Module manager: Dr Barbara Engh
Email: b.engh@leeds.ac.uk
Taught: Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) View Timetable
Year running 2024/25
| ARTF5020M | Cultural Theory |
This module is not approved as an Elective
This module explores the long history of cultural theory, from its emergence in Enlightenment discourse through its radical re-evaluation over the past 150 years. We will consider ways in which vital Enlightenment ideals of equality, justice, democracy are part of the same cultural-intellectual project that produced the properly modern horrors of industrialised slavery, colonial spoilation, the Holocaust. We address recent reconsiderations of the history and theory of race and colonialism, and problems of historiography.
On completion of this module you will understand the genealogy of critical and cultural theory from the Enlightenment to the present day. The module will engage you in the analysis of a range of texts that grapple with problems of how history can be told. The module will explore theoretical considerations of historical origins and historical consciousness in order to address the urgency of historical narrative in western culture and that narrative's dependence upon a non-western other.
On successful completion of the module you will be able to:
1. Evaluate the long history of critical and cultural theory as a discipline and a practice.
2. Analyse the category of ‘history’ as inflected by considerations of critical and cultural theory.
3. Use concepts and literature from the module to develop your own independent, reflexive research.
Skills learning outcomes
4. Reflect on your own learning by developing the ability to recognise and express knowledge and understanding and how it relates to personal experience and to demonstrate learning and growth from the experience.
5. Think critically by developing the ability to weigh up different arguments and perspectives, using supporting evidence to form opinions, arguments, theories and ideas.
Details of the syllabus will be provided on the Minerva organisation (or equivalent) for the module
| Delivery type | Number | Length hours | Student hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lectures | 10 | 1 | 10 |
| Seminar | 10 | 2 | 20 |
| Private study hours | 270 | ||
| Total Contact hours | 30 | ||
| Total hours (100hr per 10 credits) | 300 | ||
Students receive written feedback on the essay. Discussion sessions in the lectures/seminars also contribute to formative feedback, as will meetings during office hours or essay prep sessions.
| Assessment type | Notes | % of formal assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Coursework | Written | 100 |
| Total percentage (Assessment Coursework) | 100 | |
Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated
The reading list is available from the Library website
Last updated: 29/08/2024
Errors, omissions, failed links etc should be notified to the Catalogue Team