Undergraduate Course: From 'Fact' to 'Fiction': Women's Life Writing and the Rise of the Novel, c. 1650-1750 (ENLI10316)
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 |
None |
Taught in Gaelic? | No |
| Course description | 'It is a truth (nearly) universally acknowledged among literary historians and theorists that women played a special role in the rise of the novel' (Josephine Donovan). However, the exact nature of that special connection remains a matter of debate. One currently under-examined link is that between the 'factual' accounts of women's lives which began to be published in the mid-seventeenth century and the later 'fictional' versions of them produced by early novelists including Defoe, Richardson and Fielding. Defending their political, religious or (predominantly) sexual reputations women's 'factual' life-writing from this period often deploys the 'fictional' conventions of romance, the criminal biography, or the scandal memoir. Conversely, many early novelists drew on these 'factual' lives to create their 'fictional' subjects. This course will enable students to explore the connections between texts written by both men and women which purport to represent women=s lives. This will simultaneously require an interrogation of the theoretical debates (literary and historical) regarding the complex relationship between 'fact' and 'fiction'. |
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
| Additional Costs | Essential Course Texts |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
| Displayed in Visiting Students Prospectus? | No |
Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes
- An understanding of the development of narrative forms c. 1650-1750.
- An insight into the emergence of a particular conception of female subjectivity.
- A deeper understanding of the theoretical issues at stake in the division between "fact" and "fiction".
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Assessment Information
1 Class Essay (25%); 1 two hour Examination (75%)
Visiting Student Variant Assessment
One class essay (25%); one take home exam essay (75%) |
Special Arrangements
| None |
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 | Dr Suzanne Trill
Tel: (0131 6)50 4291
Email: |
Course secretary | Mrs Anne Mason
Tel: (0131 6)50 3618
Email: |
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