LANG 2044 The Gothic

This is an archived copy of the 2021-2022 catalog. To access the most recent version of the catalog, please visit https://hbook.westernsydney.edu.au.

Credit Points 10

Legacy Code 102507

Coordinator Helen Basides Opens in new window

Description This unit examines the emergence and development of Gothic literature in English. It studies the rise of Gothic fiction in the late-eighteenth century, and the evolution of Gothic genres in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Students will examine key works of Gothic poetry and narrative fiction - such as vampire narratives - in order to consider the social, political and intellectual contexts for Gothic literature. The unit considers how Gothic forms negotiate cultural anxieties, such as those involving race, gender, sexuality, religion, scientific development and class. Set texts from the twentieth century onwards may include works from television, theatre and film.

School Humanities & Comm Arts

Discipline Literature

Student Contribution Band HECS Band 1 10cp

Check your HECS Band contribution amount via the Fees page.

Level Undergraduate Level 2 subject

Restrictions Successful completion of 40 credit points of study in currently enrolled program.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this subject, students should be able to:
  1. Examine generic conventions of the Gothic that are employed or subverted in the texts set for study.
  2. Explain the ways in which the Gothic is situated within particular historical, social, cultural, political and scientific contexts.
  3. Demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between gender and genre, especially with respect to the female Gothic.
  4. Evaluate different critical approaches to the Gothic in relation to the set literary texts on the subject.
  5. Produce independently researched, critically engaged written discussions on topics relating to the generic and historical study of the set texts.

Subject Content

- The emergence of The Gothic in Late-eighteenth century in England and its development in The Nineteenth and twentieth centuries, in literatures of prose and verse.
- Terror Gothic and horror Gothic
- The female Gothic and The intersections of gender and genre
- Gothic fiction?fs exploration and Negotiation of cultural anxieties, including around race, gender, sexuality, religion, scientific development and class
- theoretical considerations of Gothic literature
- contemporary Gothic forms

Assessment

The following table summarises the standard assessment tasks for this subject. Please note this is a guide only. Assessment tasks are regularly updated, where there is a difference your Learning Guide takes precedence.

Item Length Percent Threshold Individual/Group Task
Short Answer Task 900–1,000 words 30 N Individual
Annotated Bibliography 800 words 25 N Individual
Essay 1,500 words 45 N Individual

Teaching Periods

Structures that include subject