The Body in Early Modern England: Sources

Module title	The Body in Early Modern England: Sources
Module code	HIH3132
Academic year	2023/4
Credits	30
Module staff	Professor Sarah Toulalan (Convenor)

Duration: Term	1	2	3
Duration: Weeks	11	11

Number students taking module (anticipated)	18

Module description

This module will provide a detailed analysis of the sources available for a study of the body in early modern England. Topics covered will include: anatomy; sex and gender; sex and sexuality; medicine and midwifery; life-stages from conception to old age; illness and disease; death and dissection; regulating the body (including morality, size, behaviour); deformed, disabled, foreign and monstrous bodies. Seminars will focus on exploring the sources, enabling you to develop your skills and knowledge of the subject and to discuss issues about interpretation.

If you have not previously studied the period you will be expected to do some general reading to familiarise yourself with the early modern world.

The co-requisite module – HIH3133 The Body in Early Modern England: Context – will complement this one with a close analysis of the modern historiography of the period and the subject.

Module aims - intentions of the module

To provide a detailed study of the sources available in English for a history of the body in early modern England.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

1. Analyse closely the main sources readily available in English (both originally in English and translations of continental texts) for a study of the body in early modern England, both as stand-alone texts or images and in comparison with each other
2. Analyse diverse and complex sources relating to the histories of sexuality, medicine and scientific development in early modern England
3. Assess the value of different sources as historical evidence in the context of the histories of sexuality, medicine and scientific development in early modern England

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

4. Analyse closely original sources and to assess their reliability as historical evidence.
5. Comprehend complex historical texts.
6. Understand and deploy relevant historical terminology in a comprehensible and sophisticated manner.

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

7. Select, organise and analyse material for written work and/or oral presentations of different prescribed lengths and formats.
8. Present complex arguments orally.
9. Present an argument in a written form in a clear and organised manner, with appropriate use of correct English
10. Through essay development process, demonstrate ability to reflect critically on your own work, to respond constructively to feedback, and to implement suggestions and improve work on this basis

Syllabus plan

The syllabus will include some, or all, of the following topics:

Anatomy
Sex and gender
Medicine, health and disease
Body functions
Life-stages from infancy to old age
Death and dissection
Clothing and nakedness
Conception, pregnancy and childbirth
Sex, sexuality and sexual regulation
Pornography and prostitution
Deformity, disability and ‘other’ bodies

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	Guided independent study	Placement / study abroad
44	256	0

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Category	Hours of study time	Description
Scheduled Learning and Teaching	44	22 x 2 hour seminars
Guided Independent Study	256	Independent study

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Coursework	Written exams	Practical exams
70	0	30

Details of summative assessment

Form of assessment	% of credit	Size of the assessment (eg length / duration)	ILOs assessed	Feedback method
Portfolio of 2 pieces of written work	70	2 assignments totalling 4000 words	1-7, 9-10	Mark and written feedback
Individual presentation	30	25 minutes	1-8	Mark and written feedback
	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
Portfolio	Portfolio	1-7, 9-10	Referral/Deferral period
Individual presentation	Written transcript of 25 minute presentation	1-7, 9-10	Referral/Deferral period

Re-assessment notes

The re-assessment consists of a 4000 word portfolio of source work, as in the original assessment, but replaces the individual presentation with a written script that could be delivered in such a presentation and which is the equivalent of 25 minutes of speech (2,500 words).

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

Anon., Aristoteles Master-piece, or The Secrets of Generation displayed in all the parts thereof (1684).
Barrough, Phillip, The Methode of Phisicke (1583).
Crooke, Helkiah, Microcosmographia: Or, The Whole Body of Man (1615).
Cuffe, Henry, The Differences of the Ages of Mans Life (1607).
Lemnius, Levinus, The Secret Miracles of Nature: In Four Books (1658).
Riverius, Lazarus. The Practice of Physick, Etc. Trans. Nicholas Culpeper, Abdiah Cole and William Rowland (1655 [1640]).
Sharp, Jane, The Midwives Book: or the whole art of midwifry discover’d (1671).

Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources

ELE – https://vle.exeter.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=2140
Early Modern English Books Online (EEBO)
Eighteenth Century Collections Online (ECCO)
Old Bailey Online
Burney Collection of Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century Newspapers Online
English Broadside Ballad Archive – http://ebba.english.ucsb.edu/
The Proceedings of the Old Bailey – http://www.oldbaileyonline.org/
London Lives – http://londonlives.org/

Indicative learning resources - Other resources

Clark, Anna, The History of Sexuality in Europe: a Sourcebook and Reader (New York: Routledge, 2010).
Davis, Lloyd (ed), Sexuality and gender in the English Renaissance: an annotated edition of contemporary documents (New York: Garland Publishing, 1998).
McCormick, Ian, Secret Sexualities: A Sourcebook of 17^thand 18^thcentury writing (London: Routledge, 1996).
Phillips, Kim M. and Barry Reay, Sexualities in History: A Reader (New York and London: Routledge, 2001).
Ragan, Bryant T., Jr. (eds), Homosexuality in Early Modern France: A Documentary Collection (New York: Oxford University Press, 2001).
Printed collection of Roxburghe Ballads.
Other material from module lecturer(s) as needed.

Key words search

Body, bodies, sex, sexualities, gender, medicine, health, anatomy, pregnancy, childbirth, prostitution, pornography, deformity, disability

Credit value	30
Module ECTS	15
Module pre-requisites	At least 90 credits of History at Stage 1 (NQF Level Four) and/or Stage 2 (NQF Level Five).
Module co-requisites	HIH3133: The Body in Early Modern England: Context
NQF level (module)	6
Available as distance learning?	No
Origin date	2003
Last revision date	17/02/2021