School of English
Module manager: Dr Helen Iball
Email: h.iball@leeds.ac.uk
Taught: Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) View Timetable
Year running 2021/22
Grade B at 'A' Level in English Language or Literature (or equivalent) or an achieved mark of 56 or above in a Level 1 module in English.
This module is not approved as a discovery module
We will study examples of drama and prose from Britain and North America, which share an impulse to represent the psychological damage done by contemporary culture, whilst at the same time identifying hope in human compassion. This module explores interfaces between: 1. The representation of prevalent mental health issues such as anxiety and addiction. We will examine how the set texts interrogate current evidence about biological, psychological, and social causes: debates about ‘what makes people who they are?’ 2. Prose fiction, play scripts, and essay collections (part-memoir, part-literary criticism) with a particular emphasis on imaginatively ‘putting oneself in another person’s shoes’. Later in the module, we will explore the impetus for aesthetic empathy to be translated into social action with a study of specific author-led public engagement projects, some live and some online. Echoing the title of Robert Holman’s play Making Noise Quietly, we will examine how these narratives work from the intimate minutiae of everyday lives to resonate with current – and, frequently, controversial – debates e.g. psychiatry and psychopharmacology; religious faith, conflict and secularism; crime, punishment and rehabilitation.
On completion of this module, students should be able to:
- Demonstrate a critical understanding of the ways in which the set texts respond to and comment upon particular socio-cultural and political circumstances impacting upon mental health.
- Demonstrate a critical understanding of the functions of empathy in relation to the set texts, and in comparative studies across these texts.
- Explore in seminars and in writing (and, optionally, through a creative portfolio), the compatibility of aesthetic and social interventions in this field.
Students will have developed:
- the ability to use written and oral communication effectively;
- the capacity to analyse and critically examine diverse forms of discourse;
- the ability to manage quantities of complex information in a structured and systematic way;
- the capacity for independent thought and judgement;
- critical reasoning;
- research skills, including the retrieval of information, the organisation of material and the evaluation of its importance;
- IT skills;
- efficient time management and organisation skills;
- the ability to learn independently.
Skills outcomes
- Skills for effective communication, oral and written.
- Capacity to analyse and critically examine diverse forms of discourse.
- Ability to acquire quantities of complex information of diverse kinds in a structured and systematic way.
- Capacity for independent thought and judgement.
- Critical reasoning.
- Research skills, including information retrieval skills, the organisation of material, and the evaluation of its importance.
- IT skills.
- Time management and organisational skills.
- Independent learning.
Skills for effective communication, oral and written.
Capacity to analyse and critically examine diverse forms of discourse.
Ability to acquire quantities of complex information of diverse kinds in a structured and systematic way.
Capacity for independent thought and judgement.
Critical reasoning.
Research skills, including information retrieval skills, the organisation of material, and the evaluation of its importance.
IT skills.
Time management and organisational skills.
Independent learning.
We will study examples of drama and prose from Britain and North America, which share an impulse to represent the psychological damage done by contemporary culture, whilst at the same time identifying hope in human compassion. This module explores interfaces between:
1. The representation of prevalent mental health issues such as anxiety and addiction. We will examine how the set texts interrogate current evidence about biological, psychological, and social causes: debates about ‘what makes people who they are?’
2. Prose fiction, play scripts, and essay collections (part-memoir, part-literary criticism) with a particular emphasis on imaginatively ‘putting oneself in another person’s shoes’. Later in the module, we will explore the impetus for aesthetic empathy to be translated into social action with a study of specific author-led public engagement projects, some live and some online.
Echoing the title of Robert Holman’s play Making Noise Quietly, we will examine how these narratives work from the intimate minutiae of everyday lives to resonate with current – and, frequently, controversial – debates e.g. psychiatry and psychopharmacology; religious faith, conflict and secularism; crime, punishment and rehabilitation.
| Delivery type | Number | Length hours | Student hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Workshop | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Film Screenings | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Lectures | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Seminar | 10 | 1 | 10 |
| Private study hours | 185 | ||
| Total Contact hours | 15 | ||
| Total hours (100hr per 10 credits) | 200 | ||
Reading, seminar preparation and essay writing.
- Attendance at Seminars
- Attendance at workshops
- Feedback on 2250 word assessed essay
- Talk and Q&A session
| Assessment type | Notes | % of formal assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Written Work | 2,250 words critical and comparative account of independent study and seminars | 50 |
| Written Work | Either 2,250 word essay OR 1,250 word CW plus 1,000 word critical contextualisation | 50 |
| 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: 30/06/2021
Errors, omissions, failed links etc should be notified to the Catalogue Team