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Irish Stories: History, Politics, Literature and Heritage

Module description

This module takes an interdisciplinary approach to the study of Irish history, culture, and society. It will provide a historical background to issues surrounding Irish nationalism and unionism.  You will encounter the rich literary heritage of Ireland through fiction, poetry, and drama. You will study both the history of Ireland and contemporary issues in Irish society surrounding race, lgbtq rights, feminism, and commemoration. The module will use literary texts and other varied primary sources to study larger theoretical issues involving the relationship between tradition and modernity, individual identity and community, and political and imaginative literature. The module encourages both close imaginative reading of literary texts and awareness of wider historical and theoretical contexts for thinking about the literature, heritage, and politics of Ireland.

Module aims - intentions of the module

• You will be introduced to a representative sample of Irish culture both in historical and contemporary contexts
• You will look at the historical and cultural background to important developments in Irish society
• You will be introduced to important themes regarding the relationship between culture and politics in Ireland
• You will be provided with a wide range of texts from Ireland that gives a comprehensive overview of literary developments in the country

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

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

• 1. Demonstrate informed appreciation of the nature and history of Irish society
• 2. Write in an informed way about the connections between political, imaginative, and activist forms of writing

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

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

• 3. Compare different primary sources within broader historical, geographical, and theoretical contexts
• 4. Combine historical and literary analysis of primary sources

ILO: Personal and key skills

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

• 5. Demonstrate effective communications skills and an ability to assess aspects of their peers’ work
• 6. Demonstrate appropriate research skill and bibliographic ability
• 7. Demonstrate competence in constructing and structuring an argument, and an ability to write in clear and correct prose

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:

• Part 1. Beginnings: Nineteenth-Century Ireland
• Part 2. Revival and Independence
• Part 3. Modern Ireland

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

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

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

• A range of literary, primary source, and audiovisual material will be provided via ELE and TALIS

Key words search

Irish Studies, Nationalism, Postcolonial Theory, Heritage Studies