This module offers a close examination of gothic fiction drawn from the pre-Romantic and Romantic eras, spanning the so-called first wave of gothic literature (1760–1830). The aim of this course is to introduce you to the changing and complex nature of first-wave gothic fiction, through close readings of novels and other texts from the period, as well as consideration of literary and film adaptations that have followed in the wake of the gothic. This will be balanced with more general discussions of the literary and ideological background, which played a pivotal role in formating the gothic.

Alongside the analysis of gothic fiction as literary works, you will explore events and themes such as the French revolution; the significance of the Sublime in eighteenth-century art; ‘male’ and ‘female’ gothic traditions; and the contemporary explorations of the mind. In examining this range of novels, films and other texts, you will be encouraged to consider the significant cultural contribution made by this popular and long-lived genre from its earliest days.

• analyse key gothic texts in relation to developments in the novel during the period
• assess the significance to gothic fiction of issues of gender, politics and ideology
• contrast different modes of representing the supernatural
• synthesise a range of approaches to the adaptation of gothic fiction
• dissect and evaluate both established and new critical understandings of the gothic

This module will be delivered through a mixture of synchronous and asynchronous activities, as part of this programme’s blended provision, which will include on-campus and online teaching and support.

The precise mode of delivery and details – subject to Welsh Government and Public Health Wales guidance – of the teaching and support activities will be made available at the start of the semester via Learning Central.

Academic skills: the particular skills of the module involve reading and understanding how a literary genre (in this case, gothic fiction) adapts to, negotiates with and transforms the culture from which it emerges. Analysis of the complex relationship between different forms of media in generating meaning will also be an important facet of this module. This requires careful scholarship, sensitivity to language through close reading and a broader historical awareness of social change.

Employability skills: these include the ability to synthesise information, participate in group-based discussion, to negotiate different and conflicting standpoints, to communicate ideas and to produce clear, informed arguments in a professional manner. Student-led research will encourage skills of information collation, selection and synthesis. 

The methods of summative assessment for this module are detailed in the table below.

Formative work to be submitted before each summative assessment: you can choose between submitting, as appropriate, an essay plan/structure, synopses of essay topic options (if undecided) or sample paragraph/s; for creative assignments, you can submit working drafts of parts of your composition, as arranged with the workshop convenor.

THE OPPORTUNITY FOR REASSESSMENT IN THIS MODULE:
As with School policy, failed or unsubmitted assessments can be retaken during the August resit period.

Indicative Syllabus:

• Horace Walpole, The Castle of Otranto (1764)
• Ann Radcliffe, The Mysteries of Udolpho (1794)
• Matthew Lewis, The Monk (1796)
• Mary Shelley, Frankenstein (1818)
• James Hogg, Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner (1824)

Content warning: please be aware that several of the books/topics discussed in this module deal with difficult themes (including mental illness and misogyny, including graphic depictions of suicide and physical and sexual violence), which some students may find distressing. If you have any concerns about this, please contact the module leader for advice.