Literature in English: From the Middle Ages to the Present

6 ECTS credits
180 h study time

Offer 1 with catalog number 1023264ANR for all students in the 1st and 2nd semester at a (A) Bachelor - preliminary level.

Semester

1st and 2nd semester

Enrollment based on exam contract

Impossible

Grading method

Grading (scale from 0 to 20)

Can retake in second session

Yes

Enrollment Requirements

Enrolling for this course means that you simultaneously take ' English Proficiency I ' or have successfully passed ‘ English Proficiency I ’.

Taught in

English

Faculty

Faculty of Languages & Humanities

Department

Linguistics and Literary Studies

Educational team

Elisabeth Bekers (course titular)

Activities and contact hours

30 contact hours Lecture
5 contact hours Seminar, Exercises or Practicals
90 contact hours Independent or External Form of Study

Course Content

This survey course studies the development of literature in English since the Middle Ages and how it relates to the broader cultural and political histories of English-speaking regions. It highlights the diversity of literature in English by examining shorter texts and text fragments that are representative of different literary periods, movements, genres and styles and by paying special attention to women writers and writers of colour from across the English-speaking world. It teaches students to situate literary texts within their literary-historical contexts and discuss them by means of the appropriate literary-historical concepts and literary terms.

Course material

Handbook (Required) : The Norton Anthology of English Literature., Vols. A & B, Greenblatt, Stephen, ed., Shorter 11th ed., Norton, 9781324062875, 2024
Handbook (Recommended) : The Norton Anthology of American Literature, Vols. 1 & 2, Baym, Nina, ed., Shorter 10e, Norton, 9780393892291, 2023
Handbook (Recommended) : English Literature in Context, Poplawski, Paul, ed., 2de, Cambridge University Press, 9781316506639, 2017
Handbook (Recommended) : The Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms, Baldick, Chris, 4th, Oxford University Press, 9780198715443, 2015
Digital course material (Required) : A Brief History of English Literature, Peck John - Martin Coyle, 2de, Palgrave
Digital course material (Required) : Course slides, Bekers, Elisabeth, Updated annually, Canvas
Digital course material (Required) : Writing Guide for Students of Literature in English (TALK), Bekers, Elisabeth, et al., Updated annually, Canvas

Additional info

Interactive lectures are accompanied by reading assignments that guide the students’ home preparation as well as the discussion in class. Active participation in the course is essential. Students are assumed to have a good level of reading, listening, speaking and writing skills in English.

See Canvas for more detailed information.

In order to take this class, compulsory additional costs may be charged in addition to the invoice sent to you as a student by the Student Administration Centre: for participation in literary events off campus a minimum contribution of €7 and a maximum contribution of €15 will be required. The costs are borne by the student and can neither be passed on to fellow students nor recovered from the lecturer or faculty. The amounts stated are approximately correct. If you experience payment difficulties as a result of these additional costs, you can contact Student Social Services via sociale.dienst.studenten@vub.ac.be or + 32 2 629 23 15. More information can also be found on https://my.vub.ac.be/en/social-services.

Learning Outcomes

General competences

Students gain insight into the development of literature in English since the Middle Ages and how it relates to the broader cultural and political histories of the English-speaking regions. They have an understanding of the (geographic, cultural-historical, formal, etc.) diversity of literature in English. They are able to situate literary texts within their literary-historical contexts and can discuss them by means of the appropriate literary terms and concepts. They develop their communicative competence in English.

Grading

The final grade is composed based on the following categories:
Written Exam determines 100% of the final mark.

Within the Written Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:

Schriftelijk examen with a relative weight of 100 which comprises 100% of the final mark.

Note: “Written exam in January determines 60% of the final mark; written exam in June determines 40% of the final mark. Pass marks (at least 10/20) for either part of the evaluation are transferred automatically to the second session.”

“Students who have successfully completed the 2BA course “Literature in English: 19th to 21st Centuries” by the start of the second semester of 2022-23 may receive alternative assignments in the second semester, to accommodate the exceptional partial overlap between the two courses in 2022-23.”

Additional info regarding evaluation

The written evaluation (60% in the first semester and 40% in the second semester) may include some mid-term assignments that contribute to students’ results in the first semester (up to max. 10% of the course mark). Students who fail to complete these assignments may be excluded from the exam.

Students who do not participate in the evaluation receive 0 for the semester(s) concerned. Pass marks (at least 50%) for either semester are automatically carried over to the second session. In the second session the weight and format of the evaluation components may differ.

NB: The description of the evaluation is provisional and subject to changes depending on the size and composition of the class. Any changes in the evaluation procedure will be communicated to the students via Canvas at the beginning of the course.

Allowed unsatisfactory mark

The supplementary Teaching and Examination Regulations of your faculty stipulate whether an allowed unsatisfactory mark for this programme unit is permitted.

Academic context