Listening, Speaking and Reading exercises

26 Janeiro 2022, 09:30 • Cecília Maria Beecher Martins

Students watched the School of Life lecture on "What is Literature for?" and then broke into groups of 4-5 to discuss the elements they agreed with and disagreed with in this presentation. They also discussed the Johns Hopkins School of Education check list on "Why the Arts are Important". 

Presentation of Course Content and Evaluation Criteria

24 Janeiro 2022, 09:30 • Cecília Maria Beecher Martins

General Objects for English in the World of the Arts: C2

At the end of this UC, students will know how to develop a reflective and analytical encounter with the arts (particularly literature, cinema, and TV series) in English. They will learn a range of analytical techniques such as close reading of literary texts, visual literacy. They will be introduced to the principles behind adaptation from text to screen and free associative film and literary criticism.  They will also reflect on the work of scholars including that of the British philosopher, Miranda Fricker, as this helps to illustrate how the arts may reflect society and drive social change.

Students will express themselves spontaneously in the spoken and written form of the language, with a high level of fluency and accuracy in accordance with CEFR standards for level C2.

 

Program

 

While following the CEFR guidelines for Academic English at a C2 level, the expectations and specificities of language learning related to “the world of the arts” at a School of Arts and Humanities were also considered in the construction of the course programme.

The role of the arts in society in general and the potential of the arts as vehicles for epistemic justice (Fricker Epistemic Injustice 2007), and personal reflection (Holland Meeting Movies 2006, Holland & Schwartz Know Thyself 2008) will be explored.

Also, working with literature, film and TV series, students will be introduced to the vocabulary and techniques of close reading for literary texts as well as visual literacy applied to film and TV series, and then perform individual exercises. They will also be introduced to the concepts associated with adaptation from text to screen and discuss different approaches and methods. Students will also work individually with one of the assigned research sets (book and film/TV adaptations) using the techniques and research methods above.

Moreover, as this is a C2 English language level, throughout the semester, students will perform a variety of writing and oral exercises to illustrate their dominion of the English language, as well as CPE Use of English exercises.

Students will also be encouraged to reflect on the following questions:

What is art?

What makes great literature?

How come some artists and writers die in poverty but their work makes them immortal – other enjoy fame and fortune while alive, but their work is quickly forgotten?

What contemporary writers/artists will be still valued in the next century and what best-selling authors’ names will be forgotten in the next generation?

Why are some classics, not only revered in their original form, but also transposed into other art forms and/or returned to by successive generations of artists and writers?

Do the arts reflect or impulse change in society?

Are the arts changed by society?

Does the form of a work of art affect expression, i.e. can a painting, graphic novel, film, novel or biographical/journalistic writing permit a different mode of expression?

Reference Reading:

Barnet, Sylvan and William E. Cain. A Short Guide to Writing about Literature 12^th Ed. Longman. 2011.

Corrigan, Timothy. A Short Guide to Writing about Film 8^th Ed. New York: Longman, 2012.

Fricker, Miranda Epistemic Injustice: Power and the Ethics of Knowing. OUP. 2007.

Herman, David (ed) The Cambridge Companion to Narrative. CUP. 2007.

Holland, Norman Meeting Movies. Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 2006.

Holland, Norman & Murray Schwartz. Know Thyself: The Delphi Seminars. PsyArt Foundation. 2008

Relevant extracts from these texts will be found in the Anthology available at the beginning of the semester. 

 Students must also read at least one the following set texts, and watch the related film or TV series:

Barker, Pat. Regeneration. Penguin. 1992.

Bronte, Charlotte. Jane Eyre, Penguin Classics. [1847].

Quinn, Julia. The Duke and I. Piatkus. 2000.

Rooney, Sally Normal People. Faber & Faber. 2018.

 

Grading and Assessment

A student-centred teaching approach will be used following a task-based methodology. Students will be presented with the working/research methods and then work individually with the materials in the research set of their choice for their oral presentation and research essay. 

40% Written test – this will be based on the theoretical content presented and contents of research sets – 27^th April 2022.

15% Continuous Assessment: students will be expected to read and discuss the theoretical texts presented during the semester.

15% Oral Presentation on one of the set dates or tutorials between 2^nd and 11^th May 2022: Students will deliver a 12-minute close reading of a film still, short clip or short extract from either the film/TV series or the book in their research set.  Due to class size many of these presentations will be delivered in the online tutorial sessions.

30% Essay (1,000 words) to be submitted on 18^th April. Students will work individually with the materials in one or more of the four research sets presented below. They will write a research essay on any aspect of their research set that interests them and fits in with the theoretical frameworks we work with in this CU.

Writing a research paper requires in-depth and concentrated reading/viewing and thinking. This work takes time and effort, so start reading your novel quickly and consider which of the themes you would like to work with, e.g. the work as a reflection of society at its time and/or its “epistemic” quality, did it introduce awareness of new or different concepts – new ways of knowing or understanding conditions. You could also look at its adaptations – what is removed/added/condensed. Reflections on close reading and/or visual literacy can also be incorporated into the essays. Please feel free to discuss any ideas you have with me – this assignment is quite open.

 A 150-word abstract presenting the central research question and methodology and at least 2 references must be submitted by email on 28^th March 2022 to permit discussion.

The Research Sets: All students will be expected to work with a novel and film or TV series. Even though you will be working individually, roughly the same number of students will work with each set, so approx. 9/set. Choices are attributed on a first come, first served bases so please let me know as soon as you have chosen a set.

1. The classics: Jane Eyre. Students can select one of these novels: Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte, 1847), Wild Sargasso Sea (Jean Rhys, 1966) and one of these films Jane Eyre (Robert Stevenson, 1943 or Franco Zeffirelli, 1996). As one of the most adapted novels of all times, and considering Rhys’ 20^th century prequel, they may question why/how this 19^th century novel is still relevant in the 3^rd decade of the 21^st century. They may examine how the historic and social contexts of the different works impacted the way the story and characters are presented. They may also consider how the (re)interpretation of some of the characters was influenced by the historic circumstances and artistic orientations of directors/author etc. They may also consider if these reinterpretations indicate social change and question why the story of Jane has never really been (re)told in the way Bronte originally presented it.

2. Contemporary classics: Normal People (book, Sally Rooney, 2018), and TV series (Lenny Abrahamson & Hettie Macdonald, 2020). Rooney’s prose is sparse in this her most popular novel to date. Who would have thought that a novel that began in a regular secondary school in rural Ireland would be hailed as the first “great” millennial novel?

The title “normal people has raised many questions. Some ask does it refer to the fact that the protagonists, Marianne and Connell, face many of the issues young adults face today? But as one reads the book, one sees their problems seem to arise from the fact that they do not see themselves as “normal”, in fact the whole novel seems to revolve around their desire to reach normalcy. Humm?

The TV series was also acclaimed, but while much of the show follows the lines of the original novel, there are differences, and it would be interesting to ask why these choices were made. It would also be interesting to consider how the same story is told using different media.

3. Rewriting History The Duke and I (Julia Quinn, 2000) Bridgerton Series 1 (Show runner: Chris van Dusen, Shondaland/Netflix, 2020) and Belle (Amma Asante, 2013).

Julia Quinn’s The Duke and I set in the Regency Period in the England, specifically the 1813 Season, is a romantic period piece. To be honest, it’s a bit of fluff – an entertaining, popular best seller but unlikely to stand the test of time even if it does make a certain commentary on issues of gender, consent and even the consequences of society papers, equivalents of today social media. To be honest, I would never have read this book (or imagined placing it on an academic syllabus) if it had not been for the Shondaland adaptation, Bridgerton Series 1, released on Netflix to public and critical acclaim over Christmas of 2020.

It is a sumptuous and bold production that is aesthetically very appealing. However, what is really of note is the diversity of its cast and the multicultural reading of Regency society that it projects. Despite knowing that the reality presented was unrealistic and an inaccurate portrayal of society at the time, audiences engaged powerfully with its invented multicultural social hierarchies begging one to ask why audiences willing suspended their disbelief to enjoy the fantasy world projected. Moreover, other shows like Hulu’s The Great (2020 & 2021) or Starz’s The Spanish Princess (2020) have noticeably introduced multicultural casts, but none have done so far as Bridgerton?

Bridgerton begs many questions. What kind of an adaptation is this if it completely changes the characters? Does it change the characters, after all they still have the same characteristics, even if some of them are of different races? How was the production able to achieve this result? How much did Shonda Rhimes past success impact on the success of the show? Did contemporary social events influence this? Is so which? Would it be more appropriate, more empowering to make More films and series about real real figures, like Amma Asante’s Belle (2013) or even Theordore Melfi’s Hidden Figures (2016)? Or is the Afrofuturism type approach the best?  There are of course many other questions, and you can feel free to look at these as well.

 4. Fictionalizing history: This research set looks at two basic questions. First, the difference class makes. It’s a well-known fact that many of the soldier who returned from WW1 suffered from PTSD. However, Pat Barker’s Regeneration (book) & the Peaky Blinders TV Series (focus on Season 1) illustrate clearly that the treatment those soldiers received depended greatly on social class.

Second, does fictionalizing real life events (WWI and the impact this has on the lives, expectations, hopes and dreams of its survivors) and lived experiences (PTSD as result of the traumas of war) make them more relatable? Or are authors trivializing real-life events when they add and subtract from the lived experience.

Both Barker and Steven Knight (script writer for Peaky Blinders) clearly acknowledge that their works are fictional, they still use real people, organizations and events in their story telling. Baker created characters based on historical individuals including famous WW1 poets, Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfred Owen, as well as the psychiatrist W. H. R. Rivers, and Knight based his gangster tale on family lore and curious historically accurate facts.

Moreover, while researching for the series, Knight acknowledges that he prefers to look at newspaper records, listen to people’s stories, Google odd facts on the internet (i.e. what ice cream flavour was most popular in 1923) to get a feel of the life and times of the ordinary people he wants to draw, rather than checking “academic” historical records. He even introduces actual historic characters and gives them roles that he recognizes have little or no historic accuracy, as in the case of the character of Winston Churchill in Series 1. Knight readily admits that he invented Churchill’s storyline. However, he does believe, that from what he knows of Churchill, the plot is in keeping with the man as it lines up with his character and political orientation. Thus, he is adamant that the series is true to the “spirit of the times” and is illustrative of the lives of the ordinary people of Birmingham; lives neglected by academia. It is interesting to look at the series to contemplate how Knight convinces its viewers of its relevance and even accuracy. Moreover, could we question, what it says of the human condition that most viewers sympathize want Tommy, even if they can be reviled by his acts? We couls ask can /should the arts trivialize history in this way?