29 July 2017
Literary London
This class is based on a selection of some of the many Augustan, Romantic, Gothic Victorian, Modern and Postcolonial texts set in London. Although the main focus will be on literary texts, we will also look at film and architecture. We will be considering Augustan and Romantic constructions of London; the bequest of the 17th century to 18th century cultural and political life; the relation between geography and economics; separate cultures of Westminster and the City; public spaces and public culture; public and private domains; London and Empire; gendered experience of the city; London as Augusta; Satire; the beginnings of Urban realism; Urban identities; the poet in the city; London as dystopia; Romantic temporalities; London as Gothic locale; the double life of London; the flâneur; detective fiction as an urban genre; reading city signs; the literary geography of the nineteenth-century novel; urban perspectives and the Victorian novel.
Target group
Students with an IELTS score of 6.0 or higher
Minimum age: 18
Course aim
The aim of this class is to introduce students to some of the many texts – literary and non-literary - that have focused on London. We will be considering the relationship between the literary text and historical contexts, in particular those of geography and economics, and considering the relation between the rise of the city and the rise of new modes of writing and new concepts of subjectivity. We will be concerned with issues of genre and gender.
Credits info
10 EC
Each Summer School module is worth 20 UK credits (10 ECTS).
Official Transcripts are provided at the end of the course.
Fee info
GBP 1515: Tuition fee per session.
GBP 0: At the time of application, students have the opportunity to select from accommodation at two of the University of Westminster's centrally located Halls of Residence, as well as joining a comprehensive Social Programme including evening events in London, and weekend trips throughout the UK.
Prices vary and are available in full detail on our website.