ENG31400 Masculinities and Manhood in Irish Literature, Drama, and Culture

Academic Year 2018/2019

This module explores theories and representations of manhood and masculinities in Irish literature, drama, and culture from the Lemass era of the 1960s to the present day. Students will chart various shifts and changes in multiple models of Irish manhood over a wide and diverse corpus of Irish fiction and drama. Students will explore themes such as the subjective, cultural, and socio-political construction of manhood in Ireland, as well as Irish hegemonic masculinity and patriarchal systems and structures. Students will map, through critical readings and seminar discussions, the ways in which such formations of manhood play out across Irish culture and writing. Students will further examine these concepts with regard to Northern Irish and queer masculinities, as well as exploring the concept of masculinity as a ‘presence by absence’ in the context of women’s and female-centric writing. Novelists and dramatists to be studied will include: Frank McGuinness, Marina Carr, Tom Murphy, Edna O’Brien, Nancy Harris, Christina Reid, John McGahern, Colm Tóibín, and Neil Watkins.

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Curricular information is subject to change

Learning Outcomes:

On completion of this module, students will be able to:• Demonstrate indepth knowledge of the ways in which masculinities and models of manhood have been represented and critiqued by key Irish novelists and dramatists since the late 1950s to the present day.• Critically evaluate key shifts and sites of stasis in Irish masculinities and manhood, in both written and dramatic representation, and in Irish socio-political and cultural life. • Articulate in scholarly terms the ways in which models of masculinity and manhood in Ireland have been mobilized by the State and its organs for political gain and social control and theoretically elaborate the effects of consumerism and socio-economic policies and practices on Irish masculinities and manhood.• Be capable of expressing critical judgement clearly and effectively while also being able to speak and write with clarity, precision, depth, and style; thereby developing and demonstrating critical thinking, theoretical knowledge, and a scholarly vocabulary appropriate to writing about masculinities, manhood, and gender and sexuality in both Irish and global contexts. • Demonstrate sophisticated skills in detailed textual analysis and close reading while also acquiring a command of appropriate literary terminology and be able to apply this to the analysis of the texts concerned. • Become an effective researcher in this field of study, able to locate appropriate sources of information and to evaluate and use this knowledge in their oral and written work; be able to effectively manage research time and work both independently and collaboratively.

Student Effort Hours: 
Student Effort Type Hours
Seminar (or Webinar)

11
Specified Learning Activities

65
Autonomous Student Learning

24
Total

100
 
Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations

Not applicable to this module.



 
Description % of Final Grade Timing
Essay: Final Essay

60

 Coursework (End of Trimester)
Assignment: Critical Response Papers

30

 Throughout the Trimester
Continuous Assessment: In-Class Contribution

10

 Throughout the Trimester

Compensation

This module is not passable by compensation

Resit Opportunities

In-semester assessment

Remediation

Students who fail this module will need to repeat or resit the module depending on the availability of the module in the following semester. If you have failed, please contact the Academic Support Officer for information on how to remediate the module. If you are taking this module as an option or an elective, you may be able to substitute another module. Check with your Programme Office if this is possible.