Writing and Culture in the Nineteenth Century
Primary Texts
Hogg, James, The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner
Collins, Wilkie, The Woman in White
James, Henry, The Turn of the Screw
Wilde, Oscar, The Importance of being Earnest
Rossetti, Christina, ‘Goblin Market’
Schreiner, Olive, The Story of an African Farm
Mary Seacole, Wonderful Adventures of Mrs Seacole in Many Lands
Excerpts from: The Diaries of Hannah Cullwick : Victorian maidservant (copies provided)
Course Outline
Week 1 (26.Sept) Introduction: Writing the Nineteenth century AM
I. The Dark Nineteenth Century
Week 2 (3. Oct) James Hogg , The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner AM
Week 3 (10.Oct) Wilkie Collins, The Woman in White EL
Week 4 (17.Oct) Henry James, The Turn of the Screw EL
II. Sexualities and Gender in the Nineteenth century
Week 5 (24. Oct) Introduction: Sexualities and Gender in the Nineteenth century
AM
Week 6 (31. Oct) Progression Week
Week 7 (7. Nov) Christina Rossetti , ‘Goblin Market’ AM
Week 8 (14. Nov) Oscar Wilde, The Importance of Being Earnest EB
Week 9 (21. Nov) Olive Schreiner, The Story of an African Farm EB
III. Class, race and writing in the Nineteenth century
Week 10 (28. Nov) The Diaries of Hannah Cullwick: Victorian Maidservant
and Wonderful Adventures of Mrs Seacole in Many Lands AM
Week 11 (5. Dec) Assessed Presentation
Week 12 (12. Dec) Review
Assessment
The unit will be assessed through a presentation, essay and exam.
Presentation 25%; Essay 25% 2 hour exam 50%
Due dates for assessed work
500 word critique of presentation: 9. December 2005
1500 words essay: 23. January 2006 (submit 2 copies)
The due date for the essay is Monday 23 January 2006, with an absolute deadline of Monday6 February 2006. ** NB: The Faculty now operates a system of an absolute deadline two weeks after the original due date. Up until the due date, the full range of marks are available; within the subsequent two-week period, essays can be awarded a maximum mark of 40%; after the deadline, no work will be accepted, and a mark of zero will be recorded. **
Essay Questions
As always, essays must be word-processed, documented in correct MHRA style with footnotes or endnotes, and have a full bibliography. You must submit two copies. If you’re in any doubt about the MHRA style guidelines, get some advice from your tutor, and / or refer to the published version: MHRA Style Guide: A Handbook for Authors, Editors, and Writers of Theses (London: Modern Humanities Research Association, 2002), also available online at: www.mhra.org.uk
Students must not use substantially the same material in more than one piece of assessed work: this includes both assessed coursework and examinations. If a piece of work is found to repeat material from an earlier assessment, the mark will be reduced, and may even be reduced to zero.
1. ‘That which we cannot conceive is always frightening because it makes us doubt how much we know about ourselves.’ Discuss how nineteenth century gothic narratives can be linked to questions of identity by referring to EITHER James Hogg’s The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner OR Henry James’ The Turn of the Screw
2. ‘The emphasis upon the childlike qualities of supposedly lower races parallels the frequent references one comes across of the immature working classes. Discuss the representation of class and race in the nineteenth century by referring to The Diary of Hannah Cullwick
3. How ‘black’ is Mrs Seacole? Discuss the representation of race in relation to gender and national identity in Wonderful Adventures of Mrs Seacole in Many Lands
4. The villain is always the most complex and interesting character in Sensation fiction. Do you agree? Discuss in relation to The Woman in White
5. How useful is Lyn Pykett's discussion of the 'improper feminine' to a reading of gender and transgression in The Woman in White?
6. In Goblin Market ‘bodies and language are unstable and provocative’. Discuss by providing a formal analysis of Rossetti’s poem.
7. The end of the Nineteenth century saw traditional masculinity in crisis. Do you agree? Discuss the representation of gender and sexualities in Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest in relation to cultural anxieties of the fin de siècle.
8. In Story of an African Farm imperialist and colonialist discourse is parodied and undermined. Do you agree? Discuss by paying particular attention to the representation of Africa in the novel.
Hogg, James, The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner
Collins, Wilkie, The Woman in White
James, Henry, The Turn of the Screw
Wilde, Oscar, The Importance of being Earnest
Rossetti, Christina, ‘Goblin Market’
Schreiner, Olive, The Story of an African Farm
Mary Seacole, Wonderful Adventures of Mrs Seacole in Many Lands
Excerpts from: The Diaries of Hannah Cullwick : Victorian maidservant (copies provided)
Course Outline
Week 1 (26.Sept) Introduction: Writing the Nineteenth century AM
I. The Dark Nineteenth Century
Week 2 (3. Oct) James Hogg , The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner AM
Week 3 (10.Oct) Wilkie Collins, The Woman in White EL
Week 4 (17.Oct) Henry James, The Turn of the Screw EL
II. Sexualities and Gender in the Nineteenth century
Week 5 (24. Oct) Introduction: Sexualities and Gender in the Nineteenth century
AM
Week 6 (31. Oct) Progression Week
Week 7 (7. Nov) Christina Rossetti , ‘Goblin Market’ AM
Week 8 (14. Nov) Oscar Wilde, The Importance of Being Earnest EB
Week 9 (21. Nov) Olive Schreiner, The Story of an African Farm EB
III. Class, race and writing in the Nineteenth century
Week 10 (28. Nov) The Diaries of Hannah Cullwick: Victorian Maidservant
and Wonderful Adventures of Mrs Seacole in Many Lands AM
Week 11 (5. Dec) Assessed Presentation
Week 12 (12. Dec) Review
Assessment
The unit will be assessed through a presentation, essay and exam.
Presentation 25%; Essay 25% 2 hour exam 50%
Due dates for assessed work
500 word critique of presentation: 9. December 2005
1500 words essay: 23. January 2006 (submit 2 copies)
The due date for the essay is Monday 23 January 2006, with an absolute deadline of Monday6 February 2006. ** NB: The Faculty now operates a system of an absolute deadline two weeks after the original due date. Up until the due date, the full range of marks are available; within the subsequent two-week period, essays can be awarded a maximum mark of 40%; after the deadline, no work will be accepted, and a mark of zero will be recorded. **
Essay Questions
As always, essays must be word-processed, documented in correct MHRA style with footnotes or endnotes, and have a full bibliography. You must submit two copies. If you’re in any doubt about the MHRA style guidelines, get some advice from your tutor, and / or refer to the published version: MHRA Style Guide: A Handbook for Authors, Editors, and Writers of Theses (London: Modern Humanities Research Association, 2002), also available online at: www.mhra.org.uk
Students must not use substantially the same material in more than one piece of assessed work: this includes both assessed coursework and examinations. If a piece of work is found to repeat material from an earlier assessment, the mark will be reduced, and may even be reduced to zero.
1. ‘That which we cannot conceive is always frightening because it makes us doubt how much we know about ourselves.’ Discuss how nineteenth century gothic narratives can be linked to questions of identity by referring to EITHER James Hogg’s The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner OR Henry James’ The Turn of the Screw
2. ‘The emphasis upon the childlike qualities of supposedly lower races parallels the frequent references one comes across of the immature working classes. Discuss the representation of class and race in the nineteenth century by referring to The Diary of Hannah Cullwick
3. How ‘black’ is Mrs Seacole? Discuss the representation of race in relation to gender and national identity in Wonderful Adventures of Mrs Seacole in Many Lands
4. The villain is always the most complex and interesting character in Sensation fiction. Do you agree? Discuss in relation to The Woman in White
5. How useful is Lyn Pykett's discussion of the 'improper feminine' to a reading of gender and transgression in The Woman in White?
6. In Goblin Market ‘bodies and language are unstable and provocative’. Discuss by providing a formal analysis of Rossetti’s poem.
7. The end of the Nineteenth century saw traditional masculinity in crisis. Do you agree? Discuss the representation of gender and sexualities in Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest in relation to cultural anxieties of the fin de siècle.
8. In Story of an African Farm imperialist and colonialist discourse is parodied and undermined. Do you agree? Discuss by paying particular attention to the representation of Africa in the novel.