Subject identification
Subject 21813 - Postcolonial Literatures in English
Credits 2.4 in-class (60 hours) 3.6 distance (90 hours) 6 totals (150 hours).
Group Group 1, 2S(Campus Extens) Teaching period 2nd semester
Teaching language English
Lecturers
Timetable for student attention Lecturers
Starting time Finishing time Day Start date Finish date Office 09:00h 11:00h Wednesday 18/02/2013 07/06/2013 9 (Beatriu
de Pinos) Paloma Fresno Calleja
[email protected] 09:00h 12:00h Tuesday 18/02/2013 07/06/2013 9 (Beatriu de Pinos)
Degrees where the subject is taught
Degree Character Academic
year
Studies
Degree in English Studies Compulsory Second course Degreee
Degree in Catalan Language and Literature Optional Fourth course Degreee
Contextualisation
Dra. Paloma Fresno Calleja Ed. Beatriu de Pinos, despacho 9 [email protected]
Tel: 971171308 OFFICE HOURS:
First semester: e-mail only
Second semester: Tuesday 9-12; Wednesday 9-11
This course offers a general introduction to what have been variously called 'Other literatures in English', 'New literatures in English' or 'Commonwealth literatures', that is the Anglophone literature produced in the former British colonies and normally grouped under the label 'postcolonial'. The course will focus on theoretical and literary aspects associated with the literatures of these countries and will concentrate on their shared colonial history and their common postcolonial condition. Through a discussion of literary texts and critical articles from Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the Pacific Islands, the Caribbean region and South Asia, we will study and re-examine the colonial legacy and the imposition and subversion of colonial representations in the context of decolonisation, nationalism and diaspora. On completion of this module,
the students will be able to explain the most important cultural, thematic and stylistic aspects associated with the literatures of these areas and to interpret the strategies used by the authors to account for their cultural specificity in the postcolonial context.
Requirements Recommendable
Before enrolling for this course, it is recommended that students have completed the modules: "Cultural Insights into the English Speaking World" and "English Literature I: 20th century voices" in which they will acquire knowledge about historical, cultural and literary questions which will be reconsidered here.
Students are also expected to possess sufficient command of the English language to read and discuss in oral and written form literary and critical texts of certain complexity.
Skills
Specific
1. Conocimiento y comprensión de los principales rasgos culturales y literarios que definen el mundo anglófono.
2. Capacidad de analizar textos en lengua inglesa desde los puntos de vista lingüístico, literario y cultural.
3. Conocimiento y comprensión de las principales aportaciones de las disciplinas relacionadas con los Estudios Ingleses (lingüística, lingüística aplicada, estudios literarios, estudios culturales).
Generic
1. Capacidad de interpretar, analizar, sintetizar y evaluar información de forma crítica.
2. Capacidad de relacionar e integrar ideas y conocimientos procedentes de diversas fuentes y disciplinas y para aplicarlos en la práctica.
3. Capacidad de respetar y valorar la diversidad lingüística y cultural, fomentando la igualdad de oportunidades en la actuación profesional.
Content Theme content
Unit 1. Introduction
Postcolonialism: what, when and where?
An overview of the British Empire Unit 2. Narrating the colony
Colonial discourse: representing "the other"
Postcolonial re/visions: Blonde Roots by Bernardine Evaristo
Unit 3. Narrating the nation Settler identities Indigenous identities Unit 4. Narrating diaspora
Living and writing in-between New Ethni/cities
Teaching methodology
Campus Extens
Students are reminded of the importance of checking Campus Extens regularly for important announcements concerning the subject. Any announcement made through Campus Extens has the same validity as those included in this programme.
Classroom rules
Mobile phones and other electronic devices are NOT allowed in the classroom. Laptop computers are acceptable ONLY if used for purposes related to classroom activity. No electronic device whatsoever (including computers) is allowed in the classroom during exams/practical sessions, unless otherwise specified by the lecturer (e.g., if the practical session entails use of the internet for pedagogical purposes).
In-class work activities
Modality Name Typ.Gr. Description
Theory classes Lectures Large group (G) These lectures will be devoted to the explanation of the main theoretical, cultural and
literary aspects of the subject and to the discussion of texts with student participation
Practical classes Seminars Medium group (M)Practical sessions devoted to the discussion of literary texts.
Assessment Assessment
sessions Large group (G) There will be two practical sessions where students will have to comment on two fragments from the texts seen in class.
Assessment Final exam Large group (G) See assessment
Distance education work activities
Modality Name Description
Individual self-
study Reading and revision Students are expected to read the texts and prepare a number of activities for the practical sessions.
Riscs especifics i mesures de protecció
Les activitats d'aprenentatge d'aquesta assignatura no comporten riscs específics per a la seguretat i salut de l'alumnat i, per tant, no cal adoptar mesures de protecció especials.
Workload estimate
Modality Name Hours ECTS %
In-class work activities 60 2.4 40
Theory classes Lectures 25 1 16.67
Practical classes Seminars 25 1 16.67
Assessment Assessment sessions 6 0.24 4
Assessment Final exam 4 0.16 2.67
Distance education work activities 90 3.6 60
Individual self-study Reading and revision 90 3.6 60
Total 150 6 100
At the beginning of the semester a schedule of the subject will be made available to students through the UIBdigital platform. The schedule shall at least include the dates when the continuing assessment tests will be conducted and the hand-in dates for the assignments. In addition, the lecturer shall inform students as to whether the subject work plan will be carried out through the schedule or through another way included in the Campus Extens platform.
Student learning assessment
ASSESSMENT
1. To get a pass in the subject students must pass both the continuous assessments and the exam.
2. The continuous assessment will consist of two literary commentaries worth 25% which will be done in class and/or repeated in the final exam if the student does not pass them during the course. To obtain a pass in this part, the student must get an average mark of 5.
3. The exam will have two parts: a longer essay question (25%) + and several shorter questions (25%), both of which have to be passed with a 5 for the 50% of the continuous assessment to be added to the mark.
4. If the student passes one of the two parts of the subject (exam or continuous assessment) but fails the other, the pass mark will be kept (but not reflected in the grades record) and the failed part will have to be repeated in the September exam.
IMPORTANT
If a student fails to hand in an assignment or to show up on the day and at the time established by the lecturer for the exams/practical sessions, the grade for that assignment/exam/practical session will be 0 (zero), in case the student has presented more than 30% of the total assigned evaluation course tasks.Only if the student has presented 30% or less than 30% of the total assigned evaluation course tasks, will the grade be ‘NP’.
The dates and times of the official exams will not be altered under any circumstances, except those contemplated by the Reglament Acadèmic (when two UIB exams coincide on the same day with a time difference of under three hours between them). Students will not be allowed into the classroom when the exam/practical session has already started.
Plagiarism
Article 32 in the Reglament Acadèmic will be applied in cases of cheating, plagiarism, cyberplagiarism, or any other fraudulent practice in the process of assessment: “Amb independència del procediment disciplinari que es pugui seguir contra l’estudiant infractor, la realització demostradorament fraudulenta d’alguna de les activitats d’avaluació incloses en l’avaluació d’alguna assignatura comportarà, segon les circumstancies, una menysvaloració en la seva qualificació que, en els casos més greus, pot arribar a la qualificació de
«suspens» (0,0) a la convocatòria anual. En particular, es considera un frau la inclusió en un treball de fragments d’obres alienes presentats de tal manera que es facin passar com a propis de l’estudiant.”
Assessment sessions
Modality Assessment
Technique Extended-response, discursive examinations (Recoverable)
Description There will be two practical sessions where students will have to comment on two fragments from the texts seen in class.
Assessment criteria See 'assessment' above Percentage of final qualification: 50% following path A
Final exam
Modality Assessment
Technique Extended-response, discursive examinations (Recoverable) Description See assessment
Assessment criteria See 'assessment' above Percentage of final qualification: 50% following path A
Resources, bibliography and additional documentation
Basic bibliography Compulsory readings:
*McLeod, John 2000: Beginning Postcolonialism. Manchester University Press.
*Evaristo, Bernardine 2008: Blonde Roots. London: Penguin.
*Selection of short stories, poems and articles available from February 2013 (Copisteria Ramón Llull) Complementary bibliography
Ashcroft, Bill; Griffiths, Gareth & Tiffin, Helen 1989: The Empire Writes Back. London: Routledge.
Ashcroft, Bill; Griffiths, Gareth & Tiffin, Helen eds 1995: The Postcolonial Studies Reader. London:
Routledge.
Ashcroft, Bill; Griffiths, Gareth & Tiffin, Helen 2000: Postcolonial Studies. The Key Concepts. London:
Routledge.
Boehmer, Elleke2005: Colonial and Poscolonial Literature. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Barker, Francis; Hulme, Peter & Iversen, Margaret eds 1994: Colonial Discourse/Postcolonial Theory.
Manchester: Manchester University Press.
Chew, Shirley and David Richards 2010: A Concise Companion to Postcolonial Literatures. Oxford:
Blackwell.
Childs, Peter & Williams, Patrick 1997: An Introduction to Postcolonial Theory. Hertfordshire: Prentice Hall.
Innes, Christopher 2007: The Cambridge Introduction to Postcolonial Literatures in English. Cambridge University Press.
Lazarus, Neil 2004: The Cambridge Companion to Postcolonial Literary Studies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Loomba, Ania 1998: Colonialism/Postcolonialism. London: Routledge.
McLeod, John 2007: The Routledge Companion to Postcolonial Studies. London: Routledge.
Ray, S. & Schwarz, H. eds 2000: A Companion to Postcolonial Studies. Oxford: Blackwell.
Wisker, Gina 2006: Key Concepts in Postcolonial Literature. Basingstoke: Palgrave.
Young, Robert 2003: Postcolonialism: A very Short Introduction. Oxford: OUP.
Other resources