Course Catalogue

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Nineteenth-century Britain marked a transformational moment in the political worlds of women in Britain and its Empire. Educational and employment opportunities were expanding and there was increased participation in public and political life. Yet, women remained largely outside the formal parliamentary and electoral system and the emergent middle-class ideology appeared to constrain them to the home and private sphere. This course explores this evident conundrum, drawing on developing scholarship to consider women's agency, the limits of their participation and the sites and spaces where their activism was forged. The course employs a variety of primary sources (including novels, autobiography, political pamphlets and social investigations) to explore women's engagement in public life.

Two hours of seminars over ten weeks as scheduled in MyCampus. This is one of the Honours options in History and may not run every year. The options that are running this session are available on MyCampus.

Available to all students fulfilling requirements for Honours entry into History, and by arrangement to visiting students or students of other Honours programmes who qualify under the University's 25% regulation.

None.

None.

The standard assessments for this course are: 

■ Essay x 2,000 words - 60% 

■ Report (Representations of political women in political culture) x 1,200 words (30%) 

■ Reflection on seminar participation x 800 words (10%) 

If required, for instance where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, the following alternatives are available: 

■ There are no alternatives to the assessments, but flexible deadlines can be offered as reasonable adjustment (Students should follow the usual process for extensions). 

Further reasonable adjustments may be provided where necessary. Students are encouraged to consult with the course convenor.  

This course will provide the opportunity for students to:

■ Develop broad knowledge and understanding of the political culture of women in nineteenth-century Britain and its empire.

■ Engage with the historiographical and theoretical debates on gender, politics and female agency, including on related topics such as queer theory and approaches to the study of masculinity.

■ Analyse and interpret a diverse range of primary sources, evaluating some of the key challenges for recovering the voices of women in public life.

■ Make connections and comparisons between the past and the present, particularly relating to women, citizenship and their opportunities for participation in hostile environments.

By the end of this course students will be able to:

■ Demonstrate a detailed knowledge of the political history of women in nineteenth-century Britain and its empire.

■ Communicate ideas and findings effectively, adapting to a range of situations, audiences and degrees of complexity. 

■ Generate ideas through the reflective analysis of a broad range of primary sources material related to the political worlds of women.

■ Act with limited supervision and direction, within defined guidelines, accepting responsibility for achieving deadlines.

■ Analyse and evaluate the contributions made by existing multidisciplinary scholarship on gender and political culture in nineteenth-century Britain and its empire.