In this course students will read closely five exceptional books of journalism dealing with war. In these books -- from George Orwell's account of the Spanish Civil War to Dexter Filkins's reporting on the American invasion of Iraq -- the writers are centre stage, exploring their own
feelings and beliefs as they try to makes sense of the chaos of war. Through analysing the texts students will examine the historical, cultural and theretical contexts of the conflicts themselves and and also how journalism deals with describing war and through close attention to the style of these writers students become familiar with literary journalism and be given an opportunity to develop their own narrative writing.
By the end of this course students will have:
The module will begin with a general introduction to the five key texts chosen as exceptional examples of writing about war in issues related to the sector or topic of the module. Over the course of the module, the class will examine these texts in detail and they will also explore the history of each conflict described in the texts as well as general issues about journalism and war. You will discuss and analyse these texts in relationship to their historical, cultural and theoretical contexts. And you will also consider ways in which the chosen texts reveal characteristic themes, styles, and concerns of a variety of writers dealing with conflict and violence.
By the end of this course students will have:
| Definitive UNISTATS Category | Indicative Description | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled learning and teaching | 2hr workshop/seminar - alternate weeks | 24 hours |
| Guided independent study | Reading, research, development and production of a practical project | 276 hours |
| Total (number of credits x 10) | 300 | |
Assessment of this module is designed to require students to read widely and to demonstrate their understanding of that reading through an extended essay. As this is a third level module, the emphasis will focus progressively on encouraging and supporting independent work. The majority of the 190 work hours that this module represents will involve reading, preparing for assessments, gathering materials, and discussing issues with other students.
Students will be required to write one six-thousand (6,000) word essay and complete a practical project agreed with the module leader.
Practical projects might involve the following, though students may suggest their own:
| Learning Outcome | Assessment Strategy |
|---|---|
| Presented detailed, critical knowledge of key text chosen as outstanding examples of literary journalism about war. | Essay |
| Demonstrated the ability to conceptualise and structure an extended argumentative essay | Essay |
| Utilised a range of sources and different theoretical and practical approaches to explore journalism and war over the last hundred years effectively. | Essay/Practical progress |
| Demonstrated the ability to apply different techniques of literary journalism to their own work. | Practical Project |
| Demonstrated the ability to work independently and to manage their time effectively. | Essay/ Practical Project |
| Description of Assessment | Definitive UNISTATS Categories | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Coursework | 6000 word essay | 50 |
| Coursework | Research Project | 50 |
| Total (to equal 100%) | 100% | |
It IS NOT a requirement that any major assessment category is passed separately in order to achieve an overall pass for the module
Bibliography:
This list highlights the five key books and a suggested list of supporting reading for each one. Specific readings of articles will be distributed in each class.
John Hersey, Hiroshima
Eleanor Coerr, Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes
Thornton Wilder, The Bridge of San Luis Rey
T.S. Eliot, The Wasteland
Robert Jungk, Children of the Ashes
Robert Lifton and Greg Mitchell, Hiroshima in America
Philip Gourevitch, We wish to inform you that tomorrow we will be killed with our families
Gil Courtemanche, A Sunday at the Pool in Kigali
Romeo Dallaire, Shake Hands with the Devil
Alison des Forges Leave none to tell the story
Jean Hatzfeld, Machete Season
Fergal Keane, Season of Blood
Gerard Prunier, The Rwanda Crisis
Allan Thompson, The Media and the Rwanda Genocide
Martha Gellhorn, The Face of War
Martha Gellhorn, The View from the Ground
Martha Gellhorn, Travels with myself and another
Caroline Moorhead, Gellhorn
Dexter Filkins, The Forever War
Rajiv Chandrasekaran, Green Zone
David Enders, Baghdad Bulletin
Salam Pax, The Baghdad Blog
Anthony Shadid, Night Draws Near
Chalmers Johnson, The Sorrows of Empire
General Reading
On Literary Journalism
Robert Boynton The New New Journalism
Jack Fuller, News Values
Kevin Kerrane and Ben Yagoda, The Art of Fact
Mark Kramer and Wendy Call, Telling True Stories
Gay Talese, The Literature of Reality
On Writing about War
Stuart Allan and Barbie Zelizer, Journalism in Wartime
Mark Connelly and David Welch, War and the Media
Philip Knightley, The First Casualty
Kate McLoughlin, The Cambridge Companion to War Writing
Mark Pedelty, War Stories
Jean Seaton, Carnage and the Media
Kevin Kerrane and Ben Yagoda, The Art of Fact: A Historical Anthology of Literary Journalism
Maurice Walsh, The News from Ireland: Foreign Correspondents and the Irish Revolution
John Keegan, The Face of Battle
Mark Pedelty, War Stories: The Culture of Foreign Correspondents
Robert S. Boynton (ed), The New New Journalism