'Spaces of London: Early Modern to the Eighteenth Century’ is a new 30-credit module on the MA English Literature degree which focusses on a number of significant areas of early London’s literature. The module looks at the city as a collection of spaces where the beliefs, ambitions, and experiences of Londoners combine to create the unique experience of living in one of the first modern cities.
In two sessions - in collaboration with the Guildhall Library, City of London - you will study a variety of literary and archival accounts of life in the city, exploring what it was like to live, work and celebrate in the growing metropolis. On visits into the city, you will be challenged to expand your thinking by combining literary study with your experiences of historical London spaces such as St Paul’s Churchyard, Newgate, Fleet Street, the Barbican and Westminster Abbey. Students will explore what happens when we read texts into these spaces and read these spaces as texts.
The module will allow you to better understand the relationship between city, people and writing and the connections between London’s past, present and future. You will also gain the confidence to read, analyse and develop your own ideas from a variety of sources and contexts.
