Examine British political culture from 1918 to the present day. You will assess popular participation beyond the ballot box by examining the place of politics in the everyday lives of 20th and 21st century Britons. You will learn through weekly lectures and seminars that will introduce you to a range of relevant sources and build on your existing skills in finding additional digital material. The module will enable you to develop critical approaches in preparation for pursuing your own research interests.
Study the initial spread of communism after 1945 to the collapse of communism in the revolutions of 1989/90. You will explore the onset of the Cold War that led to the division of Europe into `West? and `East? by the `iron curtain?. Your studies will look at the communist monopoly of power and Soviet control over Eastern Europe, and the numerous challenges, upheavals and compromises it underwent between 1945 and 1989. In addition to high-profile popular challenges to the ruling authorities such as the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 and the Prague Spring of 1968, this module will also see you consider the various reforms adopted, the increasing role of dissent, and some of the ways that people reacted to, reshaped and resisted communism in their everyday lives.
Study the complex and contested history of 20th-century South Africa by focusing on the development, implementation, and aftermaths of the apartheid system of racial segregation and discrimination. You will study key themes including the aftermath of the 1899-1902 South African (`Boer?) War, the development of a distinctive Afrikaner identity during the 1920s and 30s, changing ideas about race and class, and the formal establishment of apartheid in 1948. Your studies will also consider aspects of social and cultural life under apartheid, for example the so-called `Drum? decade of the 1950s, and the roles and experiences of women, underpinned by a critical consideration of the historiography of gender in South Africa. You will also consider opposition to apartheid, and the formal end of apartheid and white minority rule in 1994. The module will conclude by considering developments in South Africa post-1994, focusing on political transformation, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, the construction of `new nationalisms' and the writing of new histories.
Consider the question of what constitutes 'national identity'? And the relationship between cultural identities and the political questions of the day. This module will place the debate in historical context, exploring the emergence of a 'United Kingdom' from the acts of union with Scotland and Ireland in 1707 and 1801 respectively to the partial disintegration of this union with the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1922, to the triumph of devolution under Tony Blair's New Labour government in 1999 and the EU referendum of 2016. You will have the opportunity to develop your presentation and leadership skills by designing and running one of your seminar sessions as part of a group exercise.
This module will trace the history of British holidaymaking abroad by considering motives for and experiences of travel. You will evaluate changes in how travellers journeyed across two centuries, and explore notions including national identity, racial inequality, coming of age, gender and pilgrimage, which are enabled and challenged by foreign holidaying. Drawing on diaries, travel ephemera, journalism and instructive literature, you will study documents replete with accounts of Britishness, how to behave, what to see and do, the value of empire and the unpredictable nature of foreigners. You will also consider the ways in which encounters with other cultures and peoples are recorded, understood, and justified and in so doing understand how travel documents can reveal as much about British prejudices and perceptions as they reveal about the locations being visited.
Explore the longer history of civil rights in the United States and Canada from the Civil War until today by studying a broad range of people including marginalised populations such as indigenous groups, women, children, and the LGBTQ community. You will study major themes in the history of race, ethnicity, and culture in North America, covering such topics as suffrage, eugenics, Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, Black Zionism, Red Power, urban ghettos, music, Idle No More, and politics.
Explore the origins of modern environmentalism, examining the development of ideas and beliefs about nature and its conservation on a worldwide scale over the past two centuries. You will study key themes and approaches in the relatively new field of environmental history. Major analytical issues that you will explore include cultural attitudes to nature, changing technologies, the environmental impacts of colonial expansion, increasing industrialization and urbanization, and political and legislative responses to environmental problems.
Study the role that the street has played since the mid-19th century in shaping our lives and identities. This module is concerned with the everyday lives of urban dwellers who used streets for work, leisure, travel, and living in its many legal and illegal ways. You will examine the different users of the street, and the changing representation of the street across our period. In addition to lectures and seminars, you will attend classes off-campus - on the streets and in the arcades with walking tours, in the city's public libraries and in museums. You will be introduced to the variety of primary sources that reveal the personality of a city's streets and activities, around which you will write assignments: photographs, film, maps, newspapers, testimonies, and the buildings and public spaces themselves.
Examine the history of Italy from the beginning of the country's national resurgence during the late 18th century to the present day. You will study the major political, economic, social and cultural developments of this history with a particular focus upon the themes of `continuity' and `change' from one period to another.
This module will examine the ways in which different kinds of public history - historic buildings and gardens, museums, writers' homes, industrial archaeology - reflect the diverse pasts of people in Britain. You will be equipped with the skills to analyse the processes which help and hinder historical changes, the commercial and policy pressures faced by heritage bodies, and changing legislation such as the 2010 Equalities Act. You will also develop skills in analysing these debates in order to apply your knowledge to particular sites and the interpretations of social history that they offer.
Gain hands-on experience of making public history by working in a small group on a discrete local history project commissioned by an external group or member of academic staff. Training workshops and tutorials will help guide you through the research process and the final outcome will be determined by each group in consultation with their sponsor. This module will reflect a growing interest in local communities about the places where they live, and will provide you with the opportunity to critically reflect on the skills you have developed and the public role of the historian.
Focus on the British Home Front during the Second World War and consider the extent to which the conflict should be regarded as 'The People's War'. Taking a thematic approach based on primary sources and artefacts, you'll trace the impact of the Second World War on British civilians. You'll consider its social, cultural and political legacies. Particular attention will be paid to everyday experiences of the war and the ways that these were presented through a range of different media. This module will end with a conference led by you and your peers, comprised of group presentations.
Examine the process of decolonisation from its origins in the late colonial world, through to current debates about the legacies of modern imperialism.
Explore 'race' as a mechanism used to justify oppression, slavery and genocide. But what exactly is `race'? How do racisms manifest and change over time? How can we challenge racial discrimination within the media and wider society? These are some of the important questions that this module critically investigates. You will examine and understand the historical and contemporary significance of `race', ethnicity and culture before beginning to apply your knowledge to different aspects of popular culture such as film, TV, social media, advertising and fashion, music, and sport.
Examine the complex relationship between media and sport at both the industry and audience level. You will understand the role sports coverage plays across print, broadcast and online media in all contexts: local, regional, national and global.
This module draws on recent social theory and on the work of Pierre Bourdieu as a means of examining how identities of class and gender are represented in contemporary media culture. You will use ethnographic case studies to look at the ways audiences consume and interact with lifestyle texts.
Gain a critical introduction to celebrity studies and literature on film stardom. It also explores their recent cross-overs, hybridisation and yet continuing distinction in the contemporary world. Media celebrity gives focus to television, radio and new media; the dynamics of contemporary celebrity and the theory, analysis and research necessary to make sense of contemporary media celebrity. Particular use is made of the journal Celebrity Studies to explore the cutting edge of developments in ideas and research and methods. Historical contexts of film stardom are addressed yet the key focus is on recent developments of such stardom and research exploring its contemporary dynamics.
Gain a critical overview of the historical, social, technological and cultural context surrounding digital media such as mobile devices, software apps and computer games. This module explores definitions and interpretations of the term 'digital reality' and how it is used in contemporary culture. You will be encouraged to critically engage with the issues surrounding digitally mediated experiences, especially in relation to interactivity, creativity, community and embodiment.
This module will introduce you to the growing area of game studies and will give you diverse methodological tools to approach video games as texts that need a multi-angle approach. Regardless of your gaming background, you will be encouraged to engage with a regular gaming practice and to adopt a reflective and critical approach toward your experiences of play and spectatorship. This module will provide you with the methodological and critical tools to focus on game mechanics and narratives, but also signs, semiotics and politics. In addition to reflecting upon workshops involving play sessions and analytical discussions, this module will include consideration of the game industry and its intricacies.
By reflecting on learning acquired through work placements, this module will focus on promoting self-awareness of your ‘career story’. You will look at how you evaluate your current skills, explore the future possibilities in your career development and navigate pathways through those chosen possibilities. This module will enable you to become ‘cartographer’ of your own future experience. You will embark upon a minimum of 80 hours work placement, supported by reflective exercises, and build expertise and confidence through a range of assessments designed by the course team and employer partners. Conceptualised and designed by digital specialists, the module is purposefully created to be delivered and experienced online – reflecting the increasingly distributed nature of work communications and embracing digital environments as an integral aspect of how employees and the self-employed progress their careers.
This module will consider the impact of digital technologies on the making, marketing and distribution of musical works. You'll study the shift from analogue to digital modes of recording and the rise of digital formats and streaming services. You'll also examine how music and digital technologies have together driven innovation and creativity in the development of the media technologies employed to capture, distribute and market music.
Explore the significances of diverse space media on discursive processes of 'worlding', or the generation of understandings of our world and new worlds out in the cosmos. Questions about 'who space is for' and 'who is excluded from actual and imaginary space explorations' will be key to developing a critical approach to space media. You'll engage with the public communication of space to ensure that the potentials of space are available to everyone.
The spread and normalisation of surveillance encourages us to ask if surveillance is the primary form of contemporary governance. You'll examine the impact of surveillance on our identities and lives with specific concerns about issues of privacy, the inability to 'forget', and the need to self-surveil and 'share' as part of normal citizenship.
By reflecting on learning acquired through work placements, this module will focus on promoting self-awareness of your ‘career story’. You will look at how you evaluate your current skills, explore the future possibilities in your career development and navigate pathways through those chosen possibilities. This module will enable you to become ‘cartographer’ of your own future experience. You will embark upon a minimum of 80 hours work placement, supported by reflective exercises, and build expertise and confidence through a range of assessments designed by the course team and employer partners. Conceptualised and designed by digital specialists, the module is purposefully created to be delivered and experienced online – reflecting the increasingly distributed nature of work communications and embracing digital environments as an integral aspect of how employees and the self-employed progress their careers.