Each year this module involves guided study of major works from the tradition of Modern European Philosophy, focussing either on a single text or on a range of texts in relation to a theme. Past topics have included Althusser; the dispute over humanism and the idea of a philosophical anthropology; and the reception of Das Kapital in the Western Marxist Tradition. The content of the module changes each year, determined by the research expertise of the module tutor.
The curriculum content changes each year, determined by the current research and interests of the module tutor. Details of the curriculum content are circulated to students before the beginning of the academic year.
This module will be taught by means of a mix of lectures and seminars, supplemented by individual tutorials and private study. Emphasis is placed on seminar-based discussion. Students may be asked to prepare short seminar presentations and will be asked to bring discussion questions to class.
| Definitive UNISTATS Category | Indicative Description | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled learning and teaching | Seminars/lectures; 11 taught sessions of 2.5 hours each | 28 |
| Scheduled learning and teaching | Individual tutorials | 1 |
| Guided independent study | 271 | |
| Total (number of credits x 10) | 300 | |
The assessment strategy is designed to test a student's ability to meet the module's learning outcomes. Summative assessment involves two pieces of written work:
The skills required to prepare these assessed elements will be developed in a variety of formative activities throughout the module, notably through class discussion, feedback on in-class presentations, and individual tutorials. Preparation of the final essay normally includes a scheduled tutorial with the module tutor.
| Learning Outcome | Assessment Strategy |
|---|---|
| 1) Understand the structure and key ideas of the set text. | Assessed formatively through class discussion, presentations and tutorials, and summatively through the two pieces of individual written work. |
| 2) Appreciate the requirements for a genuinely philosophical interpretation of a canonical text. | Assessed formatively through class discussion, presentations and tutorials, and summatively through the two pieces of individual written work. |
| 3) Undertake the work of close textual analysis of a demanding philosophical text. | Assessed formatively through class discussion, presentations and tutorials, and summatively through the two pieces of individual written work. |
| 4) Comprehend, reconstruct and interpret philosophical arguments, and situate these arguments in the context of the history of philosophy and wider debates in European philosophy. | Assessed formatively through class discussion, presentations and tutorials, and summatively through the two pieces of individual written work. |
| Description of Assessment | Definitive UNISTATS Categories | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Coursework | Exercises 1500 words | 20 |
| Coursework | Essay 3500 to 4000 words | 80 |
| 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
The bibliography changes each year, as the module content changes each year. The module is always based around the reading of at least one canonical text from the history of modern European philosophy. Students are provided with information on the curriculum content well before the beginning of the the academic year.