Undergraduate Course: Mystery and Horror (ENLI10207)
Course Outline
| School | School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Course type | Standard |
Availability | Available to all students |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) |
Credits | 20 |
| Home subject area | English Literature |
Other subject area | None |
| Course website |
http://www.englit.ed.ac.uk/undergraduate/Honours/FourthYear/4thYear_Home.htm |
Taught in Gaelic? | No |
| Course description | The course covers popular fiction of the late 19th and late 20th centuries, look both at genre and history. The course compares texts from both periods, focusing on the figures of the detective, the spy, the serial killer and the scientist. Texts include, for example, The Hound of the Baskervilles, Dracula, The Secret Agent, The Silence of the Lambs and Jurassic Park. In class we will discuss issues of ideology, genre, gender, the unconscious, and the history of surveillance. An element of the course includes Scottish mystery fiction (Conan Doyle, Ian Rankin, R. L Stevenson) and is suitable for students taking a degree including Scottish literature. |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
| Displayed in Visiting Students Prospectus? | No |
Course Delivery Information
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| Delivery period: 2014/15 Semester 2, Not available to visiting students (SS1)
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Learn enabled: Yes |
Quota: None |
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Web Timetable |
Web Timetable |
| Class Delivery Information |
1 hour(s) per week for 10 week(s): attendance for one hour a week at Autonomous Learning Group - times to be arranged. |
| Course Start Date |
12/01/2015 |
| Breakdown of Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 20,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
176 )
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| Additional Notes |
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| Breakdown of Assessment Methods (Further Info) |
Written Exam
75 %,
Coursework
25 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| No Exam Information |
Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes
The course introduces students to the study of popular fiction as it both contributes to and is produced by ideology. The comparison of generically-linked texts from either end of the twentieth century encourages discussion of the changes in social history of the period.
The chosen texts guide students into a basic understanding of important theoretical ideas: the unconscious, post-Marxist concepts of ideology, Foucauldian ideas about surveillance and power. The course encourages discussion of a wider range of film and general reading and an understanding of students' own cultural environment. |
Assessment Information
1 essay of c. 2,500 words (25%);
1 take-away examination essay of c. 3,000 words (75%) |
Special Arrangements
| Numbers are limited, with priority given to students taking degrees involving English or Scottish Literature and Visiting Students placed by the Admissions Office. Students not in these categories need the written approval of the Head of English Literature before enrolling. In the case of excess applications places will be decided by ballot. |
Additional Information
| Academic description |
Not entered |
| Syllabus |
Not entered |
| Transferable skills |
Not entered |
| Reading list |
Not entered |
| Study Abroad |
Not entered |
| Study Pattern |
Not entered |
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Prof Penny Fielding
Tel: (0131 6)50 3609
Email: |
Course secretary | Mrs Anne Mason
Tel: (0131 6)50 3618
Email: |
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