Study Details: MA 1 year full-time,
2 years part-time
The MA in Renaissance Literature 1500-1700 is an intensive and exciting survey of the literary culture of the 16th and 17th centuries. The transformations in religion, politics, the technologies of writing and publication, science and global exploration, which continue to resonate today, prompted some of the most vibrant, difficult, and rewarding writing ever produced.
You’ll be introduced to key authors, texts, and ideas from the period, and will construct a distinct, individually chosen programme of study from a wide range of options. You’ll develop your research skills and apply these to a substantial piece of independent research, taught and supervised by world-leading scholars in one of the UK’s most prestigious centres for early modern studies.
You’ll gain a foundation for doctoral research in early modern literature and culture, as well as transferable skills for related careers in teaching, publishing, arts management and journalism. You’ll engage with the research culture of the Department of English and Related Literature and the Centre for Renaissance and Early Modern Studies, with a diverse schedule of seminars, conferences and reading groups for you to attend. You’ll be part of the Humanities Research Centre, a vibrant interdisciplinary hub which enables you to form close social and intellectual bonds over the course of your study.
2:2 or equivalent. We will consider applications from students with lower qualifications, particularly if you have high marks in relevant modules or appropriate professional experience.
For fees and funding options, please visit website to find out more
Our postgraduates go into academia and teaching, arts administration, journalism, broadcasting, public relations, social work, politics, the civil service, and management consultancy. Many alumni have also gone on to become successful novelists, poets and playwrights.
For the core module, taught by a team of specialists, you'll engage with modern and early modern theories of the text. This will equip you with a rich critical vocabulary, skill-set, and analytical approach. On the Postgraduate Life in Practice module, you'll learn valuable skills in research, writing, reflection, presentation, publishing and career development.
Core modules
Shakespeare
Postgraduate Life in Practice
Option modules
You will also study three option modules. Examples can be found below. Some option module combinations may not be possible. The options available to you will be confirmed after you begin your course.
Cosmopoetics: Renaissance Science and Poetry
Greening the Renaissance: Theology, Science & the Natural World, 1600-1700
Healing, Harming, Feeling: Medical Hermeneutics in Early Modern Literature
Why Read Literature?: Lessons from the Renaissance (& Beyond)
Our modules may change to reflect the latest academic thinking and expertise of our staff, and in line with Department/School academic planning.
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