Module QXE-3120:
Jane Austen
Jane Austen 2023-24
QXE-3120
2023-24
School Of Arts, Culture And Language
Module - Semester 2
20 credits
Module Organiser:
Tristan Burke
Overview
Having likened her own writing process to the work of a miniature portrait painter, Jane Austen’s novels pay minute attention to the material details of everyday life in order to raise questions about individual and collective identities. Rather than presenting domestic spaces, practices and concerns as separate from the wider public sphere, Austen uses material culture to explore the complex relationship between the indivdual’s private and public selves. In particular, Austen engages with contemporary debates surrounding ‘Taste’, art (including literature, music and the visual arts) and politeness to explore the ways in which the interior lives and moral development of her characters are shaped by social expectations. Moreover, Austen's novels directly respond to many of the major political issues of her time: revolution, war, economics, the role and status of women in public life, and empire.
By analysing a range of Austen’s novels alongside extracts from a selection contemporary texts (such as novels, poetry, reviews and art manuals) and more recent critical interpretations, this module will enable students to explore the relationship between the private self and the social world, and to examine Austen’s own literary choices and techniques.
The module will cover Jane Austen's major fiction in relation to a variety of themes and contexts.
The weekly schedule of the module might vary from year to year, but it is likely to cover
- Northanger Abbey, Romantic Gothic, and Parody
- Sense and Sensibility, Romantic ways of looking, and constructions of masculinity and femininity
- Pride and Prejudice, the marriage plot, social class, and material culture
- Mansfield Park, realist form and the nature of protagonicity, colonialism and enslavement
- Emma, the bildungsroman, women's identities, and Austen's style
- Persuasion, war, the nation
Assessment Strategy
ASSIGNMENT CRITERIA – UNDERGRADUATE WORK
Excellent Typically, work graded A- to A** (or 70 to 100) will show many of the following qualities: • Discusses ideas with confidence and precision • Demonstrates maturity and sophistication • Displays deep knowledge of the subject in question; the answer is totally relevant • Shows independent, analytical and clear thought • Gives evidence of substantial and relevant reading • Shows great accuracy in expression, displaying total mastery over all aspects of the language • Shows occasional signs of brilliance and originality of thought • In creative work: displays considerable originality • Command over medium; may have potential for publication/production
Good Typically, work graded B- to B+ (or 60 to 69) will show many of the following qualities: • Discusses ideas adeptly • Most of the arguments about a specific field are well-aired • Displays knowledge of the subject in question; the answer is relevant • Shows analytical and clear thought • Gives evidence of relevant reading • Shows accuracy in expression with mastery over language. • A few minor errors here and there. • Signs of creative thought deserve a higher position within the class • In creative work: shows signs of originality, having understood the requirements of the medium • Plans of well-balanced and full answers, despite some gaps
Satisfactory Typically, work graded C- to C+ (or 50 to 59) will show many of the following qualities: • Discusses ideas, but without much confidence • A respectable effort but not showing any unusual talent; a few flashes of originality here and there • Makes reference to the subject in question, but some important matters not mentioned • Fairly clear thought on most occasions, and the arguments relevant on the whole • Evidence of having read some works associated with the field in question • Quite accurate expression, though the points may sometimes be presented clumsily • Signs of conscientious work deserve a higher position within the class • In creative work: not having quite mastered the requirements of the medium • Evidence of planning in the answers, but a lack of coherence at times; undisciplined and unsure at times
Pass Typically, work graded D- to D+ (or 40 to 49) will show many of the following qualities: • Unsure and lacking in confidence when discussing ideas • Referring to the subject in question in a superficial manner • Making an effort to provide fairly balanced answers • Some points in the argument irrelevant to the topic • Little evidence of background reading • Some uncertainty over language and syntax • Strengths and weaknesses fairly balanced; occasionally clumsy and unimaginative • In creative work: superficial • Not succeeding in mastering the requirements of the medium
Learning Outcomes
- Analyse in depth and detail the formal and thematic features of a range of Jane Austen's writings
- Critically appraise Jane Austen's work in relation to historical, cultural, and material contexts.
- Evaluate and apply relevant critical and theoretical approaches introduced in class.
Assessment method
Individual Presentation
Assessment type
Summative
Description
Students will prepare a poster outlining the provisional content of their final research project, addressing their a) research question(s) and approach b) primary material c) key secondary sources The poster will be introduced in a short presentation (5 minutes)
Weighting
25%
Due date
08/03/2024
Assessment method
Essay
Assessment type
Summative
Description
Students will produce an essay of 3500 words, answering a question developed over the course of the module and addressing a specific aspect of Jane Austen's works.
Weighting
75%
Due date
17/05/2024