the novel, but also on key autobiographical prose texts, from the 19th century to now (with particular focus on the 20th century). It problematises perceptions that sexual radicalism originated in the late 20th century by interrogating its earlier textual representation(s). Texts, their contexts, and relevant literary and cultural theories combine to reveal the changes and continuities in the textual representation of subversive and dissident sexualities and sexual identities over time.

Special Topic 2 enables you to pursue independent research within a structure which provides a clear framework of support. The module will take you through weekly subject-based sessions to more independent study of your chosen extended special subject research. You will have considerable choice of subject matter within three broad pathways which draw on current staff research specialisms. You will work towards producing a significant independent research project, with specialist staff support.

Poetry and Innovative Form enables you to practice advanced techniques and develop innovative strategies for writing poetry, while reading a range of contemporary works (including emergent forms) and reflecting upon the reading and writing. You will feed the resultant poetics of this writing back into a developed poetic practice. Emphasis will be placed upon autonomous and continuous writing practice and experimentation and the development of a poetics of writing to accompany and fortify this, as well as reading poetry as a fellow-practitioner and developing this work and awareness through workshop participation.

Advanced Fiction provides you with the opportunity to write fiction at an advanced level, with a particular focus on the novel and the short story sequence. Using increasingly complex themes and techniques, you will establish a growing sense of autonomy as a writer, shaped by the reading of fiction and also your own continuous writing practice. You are also encouraged to experiment with form and genre and to consider potential publishing outlets for your work.

The Art of Screenwriting focuses on the art of screenwriting for television and film. The module will give you an understanding of character, plot, dialogue, montage and the structure of screenwriting. The module will explore the particular skills required for writing visually for the screen and the television medium. You will also learn to analyse films and consider a sequence analysis of scripts from the writer’s perspective. Some consideration on getting films produced and the industrial context of film making. The module will culminate in the preparing of outlines, the pitching of film ideas, treatments and writing to format your own industry standard film/television script (between 30-45 minutes long with appropriate additional documentation such as scene-by-scene and episode breakdowns).