2024/25 Undergraduate Module Catalogue

ENGL3680 Postcolonial London

20 creditsClass Size: 28

School of English

Module manager: Professor John McLeod
Email: j.m.mcleod@leeds.ac.uk

Taught: Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) View Timetable

Year running 2024/25

This module is not approved as a discovery module

Module summary

This module explores the imaginative transformation of London from the 1950s to the present by migrants and their descendants linked to countries with a history of colonialism. By analysing a range of fiction, poetry and film, it engages with the creative redefinition of the old colonial centre, reckons with the significance of popular and youth cultures to the city’s changing fortunes, and plots the often-vexed journey of London from imperial metropolis to thriving multiculture.

Objectives

Focusing on London, this module explores how writers have represented the consequences of establishing new communities at the old imperial centre from 1950 to the present, and have contributed to the cultural, social and concrete transformation of the city often in the midst of a hostile environment of racism, prejudice, and persecution.

Learning outcomes
On successful completion of the module students will be able to:

1. Identify key literary and cultural representations of London by migrants and their descendants since the 1950s.
2. Demonstrate critical understanding of theoretical and conceptual ideas derived from postcolonial studies and how these can be applied to the analysis of cultural texts.
3. Evaluate how literary and cultural texts contribute to wider processes of social and political change.

Skills Learning Outcomes:

4. Use written communication effectively.
5. Deploy critical reasoning, independent thought and judgement.
6. Conduct independent research, gathering information from a range of sources, and engaging in good academic practice in referencing their sources.

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
Lectures	5	1.00	5.00
seminars	10	1.00	10.00
Private study hours			185.00
Total Contact hours			15.00
Total hours (100hr per 10 credits)			200.00

Methods of assessment

Coursework

Assessment type	Notes	% of formal assessment
Essay	1 x 1500-word assessed essay, due during the teaching period of Semester 1.	30.00
Essay	1 x 2500-word assessed essay, due after the teaching period of Semester 1.	70.00
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: 22/05/2024

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