Writing Ireland, 1800 to the present
| Module title | Writing Ireland, 1800 to the present |
|---|---|
| Module code | TRU3045 |
| Academic year | 2020/1 |
| Credits | 30 |
| Module staff | Dr Jim Kelly (Convenor) |
| Duration: Term | 1 | 2 | 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duration: Weeks | 11 |
| Number students taking module (anticipated) | 50 |
|---|
Module description
From the 1801 Act of Union to the present day, Irish writing and culture displays a remarkably inventive and often experimental energy. You will encounter the rich literary heritage of Ireland through fiction, poetry, drama, and film. You will read a wide array of writers, all of whom engage in different ways with the conflict 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 and heritage of Ireland.
Module aims - intentions of the module
This module aims to:
- Introduce students to a representative sample of Irish writing and culture from 1800 to the present day
- Cover the historical and cultural background to individual literary texts
- Introduce students to important themes regarding the relationship between culture and politics in Ireland
- Provide 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 literature
- 2. Write in an informed way about the connections between different Irish writers/texts
ILO: Discipline-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 3. Compare different literary genres within broader historical, geographical, and theoretical contexts
- 4. Combine historical and literary analysis of texts
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 skills, bibliographic ability, 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
- Telling Tales and Singing Songs: Maria Edgeworth Castle Rackrent and Thomas Moore, Irish Melodies
- Irish Gothic Tales: Charles Maturin , ‘Leixlip Castle’& extract from Melmoth the Wanderer , Gerald Griffin, ‘The Brown Man,’ Charlotte Riddle ‘The Last Squire of Ennismore’, Bram Stoker, extract from The Snake’s Pass ‘The Gombeen Man’
Part 2. Revival and Independence
- Lady Gregory and Yeats Cathleen Ni Houlihan , Lady Gregory, The Rising of the Moon, J. M. Synge The Playboy of the Western World
- James Joyce, Dubliners
- Poetry of/after the Revival: Selected poems from Yeats The Tower and Selections from Katerine Tynan, Alice Milligan, Eileen Shanahan, and Blanaid Salkeld
- After the Revolution: Selected Poems from Louis MacNeice (Selected Lyrics and extracts from Autumn Journal ) and Patrick Kavanagh (Selected lyrics and The Great Hunger )
- Love and Faith: Kate O’Brien The Land of Spices
Part 3. Modern Ireland
- Lyrical Revisions: Selected Poems by Seamus Heaney and Paula Meehan
- Modern Drama: Conor McPherson’s The Weir and Marina Carr By the Bog of Cats
- The Short Story: Selected stories from Claire Keegan, Colin Barrett, Lucy Caldwell, Kevin Barry
- Contemporary Irish fiction/poetry/drama as chosen by students
Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 33 | 267 | 0 |
Details of learning activities and teaching methods
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled learning and teaching | 11 hours | Weekly 1 hour lecture |
| Scheduled learning and teaching | 22 hours | 11 weekly 2 hours seminars |
| Guided independent study | 267 hours | Independent study |
Formative assessment
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Optional essay 1 literature review | 600 words | 6 | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essay 1 | 50 | 3000 words | 1-4, 6 | Written (coversheet) and oral |
| Essay 2 | 50 | 3000 words | 1-4, 6 | Written (coversheet) and oral |
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 1 | Essay | 1-4, 6 | Referral/Deferral period |
| Essay 2 | Essay | 1-4, 6 | 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
- Maria Edgeworth Castle Rackrent (OUP)
- John P. Harrington Modern and Contemporary Irish Drama 2 nd Edition (Norton)
- James Joyce, Dubliners (Penguin)
- Kate O’Brien The Land of Spices (Virago)
- Students will be asked to pick their own contemporary text for Week 11 and the final assignment.
- Additional primary material (i.e. poems/short stories) will be supplied via the ELE site
Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources
Indicative learning resources - Other resources
- Films are available via Library or Netflix etc.
| Credit value | 30 |
|---|---|
| Module ECTS | 15 |
| Module pre-requisites | None |
| Module co-requisites | None |
| NQF level (module) | 6 |
| Available as distance learning? | No |
| Last revision date | 11/01/2019 |
