British Romantic Literature: 1789-1830

(3 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

This module gives students the opportunity to study one of the most exciting periods of British literary and social history, when tumultuous political and social changes such as revolution and industrialisation produced a range of remarkable and enduring literary responses. The module examines British Romantic literature through the close study of a broad range of prose, poetry ,and non-fiction. The module is structured around examination of the work of the 'Big Six' Romantic writers, whose work is read alongside that of non-canonical Romantic writers, offering the opportunity to study both canonical and lesser-known authors. The module will take a broadly historicist and thematic approach to the texts studied, examining them within the political, social, and cultural contexts of this revolutionary period and will study a range of critical perspectives on Romantic literature. Students will gain insight into the manifold ways in which Romantic literature engaged with a themes and issues such as: the French Revolution; industrialisation and urban massification; changes in reading habits and education; attitudes to slavery and race; evolving views on childhood, religion, and the natural world.