English and Drama
English MA
1 year full-time; 2 years part-time
This programme offers students the opportunity to study one of a number of named pathways as follows:
- Negotiated Pathway
(Pathway Co-ordinator: Prof Nigel Wood) - Modern and Contemporary Pathway
(Pathway Co-ordinator: Dr Brian Jarvis) - American Pathway
(Pathway Co-ordinator: Dr Andrew Dix) - Victorian Pathway
(Pathway Co-ordinator: Dr Nick Freeman) - Early-Modern Writing Pathway
(Pathway Co-ordinator: Prof Elaine Hobby) - Creative Writing Pathway
(Pathway Co-ordinator: Ms Carolyn Scott-Jeffs)
Students who choose the Negotiated Pathway need to select, with guidance from the Pathway Co-ordinators, a combination of modules that is not available on any other Pathway, but which has academic coherence.
Negotiated Pathway
Compulsory Modules
Semester 1
- Research Methods
Semester 2
- Dissertation
Optional Modules
Semester 1 (choose 2)
- Departures*
- Victorian Views
- Special Subject 1 (by special arrangement only)
- History, Nation and Difference
- Modernist and Contemporary Genres
- Early-Modern Texts in Performance
- Early-Modern Contexts: Power, Gender, Religion and Race
- Discourse as Social Practice
- Critical Thinking
- Perspectives*
- Texts in Performance: Contexts
- On the Road: American Travel and its Meanings
Semester 2 (choose 2)
- Diversions*
- Modern and Contemporary Texts in Performance
- Special Subject 2
- The American Novel Now
- Renaissance Playhouse Practice
- Writing and the English Revolution
- Restoration Writings
- History and History Plays: Description, Desire and Prescription
- (Impoliteness): Theories and Applications
- The 20th-Century European Novel
- Charles Dickens
- Exploring the Early-Modern Body
- Reading American Poetry
- Writers and the Writing Industries*
- The Texts of Jacques Derrida
- Romantic Representations of the South Pacific
- Psychoanalysis, Creativity, Textuality
- Food and Early-Modern Literature
- 19th-Century European Adultery Fiction
- Literary Londons
- The Romantic Orient
- Romantic Lives and Afterlives
- Weird Fiction
- Subjectivity, Sexuality and Power
Modern and Contemporary Pathway
Compulsory Modules
Semester 1
- Research Methods
- History, Nation and Difference
Semester 2
- Dissertation
Optional Modules
Semester 1 (choose 1)
- History, Nation and Difference
- Critical Thinking
Semester 2 (choose 1 or 2*)
- The 20th-Century European Novel
- The Texts of Jacques Derrida
- Romantic Representations of the South Pacific
- Psychoanalysis, Creativity, Textuality
- The Romantic Orient
- Romantic Lives and Afterlives
- Weird Fiction
(* One option may be chosen from those available on the Negotiated Pathway.)
American Pathway
Compulsory Modules
Semester 1
- Research Methods
- On the Road: American Travel and its Meanings
Semester 2
- Dissertation
Optional Modules
Semester 2 (choose 1)
- The American Novel Now
- Reading American Poetry
- History, Nation and Difference
- Critical Thinking
(*One option may be chosen from those available on the Negotiated Pathway.)
Victorian Pathway
Compulsory Modules
Semester 1
- Research Methods
- History, Nation and Difference
Semester 2
- Dissertation
Optional Modules
Semester 1 (choose 1)
- History, Nation and Difference
- Critical Thinking
(*One option may be chosen from those available on the Negotiated Pathway.)
Semester 2 (choose 1 or 2*)
- Charles Dickens
- Literary Londons
- Weird Fiction
(*One option may be chosen from those available on the Negotiated Pathway.)
Early-Modern Writing Pathway
Compulsory Modules
Semester 1
- Research Methods
- Early-Modern Texts in Performance
- Early-Modern Contexts: Gender, Religion and Race
Semester 2
- Dissertation
Optional Modules
Semester 2 (choose 1 or 2*)
- Renaissance Playhouse Practice
- Writing and the English Revolution
- Restoration Writings
- History and History Plays: Description, Desire and Prescription
- Exploring the Early-Modern Body
- Food and Early-Modern Literature
(*One option may be chosen from those available on the Negotiated Pathway.)
Creative Writing Pathway
Compulsory Modules
Semester 1
- Departures
- Research Methods
Semester 2
- Diversions
- Dissertation
Optional Modules
Semester 1 (choose 1)
- See list for the Negotiated Pathway.
Semester 2 (choose 1)
- See list for the Negotiated Pathway.
(Please note that it is not possible to study both Perspectives and Writers and the Writing Industries.)
Modules listed are correct at the time of publication. Changes may be made to the structure and delivery of programmes, but content will remain broadly the same.
Assessment
Dissertation 15,000 words. Other modules normally assessed by two 3,000-word essays (20 credits), or by two 4,000-word essays (30 credits), or equivalent.
Entry Qualification*
Upper second honours degree or equivalent in English, Drama or a related subject. Applicants with other qualifications and suitable experience may be considered, and are encouraged to apply. Applicants will be expected to provide a sample of written work as part of the selection process.
Selection
Based on application form, sample of written work (2,000-4,000 words), CV, personal statement, and confidential reports from two named referees.
Careers and Further Study
This programme meets the needs of students seeking to qualify for entry to a research degree, teachers of literature and/or creative writing, and those wishing to update their knowledge or develop their own research skills.
Bursaries and Scholarships
All self-funded UK/EU students accepted for a full-time Master’s programme in this Department receive a bursary of £1,000. All self-funded, part-time students receive a bursary of £500 per annum. All self-funded, full-time international students receive a bursary of 20% of international fees.
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