University of St Andrews

Key information

SCOTCAT credits : 30

ECTS credits : 15

Level : SCQF level 9

Semester: 2

Planned timetable: To be confirmed

This module introduces students to key ideas in the development of queer theory from the mid-20th Century to present. It also introduces students to some of the major literary texts in the archive of queer anglophone literature. This module is designed to afford students a handle on the diversity and complexity of methodologies and critical thinking that is grouped under the term ‘queer,’ and will enable students to reflect on the relationships between identity, theory, and activism, as well as on the development of the queer literary canon. Students will be encouraged to explore supplementary critical and other material, as their own particular queer interests lead them.

Relationship to other modules

Pre-requisite(s): Before taking this module you must pass EN2003 and pass EN2004

Learning and teaching methods and delivery

Weekly contact: Two-hour seminar (x11 weeks) plus 2 optional consultation hours per week (x11 weeks)

Scheduled learning hours: 22

Guided independent study hours: 264

Assessment pattern

As used by St Andrews: 100% Coursework


Re-assessment: 100% Examination

Personnel

Module coordinator: Dr K Ward

Intended learning outcomes

• Demonstrate a robust understanding of the history of queer theory and its key critical issues.
• Understand and analyse major examples from the queer literary canon in the critical context in which they have been canonised.
• Demonstrate knowledge of literary critical debates about queer aesthetics.
• Interrogate and evaluate the critical utility of ‘queerness,’ especially in relation to recent interventions in narrative theory, Marxism, utopian studies, and ecocriticism.
• Demonstrate practical analytical and research skills in close reading and applying a queer theoretical lens on texts, and in forming sophisticated and informed arguments (both in written work and class discussion).