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2016/17 Taught Postgraduate Module Catalogue

MEDV5345M Preaching History: Understanding Sermons as Literature and Historical Source

30 creditsClass Size: 10

Module manager: Lauren Moreau
Email: l.a.moreau@leeds.ac.uk

Taught: Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) View Timetable

Year running 2016/17

This module is not approved as an Elective

Objectives

This module will introduce students to the medieval sermon genre and enable them to explore these rich texts as both literature and as historical sources. The first six weeks of the module will focus on the history and development of the sermon form and will familiarise the students with the different scholarly approaches to the study of sermons. These initial weeks also provide the necessary skills-training for students to actively engage with sermons in the work of others and their own research.

Starting in week seven, tutors other then the module convenor will each present a type of sermon text to the students and its historical and cultural context. The seminar discussions of these texts will show how they can shed light on various cultural and intellectual developments, ideas held by different groups, and their role in influencing behaviour and setting norms, as well as the textual history of other literary genres. Using sermons as documentary evidence for research will provide an interesting and fruitful lens with which to examine a variety of medieval topics. By the end of the module the students will have the necessary skills to confidently engage with sermons texts as evidence in their own research, and also gain a greater appreciation for the genre as whole.

Learning outcomes
- Demonstrate a detailed understanding of the role of sermons and preaching in the Middle Ages
- Demonstrate a detailed understanding of the method and construction of sermon texts
- Demonstrate understanding of the development of modern scholarship surrounding the sermon genre
- Engage in a sophisticated manner with primary sermon texts
- Develop a sophisticated awareness of how sermons are important sources as literature and as part of the historical record
- Develop an understanding of the role of sermons in medieval life and culture

Skills outcomes
Students will learn how sermons can be a valuable source for study in a range of disciplines in medieval studies, critically engage with the texts, and learn how to successfully integrate sermons into their own research. Students will also gain an understanding and appreciation of the historiography surrounding the study of sermons and use it to evaluate and analyse sermons texts.


Syllabus

Topics covered in the first six weeks will include: the history of sermons and preaching in the Middle Ages, methods and elements of sermons construction, types of sermons, sermon audience and questions of orality and literacy, multilingualism and sermons/preaching, using sermons as a source for study of medieval culture.

The remaining five weeks will cover a selection of the following topics: sermons in the Anglo-Saxon period, monastic sermons and preaching, women and preaching, sermons in 12th-century female monasticism, sermons and later medieval devotional texts, Middle English Literature and sermons, Sermons and the crusades

The course is designed to integrate a range of 'case study' weeks in which there is ample coverage from contributors to account for any tutors who may be on research leave. This will ensure that the course can viably run from year to year.

Teaching methods

Delivery typeNumberLength hoursStudent hours
Seminar112.0022.00
Private study hours278.00
Total Contact hours22.00
Total hours (100hr per 10 credits)300.00

Private study

Private study will include preparation for participation in seminars and the assessed essays. It will also be an opportunity for sustained reflection on the historiographical issues involved in the module and crucial for giving students the grounding needed for expressing their ideas (both in written and oral form) in a complex and difficult subject.

Opportunities for Formative Feedback

The progress is monitored through formative feedback given on the first and second essays. Engagement in the seminar discussions will provide further opportunity for encouragement and guidance for the students' development.

Methods of assessment


Coursework
Assessment typeNotes% of formal assessment
Essay1 x 2,500-word essay due by 12 noon Monday of teaching week 740.00
Essay1 x 3,500-word essay due by 12 noon Monday of exam week 160.00
Total percentage (Assessment Coursework)100.00

Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated

Reading list

The reading list is available from the Library website

Last updated: 24/05/2016

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