LIB-20010 - The American South: US Summer School (Level 5)
Coordinator: Nicholas Seager Tel: +44 1782 7 33142
Lecture Time: See Timetable...
Level: Level 5
Credits: 15
Study Hours: 150
School Office: 01782 733147

Programme/Approved Electives for 2023/24

None

Available as a Free Standing Elective

No

Co-requisites

None

Prerequisites

None

Barred Combinations

None

Description for 2023/24

Study Southern US culture on location! This summer school is a unique chance to immerse yourself in the Southern United States and complete an interdisciplinary module. The American South is acknowledged as a distinctive but difficult to define geographical and cultural entity. Attitudes to the South range from celebration to derision. The module takes an interdisciplinary, cultural studies approach, thinking through historical and current constructions of the US South through its history, literature, film, and wider culture. You have the chance not only to spend four weeks at one of our partner universities taught by Keele staff, but also to shape your own research project with the support of module tutors. The module is designed for students of History, English Literature, Film Studies, and Liberal Arts.

Aims
To give students an interdisciplinary introduction to the American South.
To approach the American South through its history, literature, film, and culture.
To give students an international opportunity, a chance to study Southern culture at a Southern US university.

Intended Learning Outcomes

critically engage with understandings of the American South, produced in historical documents, film, or literature: 1
analyse the role of identity politics and the interplay between social, political, racial, and cultural contexts in understandings of the American South: 1
undertake original research using primary and secondary sources: 1
communicate ideas and arguments cogently and effectively in written work: 1

Study hours

24 hours of lectures, workshops, and seminars [weeks 1-2]
5 hours of online seminars [weeks 3-4]
1 hour of individual consultation [weeks 3-4]
60 hours of essay research and writing
60 hours of seminar preparation (film viewing, reading)

School Rules

A selection process will be applied if demand exceeds the number of places available.

Description of Module Assessment

1: Essay weighted 100%
Research essay
2,000 word research essay from a list of 10 supplied by the tutor