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2020/21 Undergraduate Module Catalogue

FOAH1100 Creative Africas: Culture and the Arts in Modern Africa

20 creditsClass Size: 42

Module manager: Richard Borowski
Email: R.Borowski@leeds.ac.uk

Taught: Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) View Timetable

Year running 2020/21

Pre-requisite qualifications

None

Module replaces

FOAR1100

This module is approved as a discovery module

Module summary

This module will introduce students to the recent cultural history of Africa, the importance of culture in the creation of modern Africa, and to key issues and items of cultural production. It will engage with both key issues such as representation, identity, religion, gender, sexuality, and politics, and with a range of forms of cultural production including art, theatre, novels, poetry, media and film.

Objectives

This module will enable students to have a broad understanding of the cultural history of Africa from colonialism to the present day, and to explore both how the continent is seen from the West and the key issues and forms of cultural production engaging African artists and audiences. The module will enable students to understand the factors informing African arts and cultures, and to engage with a range of artistic forms.

Learning outcomes
By the end of this module students will:
1. Understand the importance of cultural concerns in the modern history of Africa;
2. Learn and critically analyse how Africa is represented in British and African media, and the colonial and postcolonial history and politics of this;
3. Appreciate how cultural representation affects, and is affected by, ethnicity, gender and religion;
4. Learn about a wide range of forms of contemporary African cultural production and be able to analyse them in context;
5. Examine the forms and ideas animating contemporary African arts;
6. Understand the arts and cultural concerns in Africa in part through a focus on one African region.


Syllabus

Representations and colonial creations of Africa:

i. Contemporary representations of Africa in UK media
ii. African Cultures
iii. Colonialism and culture

Identity and culture:

i. The significance of gender in African arts
ii. Francophone film (The Battle of Algiers)
iii. Religion and education (Nervous Conditions)
iv. Yoruba identity in Nigerian art

Culture in Apartheid and post-Apartheid South Africa:

i. Contemporary South African art
ii. South African poetry
iii. The contemporary South African novel (The Sculptors of Mapungubwe)

Teaching methods

Delivery typeNumberLength hoursStudent hours
Lecture111.0011.00
Tutorial101.0010.00
Private study hours179.00
Total Contact hours21.00
Total hours (100hr per 10 credits)200.00

Private study

Private Study and Independent Learning - Detail private study and independent learning outside formal classes as a guide to students about what is expected from them for the module
Students will be expected to read both primary and critical / secondary texts, reading independently and prepare for seminar contribution. (50 hours)
Students will prepare for and write essays in line with module requirements (50 hours for primary source analysis, 76 hours for essay)
Clear instructions will be given to students about how to use time for private study throughout the module.

Opportunities for Formative Feedback

Formative feedback will be provided during tutorial sessions, office hours, and through essay assessment and feedback.
1 x 1,000 word primary source analysis
1 x 2,000 word essay

Methods of assessment


Coursework
Assessment typeNotes% of formal assessment
Essay2,000 word essay due in exam week 160.00
Assignment1,000 word primary source analysis due in week 840.00
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: 04/09/2020

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