Sovereign Bodies: Tragedy c. 1380-1625 (VS1) (U04085)

? Credit Points : 20 ? SCQF Level : 10 ? Acronym : LLC-3-U04085

This course will consider what writers, readers, and audiences expected from tragedy as a form of political writing in the premodern world. Its principal concern will be with the representation of sovereigns and, more broadly, with the nature of political sovereignty. Students will consider the relationship between the monarch?s management (or mismanagement) of his or her body and the way in which the ?body politic? is governed. They will also consider how tragedy explores a range of questions connected to the investment of political authority in the person of the king or queen: what kind of powers does a monarch possess and how is this justified? What happens when these powers are confronted by, or help to cause, a political crisis? How do earthly powers relate to divine sovereignty? Are there alternatives to investing sovereignty in the body of the king or queen? These issues will be explored through a range of tragic plays and poems from Chaucer to Shakespeare.

? Keywords : Tragedy political sovereignty the body

Entry Requirements

? This course is only available to part year visiting students.

? This course is a variant of the following course : U04064

? Special Arrangements for Entry : Numbers are limited and students taking degrees not involving English or Scottish literature need the written approval of the head of English Liteature before enrolling.

? Costs : Essential course texts

Subject Areas

Home subject area

English Literature, (School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures, Schedule G)

Delivery Information

? Normal year taken : 3rd year

? Delivery Period : Semester 1 (Blocks 1-2)

? Contact Teaching Time : 2 hour(s) per week for 10 weeks

? Other Required Attendance : 1 hour(s) per week for 10 weeks

First Class Information

Date	Start	End	Room	Area	Additional Information
22/09/2008	16:10	18:00	Room 5.05, David Hume Tower	Central

All of the following classes

Type	Day	Start	End	Area
Lecture	Monday	16:10	18:00	Central

Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes

Students will have explored some of the most significant forms of tragic composition across the Medieval and Renaissance period and considered the continuities and differences between these. They will have considered how premodern tragedy explored problems deriving from an unruly monarchical person and the broader questions this provokes concerning political sovereignty.