MODERNISM - 2023/4

Module code: ELI2032

Module Overview

Building on the introduction to modernism covered in the first-year core modules, this module explores a period in literature that was to bring innovation across the spectrum of cultural endeavour. Through a range of exciting and innovative works of literature from around the world, you will be introduced to the key ideas underlying the theories and practises of modernist writers in the period between 1900 and 1945. By exploring the concept of multiple global modernisms, the module builds global and cultural skills that will enable you to critically engage with the key themes central to modernist thought. As well as acquiring in-depth knowledge of the individual texts on the module, you will be able to develop a sense of how movements in modernist literature relate both to each other and to other disciplines such as philosophy, economics, politics, and art. Through the independent research undertaken for assessment and a particular focus on the skills required for advanced secondary source research, this module will also develop resourcefulness and digital skills.

Module provider

School of Literature and Languages

Module Leader

KILNER-JOHNSON Allan (Lit & Langs)

Number of Credits: 15

ECTS Credits: 7.5

Framework: FHEQ Level 5

Module cap (Maximum number of students): 53

Overall student workload

Independent Learning Hours: 89

Lecture Hours: 11

Seminar Hours: 11

Guided Learning: 28

Captured Content: 11

Module Availability

Semester 1

Prerequisites / Co-requisites

None.    

Module content

The module will look at a range of Anglophone writers from the first half of the twentieth century, organised broadly around early, high, and late modernism as characteristic styles, literary practises, and cultural shifts. Within these boundaries, the module will also highlight the ways in which writers from different regions of the world took different approaches to modernism.

Assessment pattern

Assessment type Unit of assessment Weighting
Coursework ESSAY (2500 WORDS) 100

Alternative Assessment

N/A

Assessment Strategy






The assessment strategy is designed to provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate achievement of the module learning outcomes.

Seminar discussion with ongoing tutor feedback is designed mainly to assess transferable skills in communicating ideas orally and in working individually and as part of a group. It also assesses subject knowledge on major writers of the twentieth century, the modernist movement, the relationship between literary form and content, the dialectical process, and the history of ideas in the first three quarters of the twentieth century. Seminars also assess cognitive/ analytical skills in critical thinking and in analysis of literary form.

The essay assesses subject knowledge major writers of the twentieth century, the modernist movement, the relationship between literary form and content, the dialectical process, and the history of ideas in the first three quarters of the twentieth century. The essay also assess cognitive/analytical skills in critical thinking and in analysis of literary form, and transferable skills in communicating ideas in writing. The essay further assesses professional/practical skills, specifically the ability to plan and implement timetables for essay deadlines.
 






Thus, the summative assessment for this module consists of:






  * 2500-word essay

 

Formative assessment and feedback

Seminar discussion with ongoing tutor feedback in seminar






 
 


 
 

Module aims

  • The module aims to: introduce students to a diverse array of writers of the early twentieth century and the modernist movement they participated in
  • develop an understanding of the relationship between literary form and content
  • develop an insight into key philosophical, social, and aesthetic concerns of the modernist period
  • help students understand how innovations in modernist literature both inspired and grew out of other key developments of the modernist period
  • develop an awareness of the multifarious definitions of ¿modernism¿ and the various modernisms which form the core of the New Modernist Studies
  • develop further skills in independent research, particular in engaging with databases and organising source material

Learning outcomes

Attributes Developed
001 By the end of the module students will have: knowledge of certain key modernist works together with their content and their impact KC
002 A developed understanding how to incorporate close reading and original research into coursework CPT
003 Developed techniques for reading and for interpreting stylistically unconventional literary material KCPT

Attributes Developed

C - Cognitive/analytical

K - Subject knowledge

T - Transferable skills

P - Professional/Practical skills

Methods of Teaching / Learning






The learning and teaching strategy is designed to deliver subject knowledge, to develop cognitive/ analytical skills, and to develop in-depth transferable, practical, and professional skills. Specifically, the lectures deliver subject knowledge relating to major writers of the twentieth century, the modernist movement, literary form and content, the dialectical process, and the history of ideas in the first three quarters of the twentieth century. The weekly seminars involve student-led discussions that develop skills in communication and in working individually and as part of a group. The seminars also provide students with instruction on planning and implementing timetables for work and on presenting ideas coherently under time constraints.

 
This relates to the programme learning and teaching strategy, which, at FHEQ Level 5, is designed to continue the delivery of subject knowledge through lectures and SurreyLearn and to develop in-depth transferable, practical, and professional skills, with a greater emphasis on student-led involvement, critical analysis, discussion, and rhetorical ability.

 

The learning and teaching methods include:

1-hour lecture per week x 11 weeks

1-hour seminar per week x 11 weeks





Indicated Lecture Hours (which may also include seminars, tutorials, workshops and other contact time) are approximate and may include in-class tests where one or more of these are an assessment on the module. In-class tests are scheduled/organised separately to taught content and will be published on to student personal timetables, where they apply to taken modules, as soon as they are finalised by central administration. This will usually be after the initial publication of the teaching timetable for the relevant semester.

Reading list

https://readinglists.surrey.ac.uk
Upon accessing the reading list, please search for the module using the module code: ELI2032

Other information

Surrey's Curriculum Framework is committed to developing graduates with strengths in Employability, Digital Capabilities, Global and Cultural Capabilities, Sustainability and Resourcefulness and Resilience. This module is designed to allow students to develop knowledge, skills and capabilities in the following areas:

Employability: The ability to conduct research and  to be be critical and dispassionate is an increasingly valuable asset in today's workplace. Students taking this module will further develop the knowledge and skills to critically evaluate primary and secondary sources, draw conclusions based on evidence and argue effectively. The module will help you develop practical and transferable skills such as communicating and presenting your thoughts, conducting research, collaborating with others, solving problems and evaluating information

Digital Capabilities: Using advanced research databases to conduct independent research, you will become familiar with the use of key digital tools to conduct research that will prove invaluable in your further studies and in a professional context. In particular, this module will help you to develop digital search and analysis skills and the ability to use technology critically and creatively. This will involve working on your own research question, thinking about which sources are most appropriate for your project, searching for and evaluating evidence, and then producing your own arguments in writing and in your own voice

Global and Cultural Capabilities: This module engages with modernist texts from a range of global contexts and develops an awareness of the cultural fluctuations between the early years of the twentieth century and the start of World War II. Through the study of a range of influential texts, you will be able to identify how the works of writers from different countries and cultures around the world have contributed to the wider discourse of modernism. In this way, the module promotes an understanding of the link between the literary and the wider cultural spheres and provides knowledge of the theories and ideas that underpin the concept of 'global modernism'.

Resourcefulness and Resilience: The module encourages you to be analytical, imaginative and to learn from difficulties so that you will emerge from your studies as a resourceful and resilient scholar and communicator. As the module focuses on independent research, you will develop practical research and writing skills that will prove useful in the workplace and in your further studies. You will further develop your ability to work independently and manage your time effectively, and develop the skills to approach unfamiliar and often challenging modernist texts with confidence. In this way, the module will help you to develop the key attributes that employers look for in graduates and emphasise the research and analytical skills you will need as a future employee.

Programmes this module appears in

Programme Semester Classification Qualifying conditions
English Literature and Spanish BA (Hons) 1 Optional A weighted aggregate mark of 40% is required to pass the module
English Literature with German BA (Hons) 1 Optional A weighted aggregate mark of 40% is required to pass the module
English Literature and French BA (Hons) 1 Optional A weighted aggregate mark of 40% is required to pass the module
English Literature BA (Hons) 1 Optional A weighted aggregate mark of 40% is required to pass the module
English Literature with Creative Writing BA (Hons) 1 Optional A weighted aggregate mark of 40% is required to pass the module

Please note that the information detailed within this record is accurate at the time of publishing and may be subject to change. This record contains information for the most up to date version of the programme / module for the 2023/4 academic year.