
- UCAS course code
- RR45
- UCAS institution code
- M20
Course unit details:
History and Culture in Modern Spain
Unit code | SPLA20332 |
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Credit rating | 20 |
Unit level | Level 2 |
Teaching period(s) | Semester 2 |
Offered by | Spanish, Portuguese and Latin |
Available as a free choice unit? | Yes |
Overview
This course will introduce students to the history and culture of Spain from the start of the nineteenth century to the death of Franco. By exploring the intersection between literature, culture and history, it will help students to understand the different processes that have shaped Spain’s modern history and society. The course is divided into three chronological blocks: 1) from the War of Independence (1808-1814) to the 1868 Revolution; 2) the Restoration (1874-1936); 3) from the Civil War (1936-1939) to the death of Franco (1975). Each block starts with a historical survey, which is followed by an analysis of the most representative works of literature and art of the period. Works will be studied in their cultural and historical context, attending to the ways in which history and cultural production structure one another.
Aims
- To broaden students’ knowledge of Spanish language as a route to intercultural awareness, understanding and competence
- To explore the history and cultural production of modern Spain
- To raise students’ cultural awareness by giving them access to some of the most relevant cultural and historical texts produced in modern Spain
- To acquire the methodology necessary to analyse cultural and historical texts
- To deepen students’ understanding of the historical development and cultural context of Spanish cultural production from the early nineteenth century to the death of Franco
- To raise students’ awareness of the role played by culture in structuring historical processes
- To equip students with the ability to communicate verbally and in writing lucidly and accurately
Knowledge and understanding
- Outline the main stages in the history and development of culture in modern Spain
- Interpret modern Spanish cultural and historical texts in their context
- Apply relevant methodologies to the study of literature and art
- Formulate complex and sophisticated thinking in clear and structured prose
Intellectual skills
- Reflect critically on the social and cultural questions raised by works of literature and art
- Articulate reasoned arguments about literature and art
- Understand complex historical processes
Practical skills
At the end of this course it is expected that students will be able to:
- Read works of literature in Spanish
- Plan, structure and write essays on literature and art
- Find critical literature through independent research
Transferable skills and personal qualities
- Information retrieval: ability to independently gather, sift, synthesise and organise material from various sources (including library, electronic and online resources), and to critically evaluate its significance
- Literacy: capacity both to make written presentations using appropriate language for a target population and to collect and integrate evidence to formulate and test a hypothesis
- Applying Subject Knowledge: use of discipline specific knowledge in everyday situations
- Research: ability to plan and implement an effective research project
Employability skills
- Other
- Intercultural awareness, understanding and competence Ability to use and present material in the target language and English in written and oral forms in a clear and effective manner This course will be particularly useful for students willing to pursue a career as translators, interpreters or secondary school teachers. In addition, this course will be useful for students willing to work as journalists or teachers of English as a foreign language
Assessment methods
Essay 1 | 50% |
Essay 2 | 50% |
Feedback methods
Feedback method | Formative or Summative |
Oral feedback during seminar discussions | Formative |
Written feedback on essays | Summative |
Additional one-to-one feedback (during the consultation hour or by making an appointment) | Formative |
Recommended reading
- Casanova, Julián and Carlos Gil Andrés, Twentieth Century Spain: A History (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2014).
- Cernuda, Luis, Antología, ed. José María Capote Benot (Madrid: Cátedra, 1981)
- García Lorca, Federico, El Público (any edition)
- Gies, David T., The Cambridge History of Spanish Literature (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2008) (Available online)
- Graham, Helen and Jo Labanyi, Spanish Cultural Studies: An introduction. The Struggle for Modernity (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1995)
- Laforet, Carmen, Nada (any edition)
- Sutherland, Madeline, ‘The Literary Criticism of Mariano José de Larra,’ Revista de Estudios Hispánicos, 24.2 (1990), 103-120
- Valle-Inclán, Ramón del, Luces de Bohemia (any edition)
Study hours
Scheduled activity hours | |
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Lectures | 11 |
Seminars | 22 |
Independent study hours | |
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Independent study | 167 |
Teaching staff
Staff member | Role |
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Samuel Llano | Unit coordinator |