Literature, Politics and Society in Dark Age Scotland (U03560)

? Credit Points : 20 ? SCQF Level : 10 ? Acronym : HCL-3-U03560

This course explores the social dimensions of writing in northern Britain before AD 800. It considers such literate forms as historical narratives, chronicles, hagiography, king-lists, genealogies, and poetry, and seeks to demonstrate to students the ways in which such literature reflects the social realities of the time, and may therefore be employed in the interests of social history.

Entry Requirements

? Pre-requisites : A survey course in medieval or Scottish history

? Prohibited combinations : U00152 The Old North: Early British Society in Northern Britain U01171 A Cultural History of the Gael 400-800 U02508 The Old North: Arthur's People and the English U03162 The Gaelic World of St Columba U03503 A Cultural History of the Gael 400-800 U03657 The Dal Riata: literature, politics and society in Dark Age Scotland U03652 The Old North: literature, politics and society in Dark Age Scotland

Subject Areas

Home subject area

Scottish History, (School of History and Classics, Schedule E)

Other subject areas

History, (School of History and Classics, Schedule E)

Delivery Information

? Normal year taken : 3rd year

? Delivery Period : Not being delivered

? Contact Teaching Time : 2 hour(s) per week for 11 weeks

All of the following classes

Type	Day	Start	End	Area
Lecture	Friday	11:10	13:00	Central

Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the course it is intended that students will be able to:

- produce a sound and competent essay, in accordance with the common marking scale;
- demonstrate, by way of essay and examination, recognition of the potential and limitations of different genres of written evidence in pursuing the study of early medieval societies;
- demonstrate, by way of essay and examination, insight into the literate culture of Early Historic Scotland, and in particular into the ways in which writers mobilized the past for use in their own present;
- demonstrate the following transferable skills: independent gathering of relevant evidence pertaining to a posed problem; critical consideration of evidence in order to arrive at sound conclusions; evaluating the work of others, including peers; presenting evaluations and conclusions clearly in both written and oral form; independent management of personal timetable, workload and other priorities in order to meet established deadlines.

Assessment Information

Students will submit an individual essay of 3000 words and sit a two-hour Degree Examination. The final mark will be composed of the essay mark, weighted at 33% of the final mark, and the exam mark, weighted at 67% of the final mark.