2024/25 Undergraduate Module Catalogue
ENGL3461 Imagining the United States: Citizenship, Domesticity and Slavery
20 creditsClass Size: 28
School of English
Module manager: Professor Bridget Bennett
Email: b.k.g.bennett@leeds.ac.uk
Taught: Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) View Timetable
Year running 2024/25
This module is not approved as a discovery module
Module summary
The module introduces students to some of the key concepts that have animated both US literary culture and its critical reception. It takes writing to be a dynamic act and asks how the writing of the United States participated in imagining and shaping the nation’s development. Organised around the core contexts/concepts of citizenship, domesticity and slavery, the module interrogates some of the most significant literary texts of the nineteenth-century United States.Objectives
I aim to introduce students to US literature in its cultural context and prepare students who may wish to undertake further studies in US literature and culture.I will teach students how to develop their critical and analytical skills with respect to written texts and enhance their skills in oral presentation and essay writing.
Learning outcomes
On successful completion of the module students will have demonstrated the following learning outcomes relevant to the subject:
1. Identify the historical development of C19th US literature.
2. Show how literary texts engaged with, and were shaped by, cultural and other contexts.
3. Evaluate relevant criticism and scholarship about C19th US literary texts and their contexts.
Skills Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of the module students will have demonstrated the following skills learning outcomes:
4. Conduct independent research, gathering information from a range of sources, and engaging in good academic practice in referencing their sources
5. Produce independent arguments demonstrating advanced proficiency in critical thinking and writing skills.
Syllabus
Details of the syllabus will be provided on the Minerva organisation (or equivalent) for the module
Teaching methods
| Delivery type | Number | Length hours | Student hours |
| Lecture | 5 | 1.00 | 5.00 |
| Seminar | 10 | 1.00 | 10.00 |
| Private study hours | 185.00 | ||
| Total Contact hours | 15.00 | ||
| Total hours (100hr per 10 credits) | 200.00 | ||
Opportunities for Formative Feedback
Students will be able to seek advice and feedback in my weekly consultation hours. In addition, I will set up feedback sessions following the submission and assessment of the essay plan. The plan will be submitted in Week Seven with feedback sessions in Weeks Nine and Ten. Finally, all students will be offered the opportunity to meet with me and discuss their essay after it has been marked.Methods of assessment
Coursework
| Assessment type | Notes | % of formal assessment |
| Assignment | 1 x assessed plan of 500 words | 10.00 |
| Essay | 1 x 3000 word essay | 90.00 |
| Total percentage (Assessment Coursework) | 100.00 | |
The assessment, a 3000 essay plus assessed plan, is designed to address LO1: (identify the historical development of C19th US literature) while requiring students to address key thematic elements of the module. It will allow students to meet LO1 while also demonstrating LO2 (show how literary texts engaged with, and were shaped by, cultural and other contexts) and L03 (evaluate recent scholarship and criticism about C19th US literary texts and their contexts). The rationale for assessment is in line with QAA Subject Benchmarks for English. A resit will take the form of an assessed plan of 500 words and an assessed essay of 3000 words.
Reading list
The reading list is available from the Library websiteLast updated: 22/05/2024
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