All Courses

In this course, Professor Cedric Watts (University of Sussex) explores Joseph Conrad's 1907 novel, The Secret Agent. The course begins by thinking about Conrad's life – his upbringing in Poland, his early career as a merchant sailor, and his later...

In this course, Dr Richard Robinson (Swansea University) explores Kazuo Ishiguro's 2005 novel, Never Let Me Go. We begin by introducing Ishiguro's previous works, before focusing on the idea on the unreliable first-person narrator. After that, we...

In this course, Dr Peter Howarth (Queen Mary, University of London) explores the poetry of W. B. Yeats through six key poems: 'An Irish Airman Foresees his Death', 'Easter, 1916', 'Leda and the Swan', 'No Second Troy', 'The Cold Heaven',...

In this course, Dr Martin Wiggins (The Shakespeare Institute, University of Birmingham) explores Shakespeare's Coriolanus. We begin by thinking about the political circumstances in which the action of the play takes place, focusing in particular...

In this course, Professor Robert Cook explores the development of African-American civil rights from the end of the American Civil War (1865) to the United States' entry into World War II (1941). After a brief introduction that provides an...

In this course, Professor Robert Hampson (Royal Holloway, London) explores Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness. We begin by providing some of the historical context of the novel, focusing both on Conrad's own experiences as a seaman, as well as on...

In this course, Professor Sue Doran (University of Oxford) explores the reigns of Edward VI (1547-53) and Mary I (1553-58), a period which some historians have labelled the Mid-Tudor Crisis. We begin by thinking about the religious policies of...

In this course, Professor John Morrill (University of Cambridge) thinks about the treatment of Catholics during the reign of Elizabeth I (1558-1603). The course begins by thinking about Elizabeth's own religious beliefs, focusing in particular at...

In this course, Professor John Morrill (University of Cambridge) explores the reign of Elizabeth I (1533-1603) through the lens of the succession crisis that she faced throughout her life – both at the beginning of her reign in 1558, and...

In this course, Dr Keith Carabine (University of Kent) explores Joseph Conrad's 1899 novella, Heart of Darkness. The course begins by thinking about Conrad's own experiences in Africa, as recorded in his 'Personal Record' (1912) and 'Geography and...

In this course, Professor John Lennard explores the history of tragedy from its origins in ancient Athens to the present day. In the first three modules, we think about the tragedy of Classical Athens, looking in particular at the plays...

In this course, Professor Nick Groom (University of Exeter) explores the history of the supernatural in English and American literature. The course begins by thinking about two of the key sources of supernatural literature, looking in the first...