English Literature

In this course, Dr Peter Howarth (Queen Mary University of London) explores the poetry of the First World War. We begin in the first module by providing a broad introduction to war poetry, thinking in particular about the basic conflict between...

In this course, Professor Max Saunders (King’s College, London) explores how critical perspectives on modernism have changed over time. In the first module, think about how modernist literature was received at the time it was created and how it is...

In this course, Professor Max Saunders (King’s College, London) explores some classic works of modernist literature. We begin with a discussion of Henry James’ What Maisie Knew in module one, focussing in particular on James’ narrative ...

In this course, Professor Max Saunders (King’s College, London) explores the literary movement of modernism in the context of the broader concept of modernity. We begin by introducing the terms ‘modernism’ and ‘modernity’ and think about the...

In this twenty-one part course, Professor John McRae (University of Nottingham) explores Shakespeare’s Othello. We begin with a broad introduction to the historical, political and intellectual context of early 17th-century England, before going...

In this course, Professor John McRae explores J. B. Priestley’s ‘An Inspector Calls’. In the first module, we provide a broad introduction to the play, focusing in particular on the influence of Gogol’s ‘The Government Inspector’ and the ...

In this course, Professor Marion Turner (University of Oxford) explores The Wife of Bath's Prologue and Tale, part of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. We begin by thinking about the portrait of the Wife of Bath in the General Prologue of the Canterbury...

In this course, Dr Ross Wilson (University of Cambridge) explores the poetry of the great Romantic poet, Percy Bysshe Shelley. We begin in the first module by providing a brief overview of Shelley's short life and career with an emphasis on ...

In this course, Professor Lisa Hopkins (Sheffield Hallam University) discusses John Webster’s play The Duchess of Malfi. We begin by thinking about Gothic motifs in the play, focusing in particular on instances of double-ness or twinning. In ...

In this course, Professor John McRae (University of Nottingham) explores the fifteen poems that make up the 'Power and Conflict' cluster in the GCSE English Literature on AQA. Each poem is read in detail, with a short commentary highlighting...

In this course, Professor John Roe (University of York) explores Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. We begin by thinking about the sources for the play, focusing in particular on the works of Plutarch, before moving on in the second module to give a...

In this course, Dr Madeleine Davies (University of Reading) explores Virginia Woolf’s 1925 novel, Mrs Dalloway. In the first three modules, we outline some of the key contexts for the novel, including: (i) the life and career of Virginia Woolf;...