Sagas of Icelanders
| Code | School | Level | Credits | Semesters |
| ENGL4397 | English | 4 | N/A | April Full Year UK, Full Year UK, January Full Year UK |
- Code
- ENGL4397
- School
- English
- Level
- 4
- Credits
- N/A
- Semesters
- April Full Year UK, Full Year UK, January Full Year UK
Summary
Iceland, land of ice and fire, and home of the Old Norse myths, was also home to one of the world's most distinctive literary genres, the Sagas of Icelanders, composed in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. These forty or so anonymous long prose narratives are set in the Viking Age. Combining realism and fantasy, they touch on themes of migration, diaspora, conversion, the supernatural, family, gender roles and, especially, conflicts and their consequences. In this pod you will read a selection of these sagas and try out a variety of literary and historical approaches to the texts.
Target Students
Students registered on the School of English online masters scheme.
Assessment
- 100% Participation: Student Participation
Assessed by end of designated period
Educational Aims
This module comprises an optional component in the following pathways: Applied English, English Literature, Medieval Englishes, Medieval Literatures, Norse and Viking Studies, and World Literatures. As such, it contributes in its specific aims to the programme-level coverage of these pathways.Learning Outcomes
Articulate an understanding of the origins, cultural context, and literary history of the Icelandic sagas.
Demonstrate critical knowledge of some of the main themes and concerns of relevant Old Norse texts.
Conduct sustained analysis of a source text or texts using appropriate terminology, concepts and critical frameworks.
Demonstrate knowledge and skills acquired to the appropriate disciplinary and professional standard.
Assimilate and present subject-specific material in an appropriate format (assessed within the ‘Assessment Portfolio’ 1, 2 or 3).