'Dangerous woman'? The Lives and Afterlives of Emma Goldman
| Module title | 'Dangerous woman'? The Lives and Afterlives of Emma Goldman |
|---|---|
| Module code | HIH1136 |
| Academic year | 2020/1 |
| Credits | 15 |
| Module staff | (Convenor) |
| Duration: Term | 1 | 2 | 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duration: Weeks | 11 |
| Number students taking module (anticipated) | 25 |
|---|
Module description
This module focuses on the life of Emma Goldman, pioneering anarchist and campaigner for the emancipation of women from the 1880s to the 1930s. Goldman is an iconic figure in the histories of anarchism and feminism; born in the Russian Empire, she emigrated to the United States as a teenager and was a participant in many of the key events of modern socialist history. Sacralised and demonised in her own time as the ‘most dangerous woman in America’, this course engages with a wide range of sources to allow students to conduct their own examination of Goldman’s historical legacy.
Module aims - intentions of the module
The aim of the module is to introduceyou to the broad range of sources available to the modern historian, through study of the construction and mythologisation of Emma Goldman in the context of the anarchist and feminist movements in from the late nineteenth century to the mid-twentieth.
Individual seminars (see topic list below) will focus on various sources, such as autobiography, government records, interviews, police reports and witness statements, speeches, photographs, letters, newspaper articles, films, and graphic novels.
You will also have the opportunity to conduct their own research into these sources, consider their value and limitations, and use them to explore particular topics and themes. This module will help students develop skills in source analysis and research to provide a foundation for future historical work.
Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
ILO: Module-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 1. Understand and assess the main developments in anarcha-feminist history between 1885 and 1940 through an analysis of the life and memory of Emma Goldman.
- 2. Work critically with a range of written and visual sources relating to the topic.
- 3. Assess the sources in relation to the historical debates, purposes for which different contemporary sources were produced, and analyse and evaluate their reliability and usefulness for the study of the life of Emma Goldman
ILO: Discipline-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 4. Identify the problems of using historical sources, e.g. utility, limitations, etc, and compare the validity of different types of sources.
- 5. Answer a question briefly and concisely.
- 6. Present work orally, respond to questions orally, and think quickly of questions to ask other students.
ILO: Personal and key skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 7. Conduct independent study and group work, including the presentation of material for group discussion
- 8. Digest, select and organise material to produce, to a deadline, a coherent and cogent argument.
- 9. Work with others in a team and to interact effectively with the tutor and the wider group.
- 10. Write to a very tight word-length.
Syllabus plan
Weekly seminar topics may vary, but can include:
- The origins of the anarchist movement;
- Immigrant anarchists in America, 1885-1914;
- Goldman the propagandist of the word;
- Goldman and the politics of assassination;
- anarcha-feminism;
- Goldman and the Sex Question;
- Goldman vs. Lenin: ‘Disillusionment’ in Russia;
- Anarchist biography;
- ‘Red Emma’ in England;
- The Spanish Civil War;
- The afterlives of Emma Goldman: ‘Dangerous woman’ or ‘(inter)national treasure’?
Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 22 | 128 | 0 |
Details of learning activities and teaching methods
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled learning and teaching | 2 | 2 hour lecture: Introduction to module |
| Scheduled learning and teaching | 20 | 10 x 2 hour seminars. At a meeting of the whole class generally a different group of 3-4 students will give a presentation to the whole class, followed by class discussion and working through the sources for that week carefully. Additional sources may be issued in the class and the lecturer will also use the time to set up issues for the following week. |
| Guided independent study | 128 | Students prepare for the session through reading and research; writing five source commentaries and an essay and preparing one group presentation in the course of the term. |
Formative assessment
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Group presentation (3-4 students) | 10 minutes | 1-4, 6-7, 9 | Oral |
Summative assessment (% of credit)
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 100 | 0 | 0 |
Details of summative assessment
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Source Commentary 1 | 33 | 850 words | 1-5, 7-8, 10 | Mark and written comments. |
| Source Commentary 2 | 33 | 850 words | 1-5, 7-8, 10 | Mark and written comments. |
| Source Commentary 3 | 34 | 850 words | 1-5, 7-8, 10 | Mark and written comments. |
Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)
| Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Source commentary | Source commentary | 1-5, 7-8, 10 | Referral/deferral period |
Re-assessment notes
Deferral – if you miss an assessment for certificated reasons judged acceptable by the Mitigation Committee, you will normally be either deferred in the assessment or an extension may be granted. The mark given for a re-assessment taken as a result of deferral will not be capped and will be treated as it would be if it were your first attempt at the assessment.
Referral – if you have failed the module overall (i.e. a final overall module mark of less than 40%) you will be required to submit a further assessment as necessary. If you are successful on referral, your overall module mark will be capped at 40%.
Indicative learning resources - Basic reading
Basic reading:
- Avrich, Paul, and Avrich, Karen, Sasha and Emma: The anarchist odyssey of Alexander Berkman and Emma Goldman (New York, 2012)
- Falk, Candace, ‘Emma Goldman: Passion, politics and the theatrics of free expression’, Women’s History Review, 11:1 (2002), 11-26.
- Ferguson, Kathy E., Emma Goldman: Political thinking in the streets (Plymouth, 2011)
- Goldman, Emma, A Documentary History of the American Years, vol 1: Made for America (ed. Candace Falk, Chicago IL, 2008)
- Goldman, Emma, Anarchy and the Sex Question: Essays on women and emancipation, 1896-1926 (2016)
- Goldman, Emma, Living My Life (New York, 2 vols., 1931)
- Gornick, Vivian, Emma Goldman: Revolution as a way of life (New Haven CT, 2011)
- Hemmings, Clare, Considering Emma Goldman: Feminist political ambivalence and the imaginative archive (Durham NC, 2018).
- Kinna, Ruth, Anarchism: A beginner’s guide (London, 2009)
- Kowal, Donna M., ‘Anarcha-feminism’ in Carl Levy and Matthew S. Adams (eds.), The Palgrave Handbook of Anarchism (London, 2019), pp. 265-279.
- Rudahl, Sharon, A Dangerous Woman: The graphic biography of Emma Goldman (New York, 2007)
Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources
ELE: https://vle.exeter.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=11687
| Credit value | 15 |
|---|---|
| Module ECTS | 7.5 |
| Module pre-requisites | None |
| Module co-requisites | None |
| NQF level (module) | 4 |
| Available as distance learning? | No |
| Origin date | 07/07/2020 |
| Last revision date | 07/07/2020 |
