English Lit Final PDF

English Literature
Undergraduate Handbook
2012 entry
Please keep this handbook in a safe place. It

contains essential information which you will need
to refer to throughout your degree course.
Contents
Welcome from Head of School ...............................................................................................5
Contact and Welfare Information ............................................................................................6
Frequently Asked Questions...................................................................................................9
Your Degree: Aims and Objective .........................................................................................12
Your Degree: Curriculum Information ..................................................................................14
Table of Modules ..................................................................................................................15
Assessment and Examination information ............................................................................18
Study Aids ............................................................................................................................24
Teaching and Learning Methods ..........................................................................................25
First Year Module Outlines ...................................................................................................28
Faculty Contact Details and Research Interests ...................................................................34
Appendix: Guidance on Essay Referencing ..........................................................................38
Please Note:
Although every effort is made to ensure that all information contained in this
handbook is correct at the time of going to print (September 2012), the University
cannot accept responsibility for errors or omissions. The University also reserves the
right to introduce changes from the information given, including the addition,
withdrawal or restructuring of courses and/or modules. The terms and conditions on
which the University makes offers of places on its courses of study, including those
covered in this handbook, may be found in the University of Sussex Undergraduate
Prospectus, copies of which can be obtained from the Admissions Office in
Sussex House.
.From Professor Tom Healy, Head of the School of English

A very warm welcome to the School of English. Through
BA degrees in English Literature, English Language,
American Studies, and Drama, we engage with the historical,
creative, performed, theoretical, and linguistic aspects of
English as a world language and literature. The School is
committed to providing our students with teaching of high
quality, founded on the expertise of over 40 members of
academic faculty whose research has overwhelmingly been
celebrated as internationally excellent. Our aim as a School is
to provide you with a supportive and intellectually stimulating
environment as you work in your chosen degree course.
I hope that you will take full advantage of what Sussex
University has to offer you. All the School's staff wish to help
you to make the most of your time here. Studying in the School you become a part of an
academic community that explores how language, whether read or performed, is the
foundation of the investigations we undertake about the human place in the world. We want
to work with you in helping you further your development into independent, informed and
questioning thinkers. Yet how much you get out of your time here depends on how much
you put in, and I encourage you to be an enthusiastic participant in your degree course.
Above all, studying with us should be rewarding and enjoyable. If you feel at any point that
is not the case, let us know and we will try to help.
I very much hope that you have a pleasurable and productive time with us at Sussex.
Tom Healy
Head of the School of English
Contact and Welfare Information

Where do I go for Information?
The English School Office
The English School Office is located in Arts B133 on the ground floor of the Arts
B Building and the staff there are happy to help you with any queries you may
have. The office is open 9 am 5 pm Monday to Friday. The office phone
number is (01273) 877303 and the office e-mail is: english@sussex.ac.uk.
English
Faculty
contact
details
and
office
hours
http://www.sussex.ac.uk/english/internal/forstudents/schooloffice
can
be
found
at:
Email
You will be registered for an email account here at the University of Sussex, and it is
important that you check this account daily during the week in term times, as much
communication is done by email. University emails will automatically be sent to your
University account rather than other personal accounts, such as Hotmail.
The Web
The School of English website has lots of useful information including faculty contact details,
module and course information and up-to-date news and events in the School:
http://www.sussex.ac.uk/english/internal/
Sussex Direct
When you arrive you will be registered to Sussex Direct, which is your personalised online
gateway to university information. The system will provide you with your study timetable
information, as well as help you track your marks, assessment deadlines, exams timetable
and attendance. Behind the scenes, Sussex Direct helps your Academic Adviser, and
Student Advisers, to support your studies.
You will also be able to access your library account and personal information pages,
including; contact, financial, printing and training course information.
Study Direct
You will also be registered to Study Direct, which has a range of on-line academic
resources to help you with your studies.
You will find the links to Sussex Direct and Study Direct at www.sussex.ac.uk (via the
student internal link).
Notice boards
Some key information may be displayed on student notice boards in the Arts B Building (in
the lobby area outside the English School Office, B133), so it is important that you
familiarise yourself with where they are located and check them regularly.
Pigeonholes
Undergraduate pigeonholes for students in the School of English are located in Arts B134
and these should be checked regularly. The pigeonholes contain post and
coursework/feedback from assessments. Students will be emailed when coursework is
ready to be collected.
Undergraduate Examinations Handbook

There is some information about examinations and assessments in this
handbook, but more detailed information can be found in the Undergraduate Examinations
Handbook, which is published on-line by the universitys academic office:
http://www.sussex.ac.uk/academicoffice/documentsandpolicies/examinationandasseexamin
ationanda/undergraduateexaminationhandbook
The English Undergraduate Manual for Planning and Writing Essays

This on-line manual gives you detailed guidance in the planning and writing of
essays and dissertations at undergraduate level. It is available on the School of Englishs
webpage: http://www.sussex.ac.uk/english/internal/forstudents/uginformation/ughandbooks
Event Booking System

The event booking system is used by the School office to invite students to events within the
School. The event will appear in your Sussex Direct timetable as either compulsory or
something that requires a request of acceptance. Typical events include book launches,
extra workshops and Drama performances.
Who can I talk to?

Your Academic Adviser
The role of your Academic Adviser is to monitor your academic progress and to give you
advice and help on academic or personal issues that may be affecting your studies. You will
meet your Academic Adviser during the first term, and they will be available during their
office hour for you to talk to should you need their help and advice. You will also meet with
them each year to review together how your studies are progressing.
Student Life Centre

The Student Life Centre is based on the ground floor of Chichester 1, and is open every
weekday 9 am 5 pm. The Student Life Team are there to help with the following issues:
Personal Concerns
Student Funding: Access to Learning Fund, all scholarships, bursaries and Vice
Chancellors loans.
Student Mentoring
Information about taking a temporary break (temporary withdrawal) or withdrawing
from the university.
Student Complaints
Student Discipline
Submission of mitigating evidence

Help with understanding University procedures
Specialist financial advice services are provided by the Student Union Advice and
Representation Centre.
You can contact the Student Life Centre by: telephoning 01273 87 6767; emailing
studentlifecentre@sussex.ac.uk ; or texting slcentre to 88020.
Further details about the Centre are available at: http://www.sussex.ac.uk/studentlifecentre
Student Mentors
Student mentors are current students who are here to help you settle into university life.
They can show you how different systems work (e.g. Sussex Direct), advise you on time
management and revision skills and a range of other issues no question is too small.
Drop-in sessions are open to anyone or you can e-mail one of the mentors and they will
arrange a time to see you.
See the website: http://www.sussex.ac.uk/studentlifecentre/mentors for more information on
Student Mentors or contact the Student Life Centre.
Student Representatives and the School Student Experience Group

The Student Representative Scheme is run jointly by the Students Union (USSU) and the
University. Student reps provide an essential link between students, the University and the
Students' Union. Because reps are themselves students, fellow students are happy to seek
assistance from them when they have concerns or opinions about their education and
experience at the University.
Each student cohort year elects both subject area reps and School level reps. Subject area
reps liaise with and represent students at local level. School level reps will also be elected
to take forward relevant issues to School and University level committees. All reps meet
together once a term at the School Student Experience Group to exchange information
and ideas.
Further information on the student representation scheme including voting dates can
be found at: http://www.studentreps.co.uk
The University of Sussex Students Union (USSU)

The Students Union offers a wealth of resources to help you during your time at Sussex, as
well as numerous clubs and societies that cater for your extra-curricular interests. The
Unions Student Advice Centre offers free, confidential advice on a range of academic and
non academic issues, including housing, finance, counselling and sexual health. The USSU
are located in Falmer House and their website can be found at:
http://www.sussexstudent.com/
The Careers and Employability Centre

The Careers and Employability Centre is located in the Library and is there to help you with
all aspects of career development and employment, both during your studies and after you
have graduated. They can help with finding a part time job during your studies or in the
vacation, putting together a CV, finding work experience, information about postgraduate
positions, and a range of other career related areas. They have a very informative website:
http://www.sussex.ac.uk/careers/
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the Universitys term dates?
New
undergraduates
attend
Autumn Term
2012-13
2013-14
2014-15
Arrival Weekend
Sat 15 Sep 2012
Sat 14 Sep 2013
Sat 13 Sep 2014
Freshers' induction
Mon 17 Sep 2012
Mon 16 Sep 2013
Mon 15 Sep 2014
Teaching starts
Thur 20 Sep 2012
Thur 19 Sep 2013
Thur 18 Sep 2014
Teaching finishes
Wed 12 Dec 2012
Wed 11 Dec 2013
Wed 10 Dec 2014
Christmas vacation
Attendance only
if required
Spring Term
Mid-year
assessment period
starts
Fri 18 Jan 2013
Fri 17 Jan 2014
Fri 16 Jan 2015
Teaching starts
Mon 21 Jan 2013
Mon 20 Jan 2014
Mon 19 Jan 2015
Easter teaching
break
Thu 28 Mar - Wed

03 Apr 2013
Easter 2014 falls

within the Spring
vacation
Thur 02 Apr - Wed

08 Apr 2015
Teaching finishes
Fri 19 Apr 2013
Fri 11 Apr 2014
Fri 17 Apr 2015
Sat 20 April - Sun

12 May 2013
Sat 12 Apr - Sun 11

May 2014
Sat 18 Apr - Sun

10 May 2015
Year-end
assessment period
starts
Mon 13 May 2013
Mon 12 May 2014
Mon 11 May 2015
Year-end
assessment period
ends
Fri 14 Jun 2013
Fri 13 Jun 2014
Fri 12 Jun 2015
Sat 15 Jun - Wed

18 Sep 2013
Sat 14 Jun - Wed

17 Sep 2014
Sat 13 Jun 2015 tbc
Summer vacation
Graduation
Attendance only
if required
Wed 09 Jan 2013 * Wed 08 Jan 2014 * Wed 07 Jan 2015 *
Mid-year
assessment period
ends
Spring vacation
Summer Term
Thu 13 Dec 2012 - Thur 12 Dec 2013 - Thur 11 Dec 2014 Tue 8 Jan 2013
Tue 07 Jan 2014
Tue 06 Jan 2015
Resit period
Tue 09 July - Fri 12 Tue 08 July - Fri 11 Tue 07 July - Fri 10

Jul 2013
Jul 2014
Jul 2015
Mon 26 Aug to Fri 6
Sep 2013 *
# Term dates for all students:- UG, PGT and PGR
* exams may be scheduled on Saturdays
Where can I see my timetable?

On Sussex Direct (which you are automatically registered to when you are registered at the
university); go to the Study page and click on Study Timetable.
What should I do if Im ill or unable to attend classes?

If you are ill or cannot attend classes for any other reason you should tell the English School
Office (01273 877303), who will inform your tutors. If you find that ill health or other
circumstances are affecting your studies we strongly recommend you drop into the Student
Life Centre and speak to one of the team.
http://www.sussex.ac.uk/studentlifecentre
Who can I talk to if I am experiencing difficulties?

If you are having problems with a particular module we would recommend talking to your
module tutor in the first instance. If you are experiencing more general academic problems
or issues with your degree you should see your academic adviser. For help and advice with
personal and welfare issues you can talk to a member of the Student Life Centre team,
based on the ground floor of Chichester 1.
What happens if I cant hand my work in due to illness/other circumstances?

If you believe you have a good reason why you cannot hand in work you can submit
Mitigating Evidence. Please go to your Sussex Direct screen, click on your 'study' tab and
choose 'mitigating evidence' from the drop-down menu. Click on 'new claim' and select the
dates appropriate to the duration of your claim. All assessments due between those dates
will appear on your screen claim. Enter the information about your claim according to the
guidance provided on the screen. Once you have completed the claim you will be required
to print a cover sheet and a copy of the claim 'insert'. Place insert and all documentary
evidence in an envelope and attach the cover sheet. You must submit the envelope to your
school office. Essays and coursework should be submitted to the School office, either
before or after handing in the mitigating evidence form.
Where do I hand in my work?

Coursework should be handed in to the English School Office (Arts B133), or, if you are
taking a module not run by the School of English, to the school office of the School that runs
the module in question.
You need to make sure that you submit 2 copies of your assessed work, with a cover sheet
attached. The two copies must be individually stapled and one cover sheet must be placed
on top of both copies, hole-punched in the top left-hand corner and attached with a treasury
tag. (One cover sheet for both copies). Coversheets are available from the School Office
throughout the year.
Work that is not formally assessed and does not contribute to your marks for the year will
normally be handed in to the module tutor.
Where do I hand in work when its late?

Late work should be handed in to the English School Office.
Please note that work submitted late will be subject to the following penalties:
up to 24 hours after the deadline - a penalty deduction of 5 percentage points, so an

original mark of 65% will be reduced to 60%.
after 24 hours and up to 7 days (1 weeks) late - a penalty deduction of 10
percentage points
after 7 days and up to the final submission date (as detailed on Sussex Direct) assignment to be marked but given a capped 40% mark
after final published submission deadline automatic zero mark.
It is extremely important therefore, that you do hand all of your work in on time.
Losing marks for lateness can have a significant impact on your degree classification.
Where do I collect marked work?

Marked work will be returned in class by the tutor or left in the Pigeonhole Room, Arts B134
for you to collect. If you dont attend the seminar, subject to the tutor, the marked work will
be ready to collect from B134.
10
Where can I see my marks?

Your marks can be viewed on Sussex Direct, along with progress reports written by your
tutors. Marks and feedback will be returned within 15 working days.
Where do I get a photocopy card from, and where is the nearest photocopier?
You can purchase a photocopy card (and recharge it) in the Library. The nearest
photocopiers and printers are in the Library.
Where is the nearest computer cluster?

Some computers are available off the English Social Space (B274) on the second floor in
Arts B. Computers are also available in the Shawcross Building and in the Library.
Where can I update my contact details?

If your contact details change you should update them on your Sussex Direct account.
Where can I find information about modules?

Information about modules can be found on Sussex Direct, including the modes of
assessment, weightings and credit details. Or you can go to the link on the School of
English website: http://www.sussex.ac.uk/english/internal/coursesandmodules/ugcourses
What information is available via Sussex Direct?

The system provides you with your study timetable information, as well as help you track
your marks, assessment deadlines, exams timetable and attendance. Behind the scenes,
Sussex Direct helps your Academic Adviser and the Student Life Centre teams to support
your studies.
You can also see your library account and personal information pages, including; contact,
financial, printing and training course information.
You will find the link to Sussex Direct and Study Direct at www.sussex.ac.uk (via the
student internal link).
What is Study Direct?

Study Direct has a range of on-line academic resources to help you with your studies. Some
modules also have readers and outlines which will be available for you to download
and print.
I want to transfer to a different degree course what should I do?

You should talk it through with your Academic Adviser if you want to change your degree
course. If you decide to transfer to a different degree course this is only possible at certain
times of the year, and you should contact Anne Woodbridge, Curriculum and Assessment
Officer, Arts B138 (opposite the School Office). She will give you a transfer form and explain
the procedure to you.
What do I do in an emergency?
If there is an accident or emergency you should phone the campus emergency hotline on
3333 (from a mobile or external line call 01273 873333). Do not dial 999. If you hear a fire
alarm, leave the building straight away by the nearest exit and go to the local building
assembly point.
and remember, the staff in the English School Office (Arts B133) are here to help you with
any queries you may have.
11
Your English Degree: Aims and Objectives

Why English at Sussex?
The University of Sussex has been at the forefront of developments in literary studies since
our inception, and our current degree course is widely recognised for its combination of
coherence, innovation and variety. You will not only be introduced to a range of recent - and
often controversial - critical approaches. You will also have the freedom to explore key
issues in literatures ranging from the medieval to the modern. During your studies you will
explore questions such as:
What role has literature played in past societies as well as in present society?
How do we analyse and understand different genres such as the novel, poetry, drama,
the short story and autobiography?
What is the relationship between literature and other cultural forms, including film,
photography and the visual arts?
What are the links between modernism, post-modernism and post-colonial writing?
The variety of module choices available during your degree course will provide you with the
scope and flexibility to pursue your individual interests - anything from creative writing to
sexual politics.
Core skills
While at Sussex you will be acquiring and developing many skills. Below is a list of core
skills used in our modules. The language may be unfamiliar now, but it can help you to
express the skills you learn through academic study when you apply for employment or
further study. The aim for the present is to help you to:
take control of your self-development

be clear about what you like doing and what you're good at
set yourself ambitious goals for your study at Sussex
plan how you will manage your time to achieve these goals
develop a critical awareness of your work and your working methods
make connections between your life at Sussex and your future beyond it.
Interpersonal skills
Communication
Writing clearly and cogently
Listening to others
Preparing and delivering presentations
Negotiating and cooperating
Contributing to seminar discussion

Social
Building on the ideas of others
Working in a group, delegating tasks
Encouraging and motivating others
12
Academic Skills
Learning Skills
Contributing effectively in seminars
Evaluating evidence, developing
argument
Revising drafts and proof reading

an Reviewing progress
Essay planning, writing effectively

Research Skills
Independent research
Making use of a reading list
Using resources (the library, on-line and

CDROM data)
Applying critical theories
Developing critical awareness

The aim for the future is that you will be able to:
question what you read and why you read it
respond critically and creatively to how you read
develop a critical and cultural awareness that will remain with you for life
find and develop your own distinctive voice
make well informed decisions about the world in which you live
articulate your strengths to employers
take control of your own career development.
Creativity and your degree

Your English degree at Sussex will enable you to develop your own creativity. You will be
able, if you wish, to submit creative writing exercises in a number of the modules studied
during your degree. You may produce visual work - painting, photography, sculpture and
visual artifacts - for some of your modules, provided that it is accompanied by critical or
creative reflection.
Royal Society of Literature Writing Support
The Royal Literary Fund (RLF) Writing Fellowship Programme provides support for
students who would like to improve their writing skills for their creative writing, essays,
projects or dissertations. Full details can be found on the web:
http://www.sussex.ac.uk/tldu/studentskills/rlf
13
Your English Degree: Curriculum Information

You will study English at Sussex either as a Single Honours student, taking English core
modules, English options and electives, or as a Joint Honours student, taking core modules
and options from the two courses you are studying.
Single Honours Degree Courses:
BA English
Joint Honours Degree Courses:
BA English and History
BA English and Art History
BA English and Media Studies
BA English and a Language (French, German, Italian or Spanish)
BA English and Film Studies
BA English Language and Literature
BA Philosophy and English
BA American Studies and English
BA Drama Studies and English
How is my degree course structured?

Your degree course has been designed so that it has clear stages of development.
In Year 1, your modules provide you with the foundation for your further studies in years 2
and 3. The modules you take in year 1 will ask fundamental and far-reaching questions
about what literature is and about the ways we read and make sense of literature.
In Year 2, your modules consolidate what you have learned in year 1 and introduce you to
new material and approaches. In the spring and the summer terms of year 2 you will begin
your study of a Period of English Literature module. This will develop your skills in thinking
contextually and historically and in applying to the literature of a particular period the
theoretical approaches you have learnt so far.
In Year 3, your modules involve an element of independent research, requiring you to show
[if you have not done so before] originality and independence of thought. You will be able to
work in detail on a Special Author and on a Special Subject, giving yourself the freedom to
specialise with rigour and in depth in areas of study and on topics of your choice.
At Sussex, we encourage you to maintain an awareness of the interconnectedness and the
development of your degree as a whole. In your electronic feedback in Sussex Direct or
written feedback forms, you will be asked how you intend to carry forward your work on a
particular module and how you relate the module you have completed to work you have
already undertaken.
14
What Modules will I take during my degree course?

BA English (Single Honours)
First Year
Term
Autumn (core)
Autumn (core)
Autumn (option)
Autumn (elective)
Module (code and title)

Q3121 Texts in Time 1
Q3120 Critical Approaches 1
Q3122 Reading Genre 1
Autumn Term Elective *
Credits
30
15
15
15
Spring (core)
Spring (core)
Spring (option)
Spring (elective)

Spring Term Elective*
30
15
15
15
* Single Honours students can take an elective in place of Reading Genre 1 and/or 2
(nb. elective means that you choose a module from a list of options across the Schools)
Second Year
Term
Autumn (core)
Module
Period of English Literature choose ONE from:
1500-1625; 1625-1750; 1750-1880; 1860-1945
Choose TWO from:
Autumn (option)
Q3171 American Literature Since 1890 Part 1
Q3012 Lyric Poetry
Q3150 Translating Cultures
Q3059 Staging the Renaissance: Shakespeare
Q3052 The Art of Short Fiction
Q3049 The Arts and Literature of Satire
Q3077 Twentieth Century Novel & the Supernatural
Q3010 Writing and the Great War
Autumn (elective)
Autumn Term Elective*
Spring (core)
Q3060 Traditions, Innovations and Genres: The Novel
Choose TWO from the following options:
Spring (option)
Q3172 American Literature Since 1890 Part 2
Q3103 Avant Garde Cinema: Theory, Practice and Criticism
Q3129 Languages of Racisms
Q3126 Creative Writing in the Renaissance
Q3127 Pulp Culture
Q3072 Reading Post-Colonial Texts
Q3117 Representation and the Body
Q3128 Scenes of Learning
Q3097 Sense and Sexuality: Women and Writing in the 18th
Century
Q3086 Senses of the Self
Q3033 Tragedy
Q3130 Travel and Transgression
Spring (elective)
Spring Term Elective*
* In either or both terms of the second year, Single Honours students may take ONE
plus an elective from a list offered across the Schools.
15
Credits
30
15
15
30
15
15
option
Final Year
Term
Autumn (core)
Autumn (option)
Spring (core)
Spring (core)
Module
1500-1625; 1625-1750; 1750-1880; 1860-1945
Special Author choose ONE from:
Austen, Beckett, Dickens, Hardy, Hitchcock, John Ashbery,
Marlowe, Rushdie, Woolf,
Modern and Contemporary - choose ONE from:
British Writing
Contemporary Film: Contemporary Theory
21st Century Literature
Special Subject choose ONE from:
Q3141 Culture and Pornography
Q3142 Documentary America
Q3024 Islam, Literature and the West
Q3020 Language, Truth & Literature
Q3079 Literatures of Africa
Q3006 Sexual Difference: Women and Writing
Q3051 The Uncanny
Q3119 Utopias and Dystopias
Credits
30
30
30
30
Details of all modules listed above can be found at:

http://www.sussex.ac.uk/english/internal/coursesandmodules/ugcourses
(Joint Honours):
BA English and History
BA English and Art History
BA English and a Language (French, German, Italian or Spanish)
BA English and Film Studies
BA Philosophy and English
BA American Studies and English
BA Drama Studies and English
First Year
Term
Autumn (core)
Spring (core)

Credits
30
30
The remainder of your modules for the first year will be
from your joint subject.
BA English and Media Studies

First Year
Term
Autumn (core)
Spring (core)

16
Credits
15
15
30
BA English Language and Literature

First Year
Term
Autumn (core)
Spring (core)

Credits
15
15
15
15

All Joint Honours

Second Year
Term
Autumn (option)
Spring (option)
Final Year
Term
Autumn (core)
Spring (core)
Module
1500-1625; 1625-1750; 1750-1880; 1860-1945
Q3060 Traditions, Innovations and Genres: The Novel
OR
Writing, Translation and Performance choose TWO from
an array of options (see second year BA English table on
page 15 for list of options)
The remainder of your modules for the second year will be
Credits
30
30
15 each
Module
Credits
Special Author Choose ONE from an array of options 30
(see final year BA English table on page 16 for list of
options):
Special Subject Choose ONE from an array of options 30
(see table on page 16)
The remainder of your modules for the final year will be
N.B. For details of the modules that you will take for your joint subject, please refer to the
relevant course handbook.
PLEASE NOTE: Whilst the above course tables are accurate at the time of printing this handbook (September
2012), the curriculum may have changed by the time you are in your second and final years i.e. some new
modules may be running and some modules may not be offered. The English website will always have the most
up to date degree course structures go to
17
Your English Degree: Assessment and Examination

The Credit System
You will notice that each module has a certain number of credits. Degree courses at Sussex
are modular, with each academic year being a largely self-contained unit of study. Full-time
students are expected to spend at least 30 working weeks on their studies - a grand total of
at least 1,200 student-hours per year. Sussex, like other Universities, uses a measure
called acredit which reflects this input of time. In the system used here, each academic
year contains at least 120 credits (i.e. a credit is equivalent to 10 hours of student effort).
These credits are divided out amongst the different modules. By knowing the number of
credits for each module, you will have a guide to the relative amount of work required - i.e. a
15 credit module should require only half the total amount of work needed for a 30 credit
module. The credit allocated to a module is meant to indicate the total amount of effort
required over the duration of the module. This can include time spent on many relevant
learning activities such as reading background material, preparing and writing essays,
attending lectures and tutorials and revision for exams.
These figures can only be a guide. The most important reason for this is that individual
students come with different backgrounds and have different strengths, and this affects the
amount of effort (and time) that will be needed to cope with the various modules in the
degree course. If you find yourself spending much more, or much less, time on a module
than is appropriate for that modules credit loading, then you should talk to your module
tutor and your academic adviser to make sure that you are spending your time effectively.
Modes of Assessment
You will be assessed throughout your degree course through a variety of
modes of assessment, chosen to test the particular skills and forms of knowledge you have
been taught on particular modules.
In year 1, we make use of short coursework exercises, group presentations, coursework
essays, portfolios and unseen examinations as modes of assessment. In year 2, we make
use of longer coursework essays, unseen exams, log books, oral presentations and
takeaway papers. In year 3, we make use of longer coursework essays, an extended essay,
oral presentations and a dissertation as modes of assessment.
Coursework
Many modules include a coursework component in their assessment. Assessed coursework
allows your regular essays and/or exercise work to contribute to your final result for the
year, and demands continuing commitment and effort. This mode of assessment will enable
you to research and reflect upon a topic before writing, develop your skills in organising and
presenting a coherent argument within a designated word-length, show your skills in the
close reading of particular passages in order to reflect upon genres and styles of writing and
to substantiate general points about the texts discussed, and to demonstrate your ability to
present your written work in a scholarly and professional manner.
Please note: there is a manual entitled Guide to Planning and Writing Essays and
Dissertations, which contains lots of helpful information and advice regarding the planning
and writing of coursework essays. This manual is available online via the School of English
website: http://www.sussex.ac.uk/english/internal/forstudents/uginformation/ughandbooks
18
Portfolio
You will submit a specified number of coursework essays in a specified number of words for
assessment at the end of a module as part of a portfolio. You may be set specific topics
upon which to write or you may be asked to write on a topic of your own choice. You will be
informed about the manner of assessment at the beginning of the module.
Log-Book
The log-book enables you to reflect on your own learning experiences and to make a record
of your methods of reading, research and critical and creative analysis.
Extended Essay and Dissertations

Essays or dissertations of 4000 or 6000 words allow you, by choosing your own topics, to
develop expertise in areas of particular interest to you and to conduct individual research
projects. Students will be expected to show wide reading and reflection, the ability to
organise and develop a lucid and persuasive argument, and the capacity to make and
substantiate generalisations through mastery of the details of texts and through close
attention to their form, style and language. Extended essays and dissertations also test your
skills in using sources and organising and presenting an effective and scholarly piece of
discursive writing.
Takeaway Papers
Takeaway examinations [for which you have to answer a set number of questions in a
specified number of words over a specified period] allow you to display your skills in writing
about literary texts without relying exclusively on memory.
Unseen Examinations
Unseen examinations test your assimilated knowledge and understanding and the ability to
write succinctly at short notice. There is an Examinations Handbook for Undergraduates
published each year by the University, which will provide more detailed information about
examinations.
Useful assessment information

Writing well and avoiding academic misconduct
Plagiarism, collusion, and cheating in exams are all forms of academic misconduct which
the University takes very seriously. Every year, some students commit academic
misconduct unintentionally because they did not know what was expected of them. The
consequences for committing academic misconduct can be severe, so it is important that
you familiarise yourself with what it is and how to avoid it.
The University's S3 guide to study skills gives advice on writing well, including hints and tips
on how to avoid making serious mistakes. Visit http://sussex.ac.uk/s3/writingwell and make
use of the resources there. You will also find helpful guides to referencing properly and
improving your critical writing skills. Brief information about referencing can also be found in
an appendix at the end of this booklet.
If you are dealing with difficult circumstances, such as illness or bereavement, do not try to
rush your work or hand in something which may be in breach of the rules. Instead you
should seek confidential advice from the Student Life Centre.
The full University rules on academic misconduct are set out in the Undergraduate
Examination and Assessment Handbook; see
http://www.sussex.ac.uk/academicoffice/documentsandpolicies/examinationandassessment
handbooks/undergraduateexaminationhandbook.
19
Handing in formally-assessed work

It is important that you are quite clear about where and when work must be handed in.
Deadline dates for coursework are shown on your study pages on Sussex Direct
(www.sussex.ac.uk/sussexdirect). Coursework should be handed in to the School Office
which owns the module in question (e.g. assessed coursework for English modules should
be handed in to the English School Office Arts B133, coursework for media modules will be
handed in to the Media, Film and Music School Office, and so on). If you are in any doubt,
please ask staff in the School Office before the deadline date. Unless told otherwise you
should hand in two copies of your work with a cover sheet attached.
Deadlines for assessed work

Deadlines for assessed coursework are absolute and the university does not allow
extensions so it is very important you make every effort to hand your work in on time.
Coursework handed in up to 24 hours late will receive a penalty of a 5% reduction of the
marks available. Work handed in after 24 hours and up to 7 days (1 week) late will have 10
percentage points deducted from the total, and work handed in after 7 days and up to the
final submission date (as detailed on Sussex Direct) is assigned a capped mark of 40%.
Anything submitted after the final published submission deadline receives a zero mark.
If you are experiencing genuine problems in getting your work in on time you should arrange
to meet with an advisor at the Student Life Centre, and you may be advised to fill out a
Mitigating Evidence Form to present with late work (and medical evidence, e.g. doctors
note should be presented too, if relevant). If your reason for lateness is considered a valid
one the reduction in your mark may be altered or waived.
For more detailed information please refer
http://www.sussex.ac.uk/studentlifecentre/mitigation.
to
the
following
web
page:
Collecting marked work

Written coursework that has been marked will normally be returned within 15 working days.
It may be returned to you directly by the tutor or it will be delivered to Arts B134 for you to
collect.
End of year results

At the end of each academic year, the English Undergraduate Exam Board meets to
determine your progression to the next year of your course, or, in the case of final year
students, the degree class you will be awarded. Details of your results, including
examination results, will be available on your Sussex Direct study pages following the
meeting of the exam board, and a pass list will be published on the notice board in Arts B
listing the students who have progressed to the next year. If at the end of year 1 or year 2
you have not passed enough modules to progress to the next year, you will be asked to
resit in September some or all of the modules you have failed. You will be contacted by
letter if this is the case. More detailed information regarding examinations and resits is in the
Undergraduate Examination Handbook, which will be available in the autumn term, and is
on the web:
http://www.sussex.ac.uk/academicoffice/documentsandpolicies/examinationandassessment
handbooks/undergraduateexaminationhandbook
The pass mark for all undergraduate modules is 40%.
20
At the end of the year, you must have achieved at least 90 credits worth of modules in order
st
to progress to the next year of your degree course. Marks for the 1 year do not contribute
towards your degree classification (final degree result), but you must pass the first year in
nd
order to progress to the second year. For a three-year degree course your 2 year marks
contribute 40% to your degree classification, and the final year contributes 60% to your
degree classification.
Grid Marking
English uses a grid system of marking. On the one hand, we do so in order to make our
marking precise and transparent; on the other hand, we do so in order to provide students
with very detailed feedback so that you can see where your strengths and weaknesses are
and where you need to do further work in order to improve your performance.
As you will see, we consider four main elements when marking your work: 1) research, 2)
analysis, 3) subject knowledge and 4) communication, argument and presentation. In order
to perform at the highest level, you will need to meet the criteria set out below in all of these
four areas. Your tutor will give you guidance on the ways in which these categories apply to
the marking of your written work on a particular module.
Research: As well as engaging with an appropriate range of primary texts, your work
should reveal wide and critical reading in the secondary sources recommended to you by
your tutor, sources which may be critical or theoretical. The best work will show evidence of
independent research.
Analysis: Your work should reveal a clear, accurate and original defining of a topic for
discussion and a clear, accurate and original handling of the matter you discuss whether it
is a textual interpretation and/or evaluation, an idea, a critical or theoretical approach, a
question of literary type or genre or a contextual question related to the particular module
you are taking. Of course, your analytical work may well involve combining elements from
some or all of these.
Subject Knowledge: Your work should reveal a close engagement with the text or texts
you are discussing in ways which reflect on the text as text, whether formally and/or in
relation to its context and to other texts. Please note that the phrase formal levels of the
text in the marking criteria below may include questions of context and/or questions of
genre, form, literary technique, language and style.
Communication, Argument and Presentation: Your work should be well written, with the
fullest attention paid to clarity, accuracy of expression, management of argument and
regard for your reader. Your work should follow the guidelines for presentation set out for
you by the department.
21
Marking Criteria
0-39
RESEARCH
ANALYSIS
SUBJECT
KNOWLEDGE
COMMUNICATION,
ARGUMENT &
PRESENTATION
40-49
50-59
60-69
70-74
75-79
80 -85
86-100
Inadequate
evidence of
secondary
reading (critical
or theoretical)
Little evidence of
secondary reading
(critical or
theoretical)
Some evidence of
secondary reading
(critical or
theoretical)
Good evidence of
secondary reading
(critical or
theoretical)
Wide use of
secondary
sources (critical or
theoretical);
evidence of
independent
research.
Wide and
penetrating use of
secondary
theoretical);
evidence of
independent
research.
Wide and highly

sophisticated use
of secondary
theoretical);
evidence of
independent
research.
As for 70-85; use and

treatment of
secondary sources
(critical or theoretical)
transcends the
expectation of the
level of the
assessment.
Inadequate
evidence of
analysis; below
the standard
required at the
current level of
module.
An elementary or
incomplete
account of the
material; prone to
stray from point or
lose focus.
An adequate
understanding of
the material;
maintains focus
on topic[s]
addressed.
A sound
understanding of
the material, with
some awareness
of the complexity
of the issues
discussed.
An original
approach to the
material by
questioning
established views
and advancing a
well-considered
analysis or
interpretation.
A fresh and
original approach
to the material by
questioning
established views
and manifesting a
developed and
striking analysis or
interpretation.
A fresh and
original approach
to the material by
questioning
established views
and manifesting
an outstandingly
bold analysis or
interpretation.
As for 70-85; analysis

transcends the
expectation of the
task at this level.
Inadequate
knowledge of
text[s] under
discussion;
quotes
inapposite or
inaccurate.
An insufficient
knowledge of
text[s] under
discussion; quotes
them occasionally
and seldom
accurately.
A basic
knowledge of the
text[s] under
discussion; quotes
aptly and with
regard to formal
levels of text.
A sound
knowledge of the
text[s] under
discussion; quotes
well used to
support argument
and shows
marked regard to
formal levels of
text.
A detailed and
accurate
knowledge of
texts, with
excellent use of
quotes and full
regard for formal
levels of texts.
A precise and
detailed
knowledge of
texts, with high
level of expertise
in discussing
formal levels of
texts.
A precise and
detailed
knowledge of
texts, with striking
level of expertise
in discussing
formal levels of
texts.
A precise and
detailed knowledge of
texts, with
outstanding level of
expertise in
discussing formal
levels of texts.
Argument poorly
structured and
below the level
required at the
current level of
the module.
Inadequate
expression;
inadequate
presentation.
An argument
which is
sometimes
muddled or
incoherent and is
rarely
substantiated by
textual evidence.
Frequent errors in
the rules of
grammar.
Presentation does
not follow
guidelines.
An argument
which shows a
basic but limited
command of
expression.
Observes the
rules of grammar.
Presentation in
line with
guidelines.
An argument
which shows a
sure command of
expression.
Critical terms
used accurately in
sound and
accurate prose.
Presentation in
line with
guidelines.
Argument
cogently
expressed,
anchored in
textual evidence.
Flawlessly
expressed and
presented.
As for 70-4:
writing
distinguished by
nuance,
complexity and
regard for style
As for 70-79:
writing
distinguished by a
sense of
assurance
associated with a
higher level.
As for 70-85:
writing distinguished
by a command of
style and exposition
associated with a
higher level.
Marking Criteria, Performance Levels and Classification

Fail 0-39; Third Class Degree 40-49; Lower Second Class Degree 50-59; Upper Second
Class Degree 60-69; First Class Degree 70-100
0-19 A mark in this range is indicative that your work is far below the standard required
level of your degree course.
20-39 A mark in this range is indicative that your work is below, but at the upper end is
approaching, the standard required at the current level of your degree course.
40-49 A mark in this range is indicative that your work is of an acceptable standard at
the current level of your degree course.
50-59 A mark in this range is indicative that your work is of a satisfactory to very
satisfactory standard at the current level of your degree course.
60-69 A mark in this range is indicative that your work is of a good to very good
standard at the current level of your degree course.
70-74 A mark in this range is indicative that your work is of an excellent standard at the
current level of your degree course.
75-79 A mark in this range is indicative that your work is of an outstanding standard at
80-85 A mark in this range is indicative that your work is of an exceptional standard at
86-100 A mark in this range is indicative that your work is of a standard that transcends
the expectation of the task at the current level of your degree course.
Study Aids
Module Readers and Module Packs
To enable you to make full use of your lecture series, we have prepared comprehensive
module readers to support many of the modules taught through lectures. Students are required
to download module readers specially written for all lecture-based modules and accompanying
module packs of critical articles selected and edited for your modules. The module readers
will be available online via Study Direct.
Module documentation and reading-lists

Each module has a module-information document, specifying objectives, teaching methods,
reading requirements, presentation and essay/exercise requirements, learning outcomes [what
skills and knowledge you will have learned] and assessment modes [and how these are
appropriate to testing the skills and knowledge you have learned]. This document, available
before or at the beginning of each module, gives you a sense of the shape and direction of the
module, allows you to choose emphases and to manage your time, and enables the Library to
anticipate demand. Please refer to your Sussex Direct study pages for all assessment details.
On most modules, tutors direct you to a wide range of reading, both to expose you to a variety
of perspectives, and to make the most effective use of the Library's resources. In some cases,
a single textbook is specified, supplemented by other reading each week.
24
Teaching and Learning Methods

Lectures and Seminars
Our emphasis is on student participation, to encourage you to develop research and writing
skills, and to be self-confident and articulate both in writing and in speech. Lectures and
seminars are the modes of teaching most commonly used in universities to achieve these
ends. We use them because they help you to develop different skills. Lectures and seminars
are distinctive modes of teaching and they require distinctive modes of learning. You will find
below some ideas that will allow you to reflect more fully on your own active participation in
your studies.
Lectures and how to use them

Lectures are used (a) to assist in the introduction of unfamiliar material, as in first-year
introductory modules; (b) to assist in the assimilation of technically demanding or conceptually
difficult material; (c) to reflect on material students will have been asked to read and prepare
before the lecture provided in module readers and module packs; and, (d) above all, to present
you with original ideas and approaches you will not encounter elsewhere.
Lectures are not talking text-books. Even though they are used to present information relevant
to the subject matter of the lecture series, their main function is to demonstrate how complex
materials can be organised into lucidly expressed, logically developed and intellectually
persuasive patterns of argument. In this way they enhance the acquisition of key practical and
intellectual skills at the university level.
To make the best use of lectures, you need to reflect on your skills as a listener and as a notetaker.
Listening skills
Lectures are interactive performances: the lecturer speaks and you listen; and in many of the
lectures we give at Sussex, you are invited to respond and interact. But you have to learn to
listen in an engaged and active way. You need to enter into an imagined conversation with
the lecturer, questioning what the lecturer says, assessing the conceptual terms through which
the argument of the lecture is being conveyed, interrogating the relationships established
between general propositions and textual evidence or close textual analysis.
For all of your lecture modules you will have a module reader or module pack or recommended
primary or secondary texts. If you complete the assigned reading before the lecture, you will be
able to engage more actively with the lecture. The success of a lecture depends as much on
the creative and critical participation of students as it does on the performance of the lecturer.
You must come prepared!
Note-taking Skills
It is common for students, used to the directed teaching you will have received at A-level, to
have difficulties in deciding what to write down when listening to a university lecture on a
literary topic. At university level, we require you to decide what is significant in a lecture
and that process of analysis and assessment is one of the key skills you are expected to
develop from lecture-based modules.
25
The module reader or module outline will help you to decide on what is significant. It is
essential that you read these thoroughly before the lecture series and that you read
recommended sections before the lecture.
Active Participation
We believe that active participation is essential to your learning through lectures. You must
attend: do not rely on the notes of those who have attended lectures. Notes record what the
note taker has decided is significant and will not reflect your own analysis and assessment of
what is significant. It is often helpful, however, to compare your notes with those of others after
the lecture and reflect upon the reasons for divergences.
Make your notes legibly and on loose-leaf paper so that you can integrate your notes in a way
you find helpful into your binder for the module as a whole. Write only on one side and use the
back for your own thoughts and responses and for further work to follow up or to contest a
proposition made in the lecture. Set aside a few minutes every day to edit your notes and keep
them in a safe place.
Seminars and how to use them

Seminars involve group work, and as such, they offer you the opportunity to listen to the ideas
and arguments of others, to try your own ideas and arguments and to subject the ideas and
arguments of others to criticism. Your tutor will lead and direct discussion, steering you in
productive and stimulating lines of inquiry while ensuring that the discussion of points of view
remains detached and objective.
The ability to participate sympathetically and in an articulate and analytical way in seminar
discussions is one of the most valuable lessons you will learn at university and one of the skills
most prized beyond the university. But we prize it as an end in itself: it helps you to define your
own point of view and to establish your own intellectual framework. It takes your own thinking
about a text or an idea from the realm of the unexpressed to something which has found shape
and form in the act of articulation.
To make best use of seminars, you need to reflect on your own role as a participant.
What to talk about
The module reader or the module outline will provide you with guidance about the aims and
objectives of the module and the material to be read in advance of seminars. Seminars will only
be productive for you if you have undertaken substantial work before the seminar, by reading
the primary texts set for the week's discussion and by following up recommended secondary
reading. It is not necessary for you to present fully formed and definitive judgements on what
you have read. You will need at times to take risks in seminars. You can admit to being baffled,
perplexed, unmoved, irritated [or, of course, to being moved, elated, or transformed] by the
texts you have read and then, through discussion, to proceed to find out why you responded in
this way and to find means of making your response a more formal and objective one. But
nothing will come out of the seminar for you unless you have read the texts under
discussion.
26
Oral Presentations
In the promotion of active learning, a common teaching/learning method is the student-led
seminar, in which one or more of you give an oral presentation on an aspect of the week's
topic. Oral presentations are a formal part of the assessment of some of your modules. It is
helpful if you can work on a text which engages you and it is also helpful if you can decide in
advance (either through consultation with the tutor or simply on your own initiative) what your
presentation will be about. You may find it useful to give your presentation a title so that the
seminar will know the subject matter and mode of approach you will be adopting. Your
presentation should consist of an introduction (in which you tell your seminar group what your
presentation will be about), a development of your argument, with references to the texts
discussed, and a conclusion.
Organise the main points of your argument one after another and signpost the main points
clearly. Illustrate your points by quotation from the texts. Use appropriate language for the
occasion. [Do not start by saying "I'm really nervous, but here goes/ I'm not very good at this/ I
haven't got a lot to say."] Do not speak too fast or too slowly and do not use over-long
sentences. In your conclusion you should emphasise the main points of your presentation to
make sure your audience has understood them.
Working in groups
As with lectures, you need to reflect upon your listening skills to make full use of a seminar.
You are not listening to a detailed argument that has already been formed by an expert. You
are participating in a discussion in which arguments are in the process of being formed, views
expressed and contested, judgements made and re-made. Remember that the text(s) you all
have read will provide you with the evidence you need to justify your own position or to
challenge the position advanced by your tutor or by other members of the seminar. You may
find it useful to record insights and ideas as the seminar progresses; but try to assess the
different lines or kinds of argument that are being tested in discussion. Your own reading of a
text may be very different at the end of a seminar discussion from what it was at the outset and
you should at least have had the opportunity to make your own response more concrete and
defined.
The success of a seminar depends on the active and equal participation of all those
taking part and you will not have made the best use of the seminar if you have remained
uninvolved during the discussion. Equally, if you have definite ideas about a text, use these
to stimulate and provoke rather than to dominate discussion.
Module Evaluations (Online)

At the end of every module, you will be asked to give your views, anonymously, on the
teaching, module content, organisation, etc., usually by questionnaire. Make sure you fill these
in! The answers are considered in School Committees and if they show that something is not
quite right, we will do our best to fix it.
27
First Year Module Outlines

The following pages give brief outlines and learning outcomes for Year One Modules in
the English Degree Course. The information is only a summary and will be
supplemented by modulespecific materials.
Critical Approaches 1 Q3120, Autumn Term (15 credits)

Critical Approaches 2 Q3123, Spring & Summer Terms (15 credits)
How do we go about reading and interpreting a literary text? What are we trying to do when we
analyse a work of literature: are we trying to establish one correct interpretation? How do we
decide that some interpretations are more valuable than others? Do we need to understand the
original intentions of the author to understand what something means? Is it necessary to
understand the historical or political situation from which a work emerged? Do readers interpret
texts differently at different historical moments? Could our interpretations of texts be affected by
forces beyond our control, forces such as the workings of language, unconscious desires,
class, race, gender, sexuality or nationality? How is it that some texts, Shakespeares plays, for
instance, are highly valued by our culture, while others have been lost or devalued? Who or
what decides which literature will survive to be read and studied on English courses?
Critical Approaches will suggest some ways of answering these large and difficult questions
about interpretation, and aims to make you think in new ways about the work you do for your
English degree at Sussex. The course runs over the whole year, divided into two parts. In Part
One you will study two themes: The Author/Authority and The Word; in Part Two you will
study Difference, Materialist History and Materialist Reading, and Desire and Pleasure.
Throughout the course you will read critical and theoretical essays and literary works that
contribute to your understanding of these themes. The course will examine many different
aspects of literary theory including new criticism, Marxism, structuralism, post-structuralism,
deconstruction, feminism, post-colonial theory, psychoanalysis and queer theory. We will also
ask you to reflect on the relationship between the theoretical reading and literature through
simultaneously reading several literary texts.
Most of the primary reading for the course will be available in The Norton Anthology of Theory
and Criticism (2nd edition) which will be available at a discounted price in the bookstore as part
of a larger set of texts. You can also purchase it on-line; please be sure you have the correct
edition. This is a collection that will be useful throughout your three years at Sussex; please
bring it to all seminars and lectures for Approaches I & II. You will also need to download the
course pack of additional material that will be available online through Study Direct. Full details
of other required reading are given below, in the Course Reading List.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of Critical Approaches 1, a successful student will be able to
understand central issues in modern literary theory and criticism and put them into a wider
theoretical and historical context
close read and analyse critical essays and arguments
understand the ways in which these different theoretical perspectives can contribute to his or
her critical interpretation of fiction, poetry, plays, culture, the world
28
research, design and write a well-structured essay

By the end of Critical Approaches 2, a successful student will be able to
extend her or his understanding of central issues in modern literary theory and criticism and
put them into a wider theoretical and historical context
close read and analyse a wide range of critical essays and arguments from different time
periods
extend his or her understanding of the ways in which these different theoretical perspectives
can contribute to critical interpretation of fiction, poetry, plays, culture, the world
research, design and write an even better essay
Core reading and viewing
Core Reading
The books listed under Core reading are available at a specially discounted price from John
Smiths book shop, in the University Library building. Staff in the book shop will be happy to
give further details of the scheme.
Leitch, Vincent and others (eds). The Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism (2nd
ed).New York: W. W. Norton, 2010
Carroll, Lewis. Alices Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. Ed. Hugh
Haughton. Penguin Books, 2009. ISBN-10: 0143117734
Rhys, Jean. Wide Sargasso Sea. (any edition)
Alfred Hitchcock, Vertigo (film, 1958)
Recommended Reading
The best preparation for the module is reading widely in the Norton Anthology of Theory and
Criticism, but you may also want to make yourself familiar with a few of these useful overviews
before the module begins.
The best preparation for the course is reading widely in the Norton Anthology of Theory and
Criticism, but you may also want to make yourself familiar with a few of these useful overviews
before the course begins.
Bennett, Andrew. The Author. Oxford: Routledge, 2005.
Bennett, Andrew and Royle, Nicholas (eds). An Introduction to Literature, Criticism and Theory.
(4th ed.) Harlow: Pearson Education Limited, 2009.
Culler, Jonathan. Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press,
1997.
Eagleton,Terry. Literary Theory: An Introduction. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press,
1983.
Lodge, David (ed). Twentieth Century Literary Criticism: A Reader. London: Longman, 1972.
Rivkin, Julie and Michael Ryan (eds) Literary Theory: An Anthology. Oxford: Blackwell,
1998.
29
Reading Genre 1 Q3122, Autumn Term (15 credits)

Reading Genre 2 Q3125, Spring & Summer Terms (30 credits)
How do texts locate themselves in literary conventions to develop their own expression and
meaning? How do other media such as film transform literary genre? How does genre act to
shape a text and a readers understanding of it? How do we identify and understand genre?
These are some of the questions that we shall approach in these two interlinked modules by
focussing on five genres: epic and comedy in Teaching Block 1, and lyric, tragedy, and film noir
in Teaching Block 2. For each genre, we shall concentrate on either one or a small number of
representative examples, allowing us to widen our understanding of the genre while we deepen
our acquaintance with key illustrations from it.
A crucial aim of Reading Genres is to help you to develop your close reading skills, so
seminars and lectures will combine larger ideas about genre (for instance, ideas of imitation,
the politics of genre, and tragic theory, among other topics) with detailed explorations of
specific examples.
The two modules of Reading Genre may be taken consecutively or independently of one
another.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of Reading Genres 1 and 2, a successful student will be able to:
Identify selected literary genres and critically apply them in textual analysis.
Identify the main genres of lyric poetry and critically apply them in addressing issues of
poetic meaning.
Demonstrate some understanding of Chaucerian Middle English.
Identify and critically apply Chaucers use of comic forms in selected Canterbury Tales.
Show some understanding of genre theory across a broad historic range.
Understand how literary form influences writing and reading practices.
Show developed critical thinking and methods for literary analysis.
Primary reading
The books listed here (also listed above, in the module outline) are available at a specially
discounted price from John Smiths book shop, in the University Library
For Reading Genre 1
Chaucer, Geoffrey (ed. Larry D. Benson) The Riverside Chaucer (Oxford: Oxford University
Press, 1988; third edition, reissued 2008).
Milton, John (ed. Stephen Orgel and Jonathan Goldberg). Paradise Lost (Oxford: Oxford
University Press, 2008; revised edition). (For other suitable editions, see the information in
the module outline).
For Reading Genre 2
30
Beckett, Samuel Waiting for Godot: A Tragicomedy in Two Acts (Faber and Faber, 2006).
Ibsen, Henrik. An Enemy of the People. In Henrik Ibsen, An Enemy of the People, The Wild
Duck, Rosmersholm, James McFarlane, Editor and Translator (Oxford World's Classics,
Reissued edition 2009).
Shakespeare, William Othello ed. E.A.J. Honigmann (Arden Shakespeare. Third Series
2001).
Sophocles Oedipus the King In The Complete Greek Tragedies: Sophocles, Pt.1, transl.
David Grene, in the series The Complete Greek Tragedies, edited David Grene and
Richmond Lattimore, (Chicago University Press; 2nd Revised edition 1991).
Wu, Duncan (ed.) Romanticism: An Anthology (Blackwell, 2005; third edition).
Texts in Time 1 Q3121, Autumn (30 credits)

Texts in Time 2 Q3124, Spring & Summer Terms (30 credits)
What is literature? How has it changed over time? What is the relationship between writing and
the historical moment in which it was produced? How can we read texts to understand the
ways in which they comment on and intervene in their particular cultural contexts? How do
literary and other kinds of cultural artefacts enable us to reinterpret history and culture? How
does the study of texts from other historical periods better enable us to understand our own?
These are some of the questions which we will be exploring during these modules.
Texts in Time 1 will introduce you to the study of many different kinds of texts poetry, plays,
letters, prose fiction, a novel, as well as visual texts - in their historical and cultural contexts.
Following an introductory week, the module is divided into two blocks: the first (weeks 2-6)
focusing on the early modern period, and the second (weeks 7-10) on the eighteenth century
and Romantic period, from 1700-1830. Each week brings a new text or texts into consideration,
but all are connected to the overarching theme of the module: Citizens and Strangers.
Texts in Time 2 also explores many different kinds of writing (poetry, autobiography, essays,
novels) as well as visual texts (film, photography, the graphic novel) in their historical and
cultural contexts. For those of you who have already taken Texts in Time 1, this module
continues the chronological movement already begun on that module. Texts in Time 2 is
divided into three blocks, delivered over the spring and summer terms. The first block (spring,
weeks 3-6) addresses texts from the nineteenth century, the second block (weeks 7-10)
focuses on 1922, a key moment in Modernism. The final block (summer term, weeks 1-4) looks
at contemporary writing and culture. Each week brings a new text or texts into consideration,
but all are connected within each block to an overarching theme.
Both modules are taught via 1 x 1hr lecture, 1 x 2hr seminar, and 1 x 2hr workshop per week.
The description below offers an outline of the topics for the lecture and seminar discussion
each week; the workshop will continue these discussions, but will also address academic,
writing and study skills.
You should be sure to do the core reading (including core secondary reading, usually one or
two chapters or articles) in advance of your lecture and seminar each week. In many cases, we
31
hope to make copies of the core secondary reading available online, either via the Library or
via the module Study Direct site. You should acquire your own copies of the core primary
reading: all the relevant books are listed separately at the end of this document, as well as
being given in the detailed module outline below. The week-by-week recommended secondary
reading offers some suggestions for further reading. Remember, there are further resources
available in the library more than we can list here. There will also be a Study Direct site for
both modules, where further resources (including some core secondary reading) will be
available.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of Texts in Time 1, a successful student will be able to:
Demonstrate a developed understanding of relationships between literary texts and their
historical contexts.
Display an ability to discuss relationships between literary texts of a shared historical
period.
Participate in group work to produce a project on themes addressed by the module.
Participate in seminar discussion on themes addressed by the module.
By the end of Texts in Time 2, a successful student will be able to:
Demonstrate a developed understanding of relationships between literary texts and their
historical contexts.
Offer sustained analysis of literary texts from a number of historical periods.
Show developed critical and close reading skills in written responses to module material.
Primary reading
The books listed here (also listed above, in the module outline) are available at a specially
discounted price from John Smiths book shop, in the University Library
Where no particular edition is specified, you are welcome to buy any good-quality scholarly
edition (but avoid cheap editions, which may be abridged and will lack scholarly notes).
Where a core text appears in the module outline above but is not included in the lists below,
copies of required material will be made available and/or further details will be given of how the
text can be located or accessed online.
For Texts in Time 1
Norbrook, David (ed.). The Penguin Book of Renaissance Verse. London: Penguin, 1993
etc.
Middleton, Thomas and Thomas Dekker (ed. Elizabeth Cook). The Roaring Girl. London: A
& C Black, 2003.
Shakespeare, William (ed. J.W.Lever). Measure for Measure. London: Arden, 2008.
Shapiro, James. 1599 : a year in the life of William Shakespeare. London: Faber, 2005.
32
Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. (Various suitable editions, e.g. OUP and Penguin)
Swift, Jonathan. Gullivers Travels. (Various suitable editions, e.g. OUP and Penguin)
For Texts in Time 2
Bechdel, Alison. Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic. London: Jonathan Cape, 2006.
Bronte, Charlotte. Jane Eyre. (Various suitable editions, e.g. OUP and Penguin)
Carroll, Lewis. Through the Looking Glass (1871), in Lewis Carroll (ed. Hugh Haughton)
Alices Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. London: Penguin, 1997.
De Quincey, Thomas (ed. G. Lindop). Confessions of an English Opium Eater. Oxford:

OUP, 1985 etc.
Eliot, T.S. The Waste Land. (Available in various suitable editions)
Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby. (Available in various suitable editions)
OHara, Frank. Lunch Poems. San Francisco: City Lights Books, in print.
Roy, Arundhati. The God of Small Things. London: Flamingo, 1997.
Wilde, Oscar. The Picture of Dorian Gray. (Available in various suitable editions)
Second and Final Year Modules

The tables on pages 15-16 of this handbook show you which English modules you will take in
the second and final years of your degree course. Where you have a choice of options in your
second and final years you will be sent information and module outlines in advance to help you
make an informed choice regarding what options you would like to study.
You can view details of all the modules run by the School of English, as well as the structure of
each degree course, on the website:
33
English Faculty Contact Details

English School Office: Arts B133, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton BN1 9QN
Tel: (01273) 877 303
E-mail: english@sussex.ac.uk
Name
Room
Ext.
Dr Richard Adelman
B241
(87) 3460
Dr Gavin Ashenden
B262
(87) 7123
g.ashenden@sussex.ac.uk
Prof Jenny Bourne Taylor
B333
(87) 7982
j.c.b.taylor@sussex.ac.uk
Prof Peter Boxall
B263
(67) 8719
p.boxall@sussex.ac.uk
Dr Ruth Charnock
B226
2454
r.n.e.charnock.ac.uk
Dr Sam Cooper
B329
Dr Sara Crangle
B239
(67) 8064
s.crangle@sussex.ac.uk
Dr Alistair Davies
B331
(87) 7353
h.a.davies@sussex.ac.uk
Dr Christina Davidson
B223
Dr Denise de Caires Narain
B268
(87) 7112
d.decaires-narain@sussex.ac.uk
Dr Matthew Dimmock
B349
(87) 7663
m.dimmock@sussex.ac.uk
Prof Andrew Hadfield
B350
(87) 7627
a.hadfield@sussex.ac.uk
Dr Margaret Healy
B233
(67) 8992
m.j.healy@sussex.ac.uk
Prof Tom Healy
B255
(67) 8099
t.f.healy@sussex.ac.uk
Dr Michael Jonick
B327
(87) 3044
Dr Vicky Lebeau
B323
(60) 2215
v.a.lebeau@sussex.ac.uk
Dr Stephanie Newell
B324
(67) 8900
s.newell@sussex.ac.uk
Dr Rachel O'Connell
B327
(87) 7375
r.c.o-connell@sussex.ac.uk
Dr Catherine Packham
B244
(87) 3953
c.m.packham@sussex.ac.uk
Dr Vincent Quinn
B322
7354
v.r.quinn@sussex.ac.uk
Dr Chloe Porter
B229
(87) 7126
Dr John David Rhodes
B272
(67) 8966
j.d.rhodes@sussex.ac.uk
Prof Nick Royle
B338
(87) 7396
n.w.o.royle@sussex.ac.uk
Dr Martin Ryle
B251
(87) 2516
m.h.ryle@sussex.ac.uk
Dr Liz Sage
B329
Dr Minoli Salgdo
B225
(60) 2300
k.m.salgado@sussex.ac.uk
Prof Lindsay Smith
B238
(67) 8831
l.j.smith@sussex.ac.uk
Dr Keston Sutherland
B260
(87) 6628
k.sutherland@sussex.ac.uk
34
E-mail (@sussex.ac.uk)
Dr Pam Thurschwell
B222
(67) 8721
p.thurschwell@sussex.ac.uk
Prof Norman Vance
B341
(67) 8631
r.n.c.vance@sussex.ac.uk
Dr Katie Walter
B231
(87) 7349
Prof Marcus Wood
B320
(60) 2136
Dr Tom Wright
B340
(60) 2649
m.m.g.wood@sussex.ac.uk
N.B. Office hours will be confirmed at the start of each term and will be noted on the faculty
members office door.
Teaching Faculty and their Research Interests

Gavin Ashenden, LL.B. (Bristol) B.A, M.Th, (London), D.Phil (Sussex)
20th-century myth and metaphysics; psychology, psychoanalysis and belief - C.G. Jung,
S. Freud, William James; Charles Williams, C.S. Lewis and the Oxford Inklings.
Jenny Bourne Taylor, BA (York), MA, PhD (Warwick)
19th century literature; feminist epistemology and criticism; contemporary women's writing;
19th century psychology; science and literature; literature and legal narrative.
Peter Boxall, BA, MA (Southampton), DPhil (Sussex)
Modernist fiction and drama; aesthetics and cultural politics, particularly in the work of Samuel
Beckett; contemporary literature, especially the work of Don DeLillo; the utopian function in
twentieth century writing.
Sara Crangle, BA, MA (Dalhousie University), PhD (Cambridge)
Nineteenth and twentieth-century Anglo-Irish fiction; contemporary poetry and poetics;
continental philosophy, subjectivity and otherness; everydayness and emotion (particularly
laughter); bathos.
Alistair Davies, BA, MA, PhD (Cantab)
British modernism and postmodernism; 20th-century British literature; questions of literary
history.
Denise DeCaires Narain, BA, DPhil (Kent)
Postcolonial writing, particularly that of Africa and the Caribbean; feminist cultural theory;
contemporary women's writing in English, particularly poetry.
Matthew Dimmock, BA, MA (Leeds), PhD (Royal Holloway, London)
Early Modern English Literature and History. Also Humanism; the works of Shakespeare,
Marlowe, Kyd, Peele and Greene; literature of discovery, travel and colonialism; Restoration
culture and the Glorious Revolution; the English and Dutch East India Companies and scientific
advancement; early English Antiquarianism.
Andrew Hadfield, B. A. (Leeds), D. Phil. (Ulster). FEA (Fellow of the English Association)
Literature and Politics in the English Renaissance, especially Republicanism; Spenser and
sixteenth-century poetry; Shakespeare; Early Modern Ireland; Travel Writing; National Identity;
Colonialism; Britain and Britishness.
35
Margaret Healy, BA, MA, PhD (London)

Renaissance literature and culture; the political stage; Shakespeare; Dekker; medicine and
literature; theory of the body.
Tom Healy, BA (Reading), PhD (London)
Sixteenth and seventeenth-century literature, history and cultural theory, especially around
poetry; English Civil War writing; epic; tragedy.
Vicky Lebeau, BA, MA, DPhil (Sussex)
Psychoanalysis and modern culture; 19th- and 20th-century fiction; theories of
childhood/democracy; literature and visual culture; feminism and theories of social identity;
psychoanalytic theory; contemporary films and literature.
Stephanie Newell BA (Anglia Polytechnic), MA (SOAS, University of London), MA (University
of East Anglia), PhD (Birmingham)
West African literature; West African popular culture; postcolonial theory; the social history of
reading in Africa.
Rachel O'Connell, BA (Oxford), MSc (London School of Economics), MA, PhD (New York)
19th and early 20th century British literature, especially the fin de siecle; gender, queer, and
disability studies; psychoanalytic theory.
Catherine Packham, BA Hons (Oxford), MA (Sussex), PhD (Cambridge)
Eighteenth-century literature and philosophy; political economy and moral philosophy in the
Scottish Enlightenment, especially Adam Smith; eighteenth century natural philosophy and
physiology, including vitalism; Erasmus Darwin.
Vincent Quinn, BA (Oxon), PhD (Cantab)
18th century literature, Irish literature, lesbian and gay studies.
John David Rhodes, BA (University of the South), MA (Columbia), PhD (New York University)
Modernist and avant garde cinema; Italian cinema; cinema, architecture and urban space;
contemporary film and visual art; interdisciplinary approaches to film history and film analysis.
Nicholas Royle, MA, DPhil (Oxon)
Modern literature and literary theory, especially deconstruction and psychoanalysis; the
uncanny; creative writing.
Martin Ryle, BA (Oxon), MA (Sussex)
Nineteenth and twentieth century fiction; the politics and literary representation of 'culture'; Irish
writing in English since 1900; contemporary British novels; writing, environment and green
politics.
Minoli Salgado, BA (Sussex), PGCE (Manchester), MA, PhD (Warwick)
Post-colonial literature and theory, particularly relating to South Asia and the South Asian
diaspora; Rushdie, Ondaatje, migrancy; chaos and complexity.
Lindsay Smith, BA (Wales), PhD (Southampton)
Victorian literature, painting and photography; visual perception in the Renaissance and the
19th century; feminist theory.
36
Keston Sutherland, BA (Cambridge), PhD (Cambridge)

20th century and contemporary literature; late modernist and avant garde poetry; ideology of
poetics; Marxism and literary theory; philosophy and philology.
Pamela Thurschwell, BA (Yale), MA (Sussex), PhD (Cornell)
Modernism; the 1890s; the contemporary British and American Novel; psychoanalytic theory
and history; the supernatural; the history of adolescence; literature and popular culture.
Norman Vance, MA, DPhil (Oxon)
19th-century literature, religion and society; Irish literature; classical and biblical influences on
British writing.
Marcus Wood, MA, DPhil (Oxon), MA (RCA)
Satire in the romantic period; the representation of slavery; colonial and post-colonial literature
and theory; semiotics.
37
Appendix: Guidance on Essay Referencing

The English Manual: Guide to Writing Essays and Dissertations has been prepared to give
you basic information on the planning and writing of your essays and dissertations, on using
the styles of reference and of citation preferred by the School of English and on avoiding the
most common errors in undergraduate writing. This manual is available on-line on the School of
English website
(http://www.sussex.ac.uk/english/internal/forstudents/uginformation/ughandbooks)
NOTES on REFERENCING
For further information on referencing, please refer to the following web-site:

http://www.sussex.ac.uk/library/infosuss/referencing/index.shtml
38

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