ENGLISH 217 : Postcolonial Memory: Ireland
Arts
2020 Semester One (1203) (15 POINTS)
Course Prescription
Course Overview
Irish literature and the Irish cultural imaginary form our case study for an exploration of globally significant issues of cultural memory, identity and postcolonial inheritance. Ireland – a country approaching its first centenary of independence – has had a contentious relationship with postcolonial representations of identity and experience. This is compounded by Ireland’s accelerated rate of social and economic change in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries.
Debates about memory and “the postcolonial” guide our navigation of twentieth and twenty-first century Irish novels, plays, poetry and short stories. Conversely, through our literary navigations, we interrogate postcolonial representations of identity across shifting contexts.
The course is structured around the dynamics of literary and cultural inheritance. We explore texts that stimulate debate about Ireland’s relationship with postcolonial frameworks. We interrogate issues of authenticity and hybridity, ethical memory, postcolonial haunting and indigenous language, and explore the treatment of women as agents of postcolonial experience. We close with considerations of the relationship between multiculturalism and postcoloniality.
Course Requirements
Capabilities Developed in this Course
| Capability 1: | Disciplinary Knowledge and Practice |
| Capability 2: | Critical Thinking |
| Capability 4: | Communication and Engagement |
Learning Outcomes
- Reflect critically on globally significant issues of cultural memory, identity and postcolonial inheritance (Capability 2.1 and 2.2)
- Develop close reading and analytical skills in relation to poetry, novels, short stories and plays (Capability 1.2 and 2.3)
- Understand, engage with and apply theoretical concepts from the fields of postcolonial and Irish studies (Capability 1.1)
- Construct and articulate arguments about postcolonial memory and associated issues using evidence from Irish literature and relevant resources (Capability 2.3 and 4.1)
Assessments
| Assessment Type | Percentage | Classification |
|---|---|---|
| Analysis | 5% | Individual Coursework |
| Essay 1 | 25% | Individual Coursework |
| Essay 2 | 30% | Individual Coursework |
| Final Exam | 40% | Individual Examination |
| 4 types | 100% |
Workload Expectations
This course is a standard 15 point course and students are expected to spend 10 hours per week, for 15 weeks, involved in each 15 point course that they are enrolled in.
For this course, you can expect 24 hours of lectures over 12 teaching weeks, a 1 hour tutorial each week for 10 weeks, with the remaining hours spent reading and thinking about the content and on assessment preparation.
Digital Resources
Course materials are made available in a learning and collaboration tool called Canvas which also includes reading lists and lecture recordings (where available).
Please remember that the recording of any class on a personal device requires the permission of the instructor.
Academic Integrity
The University of Auckland will not tolerate cheating, or assisting others to cheat, and views cheating in coursework as a serious academic offence. The work that a student submits for grading must be the student's own work, reflecting their learning. Where work from other sources is used, it must be properly acknowledged and referenced. This requirement also applies to sources on the internet. A student's assessed work may be reviewed against online source material using computerised detection mechanisms.
Inclusive Learning
All students are asked to discuss any impairment related requirements privately, face to face and/or in written form with the course coordinator, lecturer or tutor.
Student Disability Services also provides support for students with a wide range of impairments, both visible and invisible, to succeed and excel at the University. For more information and contact details, please visit the Student Disability Services’ website at http://disability.auckland.ac.nz
Well-being always comes first
We all go through tough times during the semester, or see our friends struggling. There is lots of help out there - for more information,
look at this Canvas page (https://canvas.auckland.ac.nz/courses/33894),
which has links to various support services in the University and the wider community.
Special Circumstances
If your ability to complete assessed coursework is affected by illness or other personal circumstances outside of your control, contact a member of teaching staff as soon as possible before the assessment is due.
If your personal circumstances significantly affect your performance, or preparation, for an exam or eligible written test, refer to the University’s aegrotat or compassionate consideration page: https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/academic-information/exams-and-final-results/during-exams/aegrotat-and-compassionate-consideration.html.
This should be done as soon as possible and no later than seven days after the affected test or exam date.
Student Feedback
At the end of every semester students will be invited to give feedback on the course and teaching through a tool called SET or Qualtrics. The lecturers and course co-ordinators will consider all feedback and respond with summaries and actions.
Your feedback helps teachers to improve the course and its delivery for future students.
Class Representatives in each class can take feedback to the department and faculty staff-student consultative committees.
Student Charter and Responsibilities
The Student Charter assumes and acknowledges that students are active participants in the learning process and that they have responsibilities to the institution and the international community of scholars. The University expects that students will act at all times in a way that demonstrates respect for the rights of other students and staff so that the learning environment is both safe and productive. For further information visit Student Charter (https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/forms-policies-and-guidelines/student-policies-and-guidelines/student-charter.html).
Disclaimer
Elements of this outline may be subject to change. The latest information about the course will be available for enrolled students in Canvas.
In this course you may be asked to submit your coursework assessments digitally. The University reserves the right to conduct scheduled tests and examinations for this course online or through the use of computers or other electronic devices. Where tests or examinations are conducted online remote invigilation arrangements may be used. The final decision on the completion mode for a test or examination, and remote invigilation arrangements where applicable, will be advised to students at least 10 days prior to the scheduled date of the assessment, or in the case of an examination when the examination timetable is published.