Introduction

Explorations in Literature is a 30-credit course. Each credit carries 10-hours notional study time; 30 credits thus indicates 300 notional study hours, equivalent to 10 hours per week over 30 weeks.

Using this subject guide

This subject guide is not an exhaustive study of, nor a comprehensive guide to, Explorations in Literature. How well you succeed in the examination will depend on your knowledge of the individual primary texts studied for the subject and secondary material, such as literary criticism, history, biography and so on.

The guide is intended as an indication of how you might decide to organise and develop your own programme of study. The texts we consider here might not coincide with your own choices from the prescribed syllabus of texts but the critical procedures indicated should be applicable to your own choices.

It is in this sense that the guide acts as a model, but we would stress that the model will have to be adapted by you in various ways (for instance, you will certainly want to study more texts than we have space to discuss here).

This guide does not explore every possible approach to the authors and topics discussed, but is an example of how you could construct an appropriate course of study and devise appropriate ways of studying the material you choose. It also indicates the range of material that is the minimum amount necessary to face the examination with confidence. Simple regurgitation in the examination of the illustrative material in this subject guide will be regarded as plagiarism and heavily penalised. Examiners will always look unfavourably at examinations that are composed of answers that draw solely on the illustrative material provided in this subject guide.

There are six chapters in this guide:

You may also want to develop lines of enquiry that are only alluded to here; indeed, you may want to investigate issues that are not raised at all in the guide. During the course of this subject guide we will indicate directions that seem to us to be of particular interest and importance and we will be suggesting ways in which you might investigate them. Feel free to adapt the material we are offering here in any way consistent with the learning outcomes of the subject. For example, you may want to use material from Chapters 5 and 6 to prepare individual texts of the exam. Or you may want to use material from Chapters 1–4 to provide the basis for comparative work for Section C of the examination in combination with other suitable texts of your own choice from the syllabus of prescribed texts.

Each chapter starts with a suggested reading list for the topic(s) covered in that chapter. It is divided into ‘recommended editions’ and ‘recommended secondary reading’. The former sets out the text(s) discussed in the chapter. The latter list includes a number of books and articles that will enhance your knowledge and understanding of the topic.

In every chapter you will come across activities. These activites are designed to help you reflect on what you have just read. You will make most progress if you attempt to answer each of these questions as you come across them in the text. You should refer back to the reading and then write your answers down or discuss them with someone else.

We include a list of learning outcomes at the end of each chapter. Learning outcomes tell you what you should have learned from that chapter of the subject guide and the relevant reading. You should pay close attention to the learning outcomes and use them to check that you have fully understood the topic(s) under discussion.

In each chapter we will also be listing Sample examination questions you might want to revise or plan responses to. This will give you the opportunity to consolidate your ideas, and will be important preparation for your written examination.

Appendix 1 provides you with a list of recommended editions and secondary reading for each of the texts on the prescribed syllabus of this course not covered in this subject guide. This appendix also provides you with a list of questions, as well as some sample examination questions which will help to direct your studies of these texts.

Finally, you will find a Sample examination paper and an Examiners' report.

General subject reading

There are no textbooks that adequately cover the whole content of Explorations in Literature. You will find some general histories of literature and generic studies in the Student handbook. These will help, but they will need to be supplemented by more detailed criticism of individual works and authors.

If you wish to extend your reading beyond the recommended texts listed in the chapters of this guide or in Appendix 1, you will need to compile your own reading lists with the help of the Student handbook and bearing the following points in mind:

Subject content

The prescribed texts, and recommended editions, for Explorations in Literature are listed below.

Section A texts

Homer The Odyssey. Translated by W. Shewring. (Oxford: World’s Classics, Oxford University Press, 1980 or later edition) [ISBN 9780199536788].

Sophocles Antigone in The Theban Plays. Translated by E.F. Watling (Harmondsworth: Penguin 1969 or later edition) [ISBN 9780140440034].

Ovid Metamorphoses. Translated by A.D. Melville (Oxford: World’s Classics, Oxford University Press, 1998 or later edition) [ISBN 9780199537372].

Dante Alighieri The Divine Comedy: Inferno. Translated by Mark Musa (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 2003 or later edition)
[ISBN 9780142437223].

Geoffrey Chaucer The Canterbury Tales: The Wife of Bath’s Prologue and Tale. Edited by James Winny et al. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994 or later edition) second edition [ISBN 9780521466899].

Barron, W.R.J. (ed.) Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1998) [ISBN 9780719055171].

Burrow, C. (ed.) Metaphysical Poetry. (Harmondsworth: Penguin Classics, 2006) [ISBN 9780140424447].

William Shakespeare Hamlet. (London: Penguin, 2005)
[ISBN 9780140707342].

John Milton Paradise Lost. Edited by Stephen Orgel and J. Goldberg. (Oxford: World’s Classics, Oxford University Press, 2008)
[ISBN 9780199535743]. Note: we study Books I and II.

Alexander Pope The Rape of the Lock. (Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 1998) [ISBN 9780333690970].

Henry Fielding Joseph Andrews and Shamela and Related Writings. (New York: Norton, 1987) [ISBN 9780393955552].

Section B texts

Samuel Taylor Coleridge Coleridge’s Poetry and Prose. (New York: Norton, 2003) [ISBN 9780393979046].

Jane Austen Emma. (Harmondsworth: Penguin Popular Classics, revised edition, 2003 or later edition) [ISBN 9780140620108].

Charles Dickens Great Expectations. (Oxford: World’s Classics, Oxford University Press, 2008) [ISBN 9780199219766].

August Strindberg Miss Julie in Miss Julie and Other Plays. Translated by Michael Robinson. (Oxford: World’s Classics, Oxford University Press, 1998 or later edition) [ISBN 9780192833174].

Thomas Hardy Jude the Obscure. (Oxford: World’s Classics, Oxford University Press, 2002 or later edition) [ISBN 9780199537020].

T.S. Eliot Prufrock and Other Observations. (London: Faber & Faber, 2001) [ISBN 9780571207206].

James Joyce A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. (Oxford: World’s Classics, Oxford University Press, 2008) [ISBN 9780199536443].

Virginia Woolf Mrs Dalloway. (London: Penguin, 2000)
[ISBN 9780141182490].

Samuel Beckett Waiting for Godot. (London: Faber & Faber, 2010)
[ISBN 9780571244591].

Leonora Carrington The Hearing Trumpet. (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 2005) [ISBN 9780141187990].

Margaret Atwood The Penelopiad. (London: Canongate Books, 2006)
[ISBN 9781841957043]. Note: this is the novel not the play.

In subsequent chapters of this guide, particular editions of certain prescribed texts may be recommended. In choosing an edition of other texts on the syllabus, do try to obtain one that has a good critical introduction and reasonably comprehensive notes. The Penguin, Oxford World’s Classics and New Everyman Classics series of paperbacks fall into this category.

Suggested study syllabus

You will have some choice over which texts you choose to study from the prescribed syllabus. Your choices will be determined partly by your personal tastes and interests, partly by the objectives of this course (which require you to study a historical and generic range of literature) and partly by the methods through which you will be assessed (see Methods of assessment below).

In constructing your own syllabus of study for this course, you need to prepare an adequate range of material to be able to face the examination with confidence. You are advised to strike a balance between work from the earlier and later parts of the subject and between the various genres it includes.

You should study in detail at least 10 of the prescribed texts for this course. This is the minimum necessary to give you sufficient choice in the examination and to enable you to fulfil the objectives of the course. Here, we offer a sample 22-week study syllabus, structured to cover an appropriate range of material. You may, of course, wish to substitute authors, topics or individual texts of your choice from the list above.

Weeks 1–3

Single-text study (Section A): Homer’s The Odyssey.

Weeks 4–6

Single-text study (Section A): Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

Weeks 7–9

Single-text study (Section B): Coleridge’s The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.

Weeks 10–12

Single-text study (Section B): Beckett's Waiting for Godot.

Weeks 13–15

Comparative study (Section C): Chaucer’s ‘Wife of Bath’s Tale’ and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.

Weeks 16–18

Comparative study (Section C): Pope’s The Rape of the Lock and Fielding’s Joseph Andrews.

Weeks 19–21

Comparative study (Section C): Hardy’s Jude the Obscure and Joyce’s A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.

Weeks 21–22

Revision and practice examination questions.

Methods of assessment

Important: the information and advice given here are based on the examination structure used at the time this guide was written. Please note that subject guides may be used for several years. Because of this we strongly advise you to always check both the current Regulations for relevant information about the examination, and the virtual learning environment (VLE) where you should be advised of any forthcoming changes. You should also carefully check the rubric/instructions on the paper you actually sit and follow those instructions.

At the end of this course, you will be assessed by a three-hour unseen examination paper. There will be three sections: Section A, Section B and Section C. You must answer one question from each section.

Please note that the rubric for the examination contains the following instruction: ‘Candidates may not discuss the same text in more than one answer’. This means that you must not discuss the same text in more than one answer in the examination, or in any other Level 4 examination (with one exception – see the next paragraph).

You can, however, use texts that you have answered on in the Explorations in Literature examination to answer questions in the Approaches to Text examination, provided your treatment of the text(s) in question is significantly different.

Remember, it is important to check the VLE for:

Examination technique

If you have followed the instructions offered in the subject guide, read as much of the suggested syllabus as possible and engaged with the topics under consideration, you should be well prepared for the examination. However, in order to do justice to yourself and the subject on the day of examination, it is useful to think about your examination technique. The Student handbook provides good advice on how to prepare for assessment, so as you study and prepare for examinations you should read it carefully as well as bearing in mind the following suggestions:

These rules may seem obvious but are essential for good examination performance in any subject. To further develop and improve your examination technique you should also read the annual Examiners’ reports (a sample report is contained at the back of this guide) and consider the following additional points.

Choosing the question

One of the most important examination techniques is the ability to choose the type of question that you are well equipped to answer, which will enable you to demonstrate the particular knowledge and skills you have acquired during your course of study. For instance, if a question asks you to discuss the use of Greek myth in any one text you have studied, you will need a framework of historical and theoretical knowledge to answer this question adequately. It is also important to remember that conditions change, and what may have been true of one period or place may not be true of another. What may have been the case when Homer was writing The Odyssey may not have been the case when Atwood was writing the The Penelopiad. Avoid making generalisations and, if possible, link your comments to specific facts about the period under discussion. (You may find the slogan ‘always historicise’ a useful reminder of these points.)

Reading the question

In order to answer questions effectively, it is important to understand what you are being asked to do, so look at the terms of the questions (i.e. to ‘consider’, ‘compare’, ‘evaluate’, ‘discuss’ or ‘define’) and make sure you do what the question asks you to do. If you are asked, for example, to consider the use of satire in The Rape of the Lock it is not enough to list examples of satire in the text. To describe or list is not to ‘consider’. With this question you might start by considering the particular effects of satire in a literary text. You could then extend your discussion to show the ways in which satire might enable Pope to present the argument of The Rape of the Lock in a particular way.

When writing your answer it is also useful to begin with a brief definition of the key terms. If you are answering a question on the use of allegory in The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, for example, you could start by stating what you understand by ‘allegory’.

General matters: essays

In selecting topics on which to write practice essays, remember that your essays will be preparing you to answer examination questions, and therefore you should select essay topics that relate to the three sections of the final examination.

Online resources

Please note that additional study resources may be available to you for this course. A particularly important resource is the VLE for the English programme, which you can access via the Student Portal – see the Student handbook for details of how to log in.

If you are registered for Level 4 course(s) on the new programme (BA English (New Regulations)/Diploma of Higher Education in English/ Certificate of Higher Education in English), then the VLE is the place where you will interact with your assigned tutor group for that course.