History, Literature and Culture BA(Hons)

International equivalencies

We can help you meet our English language or academic entry requirements.

Why study with us?

• You will be taught in small, participatory seminar groups to foster skills in oral presentation, debating and listening. Every seminar is supported by a preceding lecture.

• You will be designated a personal tutor (normally the same throughout the degree) with whom you will meet regularly to discuss your academic progress.

• You will graduate from the course with the critical, analytical and communicative skills essential to joining society and questioning your world.

• Interdisciplinary work enables you to develop the analytical skills from a variety of disciplines and the capacity to apply these to real-world problems.

• Your academic work will be supported by workshops that develop your academic and independent research skills.

• The student community is diverse and friendly. You will work with and get to know students from other degrees and there are opportunities for activity outside of the curriculum. These include international conferences with world leading experts; publication in the student blog, and in student publications, and participation in Humanities Society events.

Course structure

Year 1
All degrees within the Humanities programme area share a first year. Students take six modules that develop the skills central to our courses. These include topics such as historical and philosophical inquiry, cultures, democracy, narrative and society

Year 2 
In Year 2, students choose an option pathway to follow for the rest of the degree. This is a set of modules in a specialised area that gives students a deep, critical engagement with the subject. 

Final Year
Students complete their Year 2 option pathway and undertake a dissertation project of 8,000-12,000 words. Project findings are presented in a 45-minute oral exam that tests skills of presentation, communication, discussion and debate. 

Our courses are reviewed and enhanced on an ongoing basis in order to make sure that what you learn with us is relevant and that your course enables you to develop appropriate skills. When you apply to study with us, we will inform you of any new developments in your chosen programme through our applicant portal.

Year 1

In Year 1 you take six modules that help develop the skills central to your course:

Historical Inquiry
This module examines the discipline of history, exploring how historical research and debate can us make more critically engaged members of society. You will consider what historical knowledge is, the ways people remember the past, investigate what causes change and considering how we can interpret sources.

Philosophical Inquiry
This module introduces the discipline of philosophy, exploring what philosophy is and what kinds of question it asks. You will explore how philosophy can help us to address the urgent questions of the contemporary world.

Studying Cultures
What is culture? And what does it mean for something to be ‘cultural’? We consider how you can investigate society and evaluate political theories regarding the relationship between politics, power, communities and individuals through the way people live and the artefacts they produce: from novels and magazines, to films and speeches.

Democracy: From Athens to Baghdad
This module will explore how ‘democracy’ is theorised in political and philosophical traditions including Classical philosophy, republicanism, anarchism, liberalism and Marxism.

Approaching Narrative
This module gives you the analytical skills for the study of narratives and other representational forms which are crucial for engaging critically with the world.

Understanding Society in a Global World
On this module you will explore Globalisation, while drawing upon the concepts, theories and methods of social science to ask questions about the nature of society in a global world.

Year 2

In Year 2 you will study critical traditions in Western thought, exploring some of the key debates in history, culture, politics, and philosophy since the Enlightenment.

You will start a two-year option pathway that you will follow for the rest of your degree. As well as your pathway, you’ll take one core module, participate in a project preparation module and choose from a programme of lectures to broaden your critical understanding.

Option pathways – you choose one of these:

Fictions in History

You'll explore the ways in which literary texts negotiate, reflect or subvert dominant meanings and narratives in relation to key historical moments. You will engage theoretical debates and develop analytical skills required for literary analysis via an exploration of ‘Victorian Gothic Fictions’ particularly in relation to late-19th-century questions of gender, empire, ‘race’, science and technology. You also explore and contextualise key historical shifts in literary form and genre from realism to modernism and postmodernism. 

Culture and Conflict
This option explores the cultural politics of representation associated with violent conflict. You will study a variety of cultural forms including fictional and documentary film, literary fictions, and photography. You will develop key analytical and critical skills by focusing on representations of the Vietnam War, ‘9/11’, and the Iraq Wars. You will also debate the ethics, aesthetics and politics of representation in context of racialised violence, colonialism and state repression.

Philosophy and Literature
How do literary texts – fiction, drama and poetry – ‘do’ philosophy? In what ways do philosophical works engage with literature? Focusing on the 17th century to the early 19th century, you critically explore these questions in relation to shifting concepts of the individual in relation to ideas of reason, faith and freedom, liberty, transgression and expression.  

*Option modules are indicative and may change, depending on timetabling and staff availability.

Find out more about Pathway 1: Culture and Conflict

Find out more about pathway 3: Fictions in History

Core modules
In Year 2 you will also study the core module Critical traditions in Western Thought, exploring some of the key debates in history, culture, politics, and philosophy since the Enlightenment. You will also take a project preparation module which prepares you for your 8-12,000 word final-year dissertation.

Final year

In your final year you complete the option pathway started in Year 2 and submit a dissertation project of between 8,000-12,00 words. In addition you will present your project findings for scrutiny in a 45-minute oral exam that tests your skills of presentation, communication, discussion and debate.

During your final year, all of the skills, the knowledge and the research come together as you develop your own critical response to your chosen topic, challenging received opinions in a persuasive extended argument.

Location

Campus where this course is taught

Accommodation

Maps

Accommodation

University building

Grand Parade campus map