Law in Fiction
| Module title | Law in Fiction |
|---|---|
| Module code | MLG3112 |
| Academic year | 2020/1 |
| Credits | 15 |
| Module staff | Ricarda Schmidt (Convenor) |
| Duration: Term | 1 | 2 | 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duration: Weeks | 11 |
| Number students taking module (anticipated) | 16 |
|---|
Module description
This module explores definitions of legality and legal cases in fiction by German-speaking authors, stretching from 1800 to 2000. All texts are available in English translation and thus accessible to all humanities and social sciences students interested in exploring fascinating legal and moral conundrums which are still of relevance today. The universality of the legal issues raised, and the innovativeness of the aesthetic means used to convey them, have contributed to many of these texts having become canonical in world literature. They are also much noted among legal experts.
Module aims - intentions of the module
Issues dealt with include the satirical exposure of a state's attempts at spying on and controlling of its rebellious citizens by corrupting the law, the making of a terrorist through prolonged exposure to injustice, the twisted internalisation of legal procedures by the alienated individual in modern bureaucracy, the law's attempt at judging inhumanity, and the long-term implications of dealing with National Socialist crimes.
Beyond trying to discover why these texts still speak so powerfully to us about problems with the law today, we will discuss how perceptions of justice and fictional law suits have grown out of their respective times and can thus offer insights into selected aspects of history, politics, law and society from around 1800 to the present day.
The module aims to foster interdisciplinary approaches and to relate in particular literature, law, history, moral philosophy. Students aiming to find employment in the arts and cultural media, law, politics, and civil service would benefit in particular from this module.
Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
ILO: Module-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 1. Demonstrate knowledge of the range of legal and moral problems posed in texts from different periods
- 2. Explore the aesthetic means to convey legal and moral conundrums
ILO: Discipline-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 3. After initial input from the course tutor, apply and evaluate independently critical approaches to the material under analysis
- 4. Argue in detail about an aspect of the topic, applying a range of literary-critical and legal terminology and supporting the argument with evidence from the text and with opinions from secondary literature
- 5. Select and use critically printed and, where appropriate, electronic learning resources identified as useful by the course tutor; find independently and evaluate critically other relevant resources
- 6. Analyse texts in a variety of genres and styles, showing awareness of their relation to the social, historical, legal and generic context in which they were written, and present the results orally or in writing
ILO: Personal and key skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 7. Undertake independent research on the basis of a taught course
- 8. Present information and arguments on a designated or negotiated topic to a group of listeners and respond to questions and responses from the group
- 9. With some guidance from module tutors, adopt a critical approach to the selection and organisation of a large body of material in order to produce, to a deadline, a written or oral argument of some complexity
- 10. Using bibliographical material present a cogent and sustained argument orally or in writing, in English, on an aspect of the subject of your own choosing, and selecting appropriate methods of exposition
Syllabus plan
Whilst the content may vary from year to year, it is envisioned that it will cover some or all of the following topics:
- Satirical exposure of a state’s law-bending procedures against its rebellious citizens in E.T.A. Hoffmann’s fairy tale ‘Master Flea’
- Injustice as the breeding ground of terrorism in Heinrich von Kleist’s ‘ Michael Kohlhaas’
- Legal procedures as nightmares of an alienated individual in Franz Kafka’s The Trial
- The long-term implications of dealing with National Socialist crimes in Bernhard Schlink’s The Reader
- Review: changing definitions of the legality of state procedures, perceptions of justice and injustice, changes in the perception of the contractual obligations between an individual and the state, violence in the foundation and the application of the law.
Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 16 | 134 | 0 |
Details of learning activities and teaching methods
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled learning and teaching | 15 | 1 hour 30 minute lectures and/or seminars |
| Scheduled learning and teaching | 1 | Conclusion |
| Guided independent study | 134 | Private study |
Formative assessment
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oral seminar presentations (single or in groups of 2-3), with written support of up to 500 words | 15 minutes | 1-10 | Classroom discussion and individual oral response from tutor |
| Formative essay | 500-750 words | 1-7, 9-10 | Written individual and written generic response to group |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coursework essay | 100 | 3000 words | 1-7, 9-10 | Written feedback |
| 0 | ||||
| 0 | ||||
| 0 | ||||
| 0 | ||||
| 0 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | Essay | 1-7, 9-10 | 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
- E.T.A. Hoffmann, ‘Master Flea’. In: The Golden Pot and other Tales (Oxford: Oxford Paperbacks, 2008). ISBN-13: 978-0199552474
- Heinrich von Kleist, ‘Michael Kohlhaas’. In: The Marquise of O… and Other Stories (Harmondsworth: Penguin Classics, 1978). ISBN-13: 978-0140443592
- Franz Kafka, The Trial (Harmondsworth: Penguin Classics, 2000). ISBN-13: 978-0141182902
- Bernhard Schlink, The Reader (London: Phoenix, 2008). ISBN-13: 978-0753823293
Students of German are encouraged to read the German originals alongside the translations. The German titles are: Meister Floh, Michael Kohlhaas, Der Process, Der Vorleser.
Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources
| Credit value | 15 |
|---|---|
| Module ECTS | 7.5 |
| Module pre-requisites | Having completed all the prerequisites for studying in your final year in either ML, Humanities, or Social Sciences |
| Module co-requisites | None |
| NQF level (module) | 6 |
| Available as distance learning? | No |
| Origin date | 02/12/2013 |
| Last revision date | 05/04/2019 |