CW913-45 Historical Fictions, Fictional Histories
Introductory description
This module investigates the premise that historical fictions are as much about the time of writing as the time of setting, considering how each generation imagines its own narratives of the past.
Module aims
This is essentially a module about world-building in fiction, in which students will develop techniques for time and place-based writing by studying historical novels. The crafts explored here might well improve and inform the genre fiction that many students are keen to write, but for assessment purposes students will be required to write literary and historical fiction.
Outline syllabus
This is an indicative module outline only to give an indication of the sort of topics that may be covered. Actual sessions held may differ.
We will consider the invented traditions of nationalism and imperialism, and also explore the historical novel as a form of resistance to or revision of these traditions, a (problematic) way of imagining the voices missing from or silenced by the historical record. Using Kathleen Jamie's essays as an introduction to thinking and writing about the past without nostalgia, this module
will work backwards from writing which is only just 'historical' towards medieval and classical settings. Set texts will change to keep up with new publications, but constant presences are likely to include Robert Graves and Hilary Mantel.
Most sessions will be spent in discussion of set texts, but we will also have some writing exercises and workshops, occasionally working outdoors around campus. Students will be asked to produce
research-based but not academic prose, and to this end will be offered a session in the Modern Records Centre learning to use archives for creative writing.
Learning outcomes
By the end of the module, students should be able to:
- Outcomes Use archival, l ibrary and site - specific research to produce convincing and well - crafted fiction set in times and places beyond their own previous experience
- Show understanding of the ways in which modern English writers convey historical and geographical settings
- Recognise and convey in writing the relationships between historical and personal narratives in fiction and non - fiction prose
- Show understanding of the relationship between the time of setting and the time of writing historical fiction.
Indicative reading list
Robert Graves, I, Claudius, (Penguin, 2006)
Kathleen Jamie, Sightlines (Sort of Books, 2012)
Hilary Mantel, Woif Hall, (Fourth Estate, 2010)
Mary Renault, The King Must Die (Virago, 2015)
Subject specific skills
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Transferable skills
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Study time
| Type | Required |
|---|---|
| Seminars | 10 sessions of 2 hours (4%) |
| Private study | 430 hours (96%) |
| Total | 450 hours |
Private study description
No private study requirements defined for this module.
Costs
No further costs have been identified for this module.
You must pass all assessment components to pass the module.
Assessment group A
| Weighting | Study time | Eligible for self-certification | |
|---|---|---|---|
Assessment component |
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| 7000 word Creative Portfolio & 3000 word Essay | 100% | Yes (extension) | |
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Assessed portfolio of 10,000 words (45 CATS). Students on the MA in Writing must submit a portfolio of 70% creative work and 30% essay. |
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Reassessment component is the same |
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Feedback on assessment
Written and oral feedback.
Courses
This module is Optional for:
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TCWA-Q3P7 MA in Writing
- Year 1 of Q3P7 Writing
- Year 2 of Q3P7 Writing
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TENA-Q3P7 MA in Writing
- Year 1 of Q3P7 Writing
- Year 2 of Q3P7 Writing
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TCWA-Q3PB Postgraduate Taught Literary Translation Studies
- Year 1 of Q3PB Literary Translation Studies
- Year 2 of Q3PB Literary Translation Studies
-
TENA-Q3PB Postgraduate Taught Literary Translation Studies
- Year 1 of Q3PB Literary Translation Studies
- Year 2 of Q3PB Literary Translation Studies