Politics and Literature in Contemporary Spain
| Code | School | Level | Credits | Semesters |
| MLAC3129 | Modern Languages and Cultures | 3 | 20 | Full Year UK |
- Code
- MLAC3129
- School
- Modern Languages and Cultures
- Level
- 3
- Credits
- 20
- Semesters
- Full Year UK
Summary
Through the comparative analysis of a first set of cultural artefacts produced by authors born circa 1950 and a second set produced by authors born circa 1968, this module will focus on the articulation between aesthetics and politics in Spanish writing at the extended end of the twentieth-century.
The older authors had the opportunity to be politically engaged in the fight against the Franco dictatorship within the context provided by European and world events occurring around the revolutionary year of 1968 and to react later to the social, cultural, economic and political upheaval of the Transition to democracy. The younger authors were children by the time of the death of the dictator in 1975, becoming progressively engaged in the social and political transformations of the subsequent decades without much direct experience of the Franco regime and of the resistance and fighting against its harsher realities.
The works of these two set of authors will be also studied in the context of more recent Spanish, Iberian and European history and related to other contemporary forms of expression (such as cinema, music and cyber-writing).
Target Students
Available for Final Year students taking MLAC3076. Also available for Exchange Students with a good knowledge of Spanish.
Co-requisites
Modules you must take in the same academic year, or have taken in a previous year, to enrol in this module:
Classes
- One 2-hour seminar each week for 23 weeks
The School of Cultures, Languages and Area Studies operates an attendance policy. The details of this policy can be found in the student handbook on Workspace and in module handbooks. 1 X 2 hour seminar/class per week.
Assessment
- 40% Coursework 1: 1 x 2000 word coursework essay
- 60% Exam 1 (2-hour): 1 X 2 hour written examination (can be take home)
Assessed by end of spring semester
Educational Aims
The main aims of the module will be to impart knowledge and understanding of the interfacebetween literature and politics through the study of the way in which crucial social and political issues are articulated in contemporary Spanish writing, with particular attention to:• the status of literary writing in late twentieth and early twenty-first century capitalist societies, concentrating on how contemporary Spanish authors have dealt with issues of language, identity, culture, society, nationhood, gender, class, memory, time and writing when articulating different notions of revolutionary agency and historical account;• the consistency of the categories 'Spain' and 'Spanish' when analysing cultural production in contemporary Spain;• the struggling discursive practices involved in remapping the notion of Spanish canonical literature at the end of the twentieth and the beginning of the twenty-first centuries.Learning Outcomes
Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge and understanding Students will (A1) read and comprehend complex texts in Spanish; (A2) acquire an in-depth awareness of the cultural, historical and political contexts appropriate to the Hispanic culture(s) addressed, (A3) develop an appreciation of the relationship between their own cultural, historical and social backgrounds and those of those aspects of the Hispanic worlds to which they are exposed; (A4) handle with assurance a range of critical and analytical stratagems and tools in their approach to these areas.
2. Intellectual Skills Students are given the tools with which to (B1) engage in informed discussion of literary texts and genres from Hispanic cultures; (B2) demonstrate a critical awareness of the historical and socio-political contexts of Hispanic cultures; (B4) deploy effectively a range of critical stratagems and approaches in their analytical work.
3. Professional/practical skills The training offered during the course of the Hispanic Studies elements of the degree allows students to (C3) undertake relevant research and construct a reasoned argument on a topic/issue in English either orally or in writing.
4. Transferable/key skills Students are provided with the training to be able to demonstrate (D2) effective comprehension of written Spanish; (D3) the ability to construct and defend a coherent and well-researched argument in English; (D4) appropriate preparation skills in relation to written documents, oral presentation, illustrations and handouts and the delivery of oral presentations; (D5) sufficient cross-cultural understanding to be able to negotiate effectively between cultures, particularly Hispanic cultures and their own culture of origin; (D6) general research skills; (D7) time-management, prioritising and general organisational skills.
Conveners
- Dr Alvaro J.Vidal Bouzon