Skip to main content

Study information

Reading Comparatively

Module titleReading Comparatively
Module codeSML1004
Academic year2024/5
Credits15
Module staff

Dr Katie Brown (Lecturer)

Duration: Term123
Duration: Weeks

11

Number students taking module (anticipated)

20

Module description

In this module, you will put comparative literature into practice. Over the course of the module, we study three core themes - gender and sexuality, the environment, and migration – through a selection of extracts from texts from around the world, from the ancient to the contemporary. You will develop intercultural understanding and appreciation of the factors that shape the similarities and differences in cultural expressions over time and across borders. You will also develop ‘translation literacy’, an understanding of the factors that shape the production and circulation of translated texts.

 

Module aims - intentions of the module

The module aims to:

  • View responses to key societal issues through literature across multiple cultural contexts
  • Emphasise intercultural understanding
  • Develop your core skills of close reading, comparative analysis and essay writing as a foundation to a degree in Comparative Literatures and Cultures

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

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

  • 1. Compare texts from different cultural contexts, applying at least one relevant theory
  • 2. Recognise the factors that shape the production and circulation of texts.

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

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

  • 3. Adopt a critical approach to the select texts and produce to a deadline a cogent written argument.
  • 4. Apply basic close reading skills

ILO: Personal and key skills

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

  • 5. Conduct independent study, including preparing material for seminars and assessments
  • 6. Demonstrate basic intercultural understanding

Syllabus plan

 While the exact content may vary from year to year, the module will:

 

  • Introduce you to theory about literature and gender and sexuality, the environment and migration.

 

  • Work through a selection of extracts from texts, provided to you, on these themes, covering texts from the classical to the contemporary and from across the world, including poetry, prose and theatre.

 

  • Give opportunities to practice close reading, writing a commentary and developing literary analysis.

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

Scheduled Learning and Teaching ActivitiesGuided independent studyPlacement / study abroad
161340

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

CategoryHours of study timeDescription
Scheduled learning and teaching5Lectures
Scheduled learning and teaching10Seminars, practicing close reading and group discussion
Scheduled learning and teaching1Revision Session
Guided independent study134Preparation for seminars; reading of primary and secondary material; preparation of formative assignment; preparation of summative assessment.

Formative assessment

Form of assessmentSize of the assessment (eg length / duration)ILOs assessedFeedback method
Commentary500 words1, 3-5Written, and oral on request

Summative assessment (% of credit)

CourseworkWritten examsPractical exams
10000

Details of summative assessment

Form of assessment% of creditSize of the assessment (eg length / duration)ILOs assessedFeedback method
Essay1002500 words1-6Written feedback

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

Original form of assessmentForm of re-assessmentILOs re-assessedTimescale for re-assessment
Essay (2500 words)Essay (2500 words)1-6Referral/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

Deniz Bayrakdar and Robert Burgoyne eds. Refugees and Migrants in Contemporary Film, Art and Media (Cambridge University Press, 2022)

Theo D'haen, David Damrosch, and Djelal Kadir eds. The Routledge Companion to World Literature (Routledge, 2013)

Jasmina Lukic, Sibelan Forrester and Borbála Faragó eds. Times of Mobility: Transnational Literature and Gender in Translation (Central European University Press, 2020)

Russell King, John Connell and Paul White eds. Writing Across Worlds: Literature and Migration (Routledge, 1995)

John Parham and Louise Westling eds. A Global History of Literature and the Environment (Cambridge University Press, 2016)

 

A bibliography will be provided on the ELE page.

Key words search

comparison, translation, literature, gender and sexuality, environment, migration

Credit value15
Module ECTS

7.5

Module co-requisites

SML1003

NQF level (module)

4

Available as distance learning?

No

Origin date

14/11/2023

Last revision date

14/08/2024