The aim of this module is to examine some of the immediate and subsequent contexts (theatrical and cultural) of Shakespeare’s writings, and to develop a greater understanding of how these contexts have informed his own writing and that of his contemporaries and adaptors. Its specific aims are: to offer a series of comparative approaches to reading and interpreting Shakespeare both within and beyond his own ‘time’, and against eighteenth-century ideas of him as the great English poet of ‘Nature’, ‘Nation’, and ‘Genius’; to add to the students' understanding of theatre history, and also of some related aspects of cultural and social history, over the course of both the Renaissance and eighteenth-century periods; to develop the students’ critical awareness in response to the work of Shakespeare and others, and the wider contexts of their writing.

(LO1) Students will gain the ability to read, analyse, interpret and compare with competence and independence a wide variety of literary texts.

(LO2) Students will gain an advanced knowledge and systematic understanding of the political and ideological aspects of literary texts and how they can be situated within appropriate cultural and social contexts.

(LO3) Students will gain a critical appreciation of the ways in which texts can be situated within literary history, including issues of genre, influence, and creation and reception.

(LO4) Students will gain an advanced knowledge and critical awareness of current and new literary, critical and theoretical debates.

(LO5) Students will gain new skills fostering continued independent learning and a critical appreciation of complex issues within the broader context of the Arts and Humanities.

(S1) Students will gain a systematic knowledge and critical awareness of current debates and new insights within the field of literature and its contexts.

(S2) Students will gain advanced critical and analytical skills in relation to diverse forms of discourse.

(S3) Students will gain advanced literacy, interpersonal and communications skills, and the ability to present sustained and persuasive written and oral arguments to specialist and non-specialist audiences.

(S4) Students will gain the ability to comprehensively understand and apply a variety of theoretical approaches to literature.

(S5) Students will gain the ability to handle complex information and argument in a critical, creative and self-reflective manner.

(S6) Students will gain the ability to use IT and other relevant tools and resources to present written and oral work to a professional, scholarly standard.

(S7) Students will gain advanced skills and experience in selecting and using electronic and/or archival resources for planning and undertaking research and writing.

(S8) Students will gain organisational skills in managing time and workloads, and in meeting deadlines.

The typical syllabus for this module normally includes a selection of plays by Shakespeare studied alongside and in comparison with a selection of dramatic writing by contemporary or later playwrights, such as Marlowe, Jonson, Milton, Cibber and Garrick.

Teaching Method 1 - Seminar
6 x 2 hour seminars
Attendance Recorded: Yes

Self-Directed Learning Hours will likely involve students doing preparatory reading/research specific to each week of the module, carrying out further independent research and preparing for/working on assessments