IDENTIFYING DATA 2022_23
Subject (*) INTRODUCTION TO ENGLISH LITERATURE Code 12274121
Study programme
Bachelor's Degree in English Studies (2009)
 Cycle 1st
Descriptors Credits Type Year Period
6 Compulsory Third 1Q
Language
Anglès
Department English and German Studies
Coordinator
TORELLÓ CATALÀ, ESTEL
 E-mail thalia.trigoni@urv.cat
estel.torello@urv.cat
Lecturers
TRIGONI , EFTHALIA
TORELLÓ CATALÀ, ESTEL
Web
General description and relevant information <div>In this introductory course, students will read some influential works in English literary history, and encounter debates about the function, power and reach of literary texts. We will follow a chronological path from the medieval period to postmodernism in order to appreciate how literary writers, across the span of this period, adopted and developed certain forms and features in order to serve their own ideological and aesthetic purposes. The course is split into three parts, focusing on poetry, drama and fiction. We will closely read both traditional and radical forms of each medium, to consider the different ways in which literature can be pushed beyond our traditional notions of storytelling. The class will be largely discussion based, with great emphasis placed on participation and student preparedness. The course will develop the skills essential to English literary studies, including a discipline-specific vocabulary, and skills in literary and critical analysis and research.&nbsp;</div>

Competences
Type A Code Competences Specific
 A5 Dominar la llengua anglesa des d’un punt de vista teòric i pràctic i expressar-s’hi oralment i per escrit de manera fluida i precisa.
 A6 Analitzar les obres més rellevants de la literatura en llengua anglesa en els seus diversos entorns culturals.
Type B Code Competences Transversal
 CT7 Apply ethical principles and social responsibility as a citizen and a professional.
Type C Code Competences Nuclear

Learning outcomes
Type A Code Learning outcomes
 A5 Elabora un discurs oral i/o escrit concís i coherent a fi de comunicar els resultats del treball realitzat a un nivell avançat.
 A6 Coneix els principals gèneres i formes literàries en llengua anglesa.
Es familiaritza amb les principals tècniques literàries de la narrativa, el teatre i la poesia.
Analitza i comenta textos literaris de forma oral i/o escrita.
Type B Code Learning outcomes
 CT7 Students are aware of the inequalities and the discrimination caused by gender and other factors, and understand the reasons that account for them.
Recognise and reflect on social needs and problems, and get involved in improving the community.
Type C Code Learning outcomes

Contents
Topic Sub-topic
The Medieval Period
The Renaissance Period 		Geoffrey Chaucer, excerpt from The Canterbury Tales.
Shakespeare, Sonnets 8, 128.
The Romantic Period William Wordsworth, “I wandered lonely as a Cloud” and Lord Byron, “Darkness.”
Percy Bysshe Shelley, “Ozymandias”
The Victorian Period Alfred, Lord Tennyson, “The Lady of Shalott.”
Robert Browning, “My Last Duchess.”
The Modern Period James Joyce, “Araby”
Joyce, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
Dylan Thomas, “Fern Hill,” and “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night.”
The Postmodern Period Peter Shaffer, Equus

Planning
Methodologies  ::  Tests
  Competences (*) Class hours
 Hours outside the classroom
 (**) Total hours
Introductory activities
3 3 6
Lecture
A5
A6
 15 10 25
Seminars
A6
 30 30 60
Assignments
A5
A6
 3 33 36
Previous study
A5
 5 10 15
Personal attention
1 1 2
 
Mixed tests
A5
A6
 15 15 30
Oral tests
A5
A6
 1 3 4
Extended-answer tests
A5
A6
 10 30 40
 
(*) On e-learning, hours of virtual attendance of the teacher.
(**) The information in the planning table is for guidance only and does not take into account the heterogeneity of the students.

Methodologies
Methodologies
  Description
Introductory activities Introductory sessions will offer an overview of the coursework and will address key terms and concepts for discussing literature.
Lecture These lectures will constitute the main theoretical input of the course. Exemplification will be with previously assigned readings. Familiarity with and understanding of the content of these lectures and how it applies to the texts studied will be tested in all the formative assessments.
Seminars These sessions will provide practice in discussing key texts. It is important that you prepare the texts to be discussed before coming to class. The seminars will give you the opportunity to express your opinions and analysis orally, to raise questions, iron out difficulties and learn.
Assignments You will be given a total of three texts on which to write a commentary/essay for each. Written work will be structured along lines indicated by the tutor, and will range from answering comprehension questions, to a more open critical essay format.
Previous study These anticipatory studies will take the form of a journal, in which each student will record the impression and experience of reading assigned texts, and the issues they raise, before class discussion. They will also typically contain a reflection after the relevant class, recording how the student's understanding has been effected by the discussion in class. They are a record of personal learning. They are not a simple record of class discussion, or a collection of course notes. Students will be expected to make at least one or two entries per week of a minimum of 300 words total per week. These journals will be collected after the first three weeks, for orientation and feedback, and at the end of the course, for assessment.
Personal attention Students may consult with the tutor on any aspect of the course, in face to face or online conversation, as arranged previously by email or in person.

Personalized attention
Description

Your tutor will be using your official URV email address to contact you at certain moments of the course. It is essential that you check this regularly. Most course material will be uploaded to Moodle. You are welcome to consult the tutor during the official published office hours, or by email at any time during the course.

Assessment
Methodologies Competences Description Weight        
Assignments
A5
A6
 Final Essay
Your final essay is intended to give you an opportunity to think critically about the material we have read and to explore these texts by presenting a coherent argument which will be substantiated in the paper. The paper should be 2.000 words long, due on the first week of January. Your paper will require library research and use of critical and theoretical secondary sources. 		50%
Mixed tests
A5
A6
 Mid-term exam
The mid-term exam will last approximately one hour and it will take place on the first week of November.
 25%
Others  

Participation and attendance (10%) You should come to class prepared to address the day's material. This means completing all the primary reading before class, bringing the reading to class, and being prepared to discuss the reading thoughtfully. During class discussion, I expect you to be attentive to what your classmates have to say and respectful of their ideas and opinions. Oral presentation (15%) Oral presentations will be conducted individually according to the table schedule uploaded on Moodle. They must be approximately 10-15 minutes long. For the purposes of the presentation, you should conduct extensive library and internet research. A handout including important quotations, topics covered, and works consulted must be prepared and provided to each class member. You should also be prepared to answer questions at the end of your presentation. All your sources will have to be acknowledged orally and in the handout.

25%
 
Other comments and second exam session

If you do not, or cannot, complete the Continuous Assessment programme satisfactorily, you will have to write a Research Paper, in the Segona Convocatoria.

The Segona Convocatoria, will consist of a 3,000-3,500 word analysis of author(s) and work(s) developed through close reading and secondary sources. The Research Paper should provide an authoritative answer which demonstrates a good command of the topic and independent thought. It should be a critically acute and perceptive piece of work, demonstrating an ability to analyse the significance and function of literary features.

The mark achieved by the student in this final paper will amount to 100% of their overall course mark.

All papers will be submitted to the platform Ouriginal. Cases of plagiarism will result in the automatic failure of the specific CA component of the course in which it is detected. This will imply the failure of the CA. A recurrence of plagiarism in the same student's work will result in a '0' - Suspension being given as a final course mark.


Sources of information

Basic

You will find most of the basic required reading texts available through Moodle, plus links to sites of interest.
Complementary

Recommendations

Subjects that continue the syllabus
LITERATURE AND SOCIETY/12274009
LITERATURE/12274001

Subjects that are recommended to be taken simultaneously
NARRATIVE IN ENGLISH/12274122

Subjects that it is recommended to have taken before
ANALYSIS OF ENGLISH TEXTS I/12274119
ANALYSIS OF ENGLISH TEXTS II/12274120
 
Other comments
Regular attendance and participation in class are highly recommended.
(*)The teaching guide is the document in which the URV publishes the information about all its courses. It is a public document and cannot be modified. Only in exceptional cases can it be revised by the competent agent or duly revised so that it is in line with current legislation.