Unit information: Studying Written Texts in 2017/18

Unit name	Studying Written Texts
Unit code	CLAS12367
Credit points	20
Level of study	C/4
Teaching block(s)	Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12)
Unit director	Dr. Cole
Open unit status	Not open
Pre-requisites	None
Co-requisites	None
School/department	Department of Classics & Ancient History
Faculty	Faculty of Arts

Description including Unit Aims

This unit offers an introduction to studying literature from the ancient world. Students will be introduced to a range of poetic and prose genres, from archaic Greece through to first century BC Rome. They will engage with a range of literary theories to help them develop skills in thinking and writing about literary texts. We will consider, for example, how to analyse formal narrative structure, characterisation, poetic identity, intertextuality, historical and political context, and literary landscape. The course will also provide formal research skills training relevant to study at this level, and incudes a library training session with the subject librarian. As such, it helps with the transition from school to university, and gives students a broad knowledge regarding how to engage with, and construct scholarly arguments about, ancient literature.

Aims:

• To introduce students to ancient prose and poetry
• To introduce students to key theories and methodologies for analysing ancient literature
• To introduce students to the practice of learning independently
• To equip students with core academic skills, including: effectively using the library; utilising and evaluating secondary literature; correctly referencing sources and formatting a bibliography; constructing a scholarly argument.

Intended Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit students will have developed:

1. confidence in their reading of ancient sources;
2. techniques for reading, thinking about, and writing about literary texts; #introductory knowledge of some of the major ideas and themes relevant to reading ancient literary texts; (4) skills in the use of the library; compilation of bibliographies; referencing and footnoting; constructing coherent arguments in writing.

Teaching Information

3 hours of seminars per week

Assessment Information

Three written assessment tasks; a critical assessment of a short poem (approx. 500 words, 20 marks); a book review (approx. 1,500 words, 30 marks), a piece of literary criticism (approx. 2000 words) 50 marks, each assessing skills in ILOs (1) (2) (3) and (4).

Reading and References

• Andrew Bennett & Nicholas Royal. 2009 An Introduction to Literature, Criticism and Theory. Fourth Edition. Longman.

• Set texts: to be supplied in the unit handbook. Authors will include: Homer, Pindar, Sappho, Theocritus, Vergil, and Horace.