Module manager: Dr Rae Gillibrand
Email: R.Gillibrand@leeds.ac.uk
Taught: Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) View Timetable
Year running 2026/27
This module is not approved as a discovery module
Content Note: This module explores medieval disability and bodily difference. Students may encounter discussions and images of illness, injury, surgery, and skeletal remains, as well as historical experiences of social marginalisation. - What did it mean to be ‘disabled’ in the Middle Ages? How was bodily difference understood, represented, and experienced before the word ‘disability’ entered the English language? This interdisciplinary module invites students to explore medieval perceptions of disability and the body through a rich variety of sources - from miracle stories and marginal illustrations to prosthetic limbs and skeletal remains. Bringing together insights from art history, archaeology, and disability studies, students will learn how to approach disability as both a lived experience and a cultural construct. Throughout the module, students may encounter tales of miraculous healing, images of saints and fools, evidence of medieval surgery and amputation, and the material culture of those who lived with impairment. By thinking across text, image, and object, the module asks how we can recover the voices and experiences of people whose lives have traditionally been marginalised in the historical narrative. By the end of the module, students will have developed the skills to analyse a wide range of medieval evidence, reflect critically on modern assumptions about disability and embodiment, and understand how interdisciplinary research can illuminate the histories of marginalised groups. - Please note this is an optional module and runs subject to enrolments. If a low number of students choose this module, then the module may not run and you may be asked to choose another module.
This module aims to introduce students to the study of disability in the medieval world through an interdisciplinary approach. Drawing upon visual, archaeological, and historical sources, students will explore how bodily difference was represented, experienced, and understood in later medieval society.
The objectives of this module are to:
- Facilitate interdisciplinary engagement by allowing students to work across textual, visual, and material sources - in seminars, students will engage directly with a diverse range of sources. Through guided exercises and discussions, they will practice interpreting each type of source individually, then collaboratively explore how combining different forms of evidence can produce new insights.
- Encourage reflection on modern assumptions about disability and embodiment, helping students to consider how historical attitudes both diverge from and inform contemporary understandings - seminars will provide a space for students to discuss historical case studies alongside contemporary perspectives on disability, embodiment, and social attitudes. Facilitated discussions will prompt students to identify and question implicit assumptions in both past and present contexts, while group debates will encourage them to articulate connections between historical practices and modern attitudes.
- Build methodological awareness by demonstrating how interdisciplinary methods can recover marginalised or overlooked lives and challenge dominant historical narratives - in seminars, students will examine case studies where textual, visual, and material evidence has been combined to reinterpret familiar histories or recover marginalised experiences. In hands-on source analysis activities, students will learn how methodological choices shape historical narratives and how integrating multiple perspectives can challenge conventional accounts.
On successful completion of the module you will have demonstrated the following learning outcomes relevant to the subject:
1. Analyse and interpret a range of interdisciplinary sources to explore how disability was represented, experienced, and theorised in the Middle Ages.
2. Critically engage with academic arguments and secondary scholarship relating to medieval disability.
3. Apply interdisciplinary methodologies to construct arguments about medieval disability using appropriate academic conventions.
Skills Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of the module you will have demonstrated the following skills learning outcomes:
4. Communicate effectively in written form to articulate an argument, supported by relevant evidence and adhering to academic conventions.
5. Engage with relevant secondary materials from a variety of disciplines to support independent investigation.
6. Critically assess the interpretive challenges of different types of historical source material.
Details of the syllabus will be provided on the Minerva organisation (or equivalent) for the module.
| Delivery type | Number | Length hours | Student hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Supervision | 2 | 0.2 | 0.4 |
| Seminars | 10 | 2 | 20 |
| Private study hours | 179.6 | ||
| Total Contact hours | 20.4 | ||
| Total hours (100hr per 10 credits) | 200 | ||
Each student will be invited to a one-to-one supervision meeting with the module leader in advance of each module assessment deadline. These sessions offer the chance to discuss ideas, receive tailored guidance on assessment plans, and explore specific areas of interest. Informal feedback will also be available through in-class discussions and seminar-based peer review activities.
| Assessment type | Notes | % of formal assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Assignment | Secondary Source Review | 40 |
| Written Work | Primary Source Anthology | 60 |
| Total percentage (Assessment Coursework) | 100 | |
Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated
Check the module area in Minerva for your reading list
Last updated: 30/04/2026
Errors, omissions, failed links etc should be notified to the Catalogue Team