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

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

The inhabitants of 'Dark Age' or late Antique Scotland (AD 250-750) can seem today like simple people living in simple times. Yet Scotland's different kingdoms in this epoch produced a number of writers of different strains, writing in several different languages, whose surviving works reflect times and literate minds which were far from simple.

This course examines the various ways in which writers in late Antique northern Britain commented on the social and political realities of a fascinating and turbulent age, praised and criticised public figures (including kings and queens) who were touchy about their reputations and prone to violence, set out aspirations for a better future informed by Christian and traditional philosophies, and reflected on the role of God in moving and shaping the people and events around them.

With special emphasis in alternate years on British or Gaelic writers (Gaelic in 2008-9), the corpus of works available for examination includes historical narratives (like Bede's 'History'), chronicles (like the 'Chronicle of 766'), hagiography (like Adomnan's 'Life of St Columba'), king-lists, genealogies (like 'The Four Chief-Kindreds of Dal Riata'), laws (like Adomnan's 'Law of Innocents'), and poetry (like the Gododdin elegies and the hymns of Iona). The centre-pieces of the course are the Gododdin elegies (in British years) and the Life of St Columba (in Gaelic years).

Entry Requirements

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

? Prohibited combinations : 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, Classics and Archaeology, Schedule E)

Other subject areas

History, (School of History, Classics and Archaeology, 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 one-third of the final mark, and the exam mark, weighted at two-thirds of the final mark.