Professor Richard Campbell, AM, BD MA Syd., DPhil Oxf., FACE
The School of Humanities brings together the core disciplines of `the humanities': Art History, Literature and Literary Criticism, Film Studies, History, Philosophy, Theatre Studies, and studies in Gender, Sexuality and Culture. It also offers majors in Australian Studies and Religious Studies. Each interprets expressions of the human spirit and reflects upon what it means to be human. These disciplines arise from three basic activities: Historia -- investigating the past in order to understand how we have become; Poesis -- making things (art works, writings, films, performances) in order to express ourselves; Philosophia -- articulating and evaluating how we understand ourselves and our milieu.
The School of Humanities is the largest and most varied School in the Arts Faculty. It encourages interdisciplinary work, promoting collaboration between such areas as Theatre Studies and English or Art History and Film Studies. Students are able to work within a single field but are also supported in their exploration across traditional boundaries. The courses focus on subject matter -- for instance, Shakespeare's plays, or the history of the French Revolution, or Australian art, or Theories of Ethics or the great artworks of the Renaissance. But, through working on these topics, students will learn 'generic' skills which are useful well beyond a specific discipline, and in every kind of career -- skills of analysis and the use of evidence, of clear thinking and research methods, of clarity and vigour of expression, both on paper and oral.
Honours is available in nearly all the School's majors, and postgraduate work, up to and including research degrees at Master's and PhD levels, in all of them.
The School offers the following majors:
For general enquiries contact the School Enquiries Desk on 6125 3708 or the Undergraduate Administrator Mrs Beverley Shallcross 02 6125 2723 (telephone); 02 6125 4490 (fax); or email SchoolofHumanities@anu.edu.au
Further details about the School can be found at:
http://arts.anu.edu.au/HSchool/humanities.htm
Art History: Dr Sasha Grishin <Sasha.Grishin@anu.edu.au>
Australian Studies: Professor Ann Curthoys
<Ann.Curthoys@anu.edu.au>
English: Dr Livio Dobrez <Livio.Dobrez@anu.edu.au>
Film Studies: Dr Gino Moliterno -- Semester 1
<Gino.Moliterno@anu.edu.au> and Dr Roger Hillman -- Semester 2 <Roger.Hillman@anu.edu.au>
Gender, Sexuality and Culture: Dr Rosanne Kennedy -- Semester 1 <Rosanne.Kennedy@anu.edu.au> and
Dr Jindy Pettman -- Semester 2 <Jindy.Pettman@anu.edu.au>
Philosophy: Dr Jeremy Shearmur <Jeremy.Shearmur@anu.edu.au>
Religious Studies: Mr Robert Barnes <Robert.Barnes@anu.edu.au>
Theatre Studies: Dr Geoffrey Borny
<Geoffrey.Borny@anu.edu.au>
Convener: Dr Sasha Grishin, BA MA Melb, PhD ANU
Art History offers a broad range of courses at undergraduate, honours and postgraduate levels, which examine aspects of the visual cultures of Australia, Europe, Asia and America. Art History has been taught at the ANU since 1977, initially as the Fine Art Program, then as the Department of Art History, and more recently, with expansion in offerings to include curatorial studies, film studies, digital images and the World Wide Web, as the Department of Art History and Visual Studies. Art History and Film Studies although separate majors in the new School of Humanities, continue to work very closely together with joint seminars, several shared courses and staff members teaching in both disciplines.
Our courses are designed to introduce students to painting, sculpture, printmaking, photography, architecture, film, digital images and the decorative arts seen within their historical, social, cultural and political context. Art History is rapidly changing and our courses reflect the wide range of new approaches, methodologies and technologies found in recent critical, cultural and museum studies. They cover many aspects of art from prehistoric Australian Aboriginal art and classical antiquity through to the art of the present day, focussing on topics, which can illuminate specific trends and problems. Questions of technique are often examined in detail to assist in the study of selected monuments.
Reflecting our unique location in the national capital, many of our courses draw on the collections and staff expertise of the national cultural institutions. Some of our tutorial classes in many of our courses are held at the National Gallery of Australia, the National Library of Australia and the Australian War Memorial. Our highly successful Internship Program enables students to undertake curatorial work as part of their studies at approved art galleries or museums. Curators and directors from these institutions have frequently been invited to present guest lectures in our courses. Art History also conducts regular research seminars that deal with questions of art history, art theory and curatorial practice and bring together local, national and international expertise.
Although there are no prerequisites for Introduction to Art History ARTH1002, students are reminded that Art History is a visual discipline supported by documentation and scholarly literature. Because of the international nature of the discipline, students are strongly encouraged to develop reading skills in foreign languages.
The BA (Art History and Curatorship) includes in its requirements a minimum of 42 units of Art History (7 courses). It is available as a BA pass degree and as a BA Honours degree. See Faculty of Arts entry Undergraduate Courses.
The major in Art History consists of a minimum of 42 units (7 courses) chosen from the courses in Art History, with no more than 12 points at first-year level. For example, Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003, together with later-year courses to the value of 30 points, form a major in Art History. Up to two later-year Film Studies courses can be included in an Art History major.
The courses Computer Applications in the Humanities ARTH2032, Publishing Humanities on the World Wide Web ARTH2035, and World Wide Web Strategies ARTH202036, may not form part of the Art History major. The following are particularly suitable for combination with an Art History major: Film Studies; Classical and Modern European Languages; English; History; Philosophy; Archaeology and Anthropology.
The courses Greek Art and Architecture ARTH2050, Roman Art and Architecture ARTH2054, and Classical Tradition in Art ARTH2014, may form part of the Classics major. Byzantine courses (ARTH2015 and ARTH2038) may form part of the Classics major and are included as West Asia-related courses in the Faculty of Asian Studies. Asian Art courses may form part of the Religious Studies or Contemporary Asian Societies majors.
Assessment may include a mixture of essay, tutorial and/or seminar presentations, together with visual tests, the balance of marks to be determined at the beginning of each course after discussion with students. Art History Honours IV will normally be assessed on a thesis, and on seminar presentations and the resultant papers. For Computer Applications in the Humanities, Publishing Humanities on the World Wide Web and World Wide Web Strategies see the individual entries.
Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 normally form the prerequisites for later-year courses in Art History; other subjects are sometimes acceptable as prerequisites for specific courses (see individual entries for details). For intending students without the listed prerequisites, special permission may always be sought from the Convener. The later-year courses may be taken in any order, although not all courses will be available every year.
It is impossible in Handbook entries to explain in sufficient detail the courses offered by Art History. Prospective students are encouraged to approach either the School of Humanities office or the Faculty of Arts office for a copy of our Information for Students (which gives much greater detail about Art History and its courses). In addition, members of staff are always delighted to provide further information.
All courses are offered subject to availability of staff and sufficient enrolments.
Three hours a week in lectures and tutorials
Syllabus: An introduction to selected themes and topics in the history of art and architecture, this course requires no previous knowledge of the subject. As well as studying the artistic production of selected periods, it also introduces broad questions of art-historical methodology. Classes will also be given on general and bibliographical research methods, so that students may approach with confidence the literature of art. Some tutorials are oriented toward the study of works at the National Gallery of Australia and other collections in Canberra, while others concentrate on questions of the techniques and reception of art works.
Three hours a week in lectures and tutorials
Prerequisite: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: This course will examine the development of Modern Art from the middle of the nineteenth century to the present day. As well as studying the art of this historical period, the question, 'What is Modernism?' will also be addressed. We will employ a number of methodological approaches to gain as many perspectives as possible on the art of our century. Some tutorials will be held in the Australian National Gallery where we will be able to study at first hand the rich story of Modern Art.
Two hours of lectures per week and a tutorial in alternate weeks
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: The course will examine the contrasting cultures and societies of France, Italy, Britain, Spain and the Low Countries during the 17th century, and concentrate on the artistic aims and production of figures such as Rembrandt, Rubens, Bernini, Velasquez and Poussin.
An average of two and a half class contact hours a week
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: This course will provide a broad introduction to the art and architecture of India, Central Asia, Southeast Asia and East Asia. Themes of special importance will be the relation between art and religion, between art and royal patronage, and between indigenous styles and foreign forms and ideas. Art works from a range of religious and philosophical orientations -- autochthonous, Hindu, Buddhist, Jain, Confucian, Daoist, Islamic and Christian -- will be studied.
Two hours of lectures per week and a tutorial in alternate weeks
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or Rome: From Republic to Empire HIST1019 and Illuminating the Dark Ages HIST1018 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: The course will examine both chronologically and thematically aspects of the development of painting, sculpture, and architecture from Giotto through to the death of Michelangelo. Amongst the themes to be treated will be: art and the State; the revival of classical forms; the Papacy and the development of Rome.
An average of two and a half class contact hours a week
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: This course will provide a broad introduction to major themes and forms of art and architecture in Southeast Asia, from the prehistoric pottery of Thailand and bronzes of Vietnam, through the great Hindu-Buddhist architecture and sculpture of Angkor and Borobodur to modern art of the 19th and 20th centuries. The course will focus on the interplay between enduring ancestral themes in regional village and court arts, and the influence of world religions, trade and colonial power on form and meaning in Southeast Asian art. Themes of special importance will be the relation between art and royal patronage, between art and religious practice, and between the centre and the periphery.
Two hours of lectures per week and a tutorial in alternate weeks
Lecturer: Professor Greenhalgh
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: The course has two aims: (1) to examine how art works have been made over the centuries (such as fresco and oil, drawings and prints, sculpture, metalwork, textiles, furniture and glass); and (2) to study how works were originally meant to be displayed, as well as how later generations have housed them. We shall therefore examine ensembles from various periods and cultures such as palaces, temples and churches, villas and gardens, manuscripts and books. The course will conclude with an examination of the history of museums, and of the help the World Wide Web may provide for the reconstruction therein of informative context.
An average of two and a half class contact hours a week
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: This course will examine the history of art collecting and collections from their origins in temple treasuries, through the private collections of the mediaeval worlds of Europe and Asia, to the role of patrons and princes, past and present in the establishment of art collections and policies. It surveys the impact of colonial scientific and archaeological expeditions on the content of public and private collections and the establishment of the great public institutions of the 19th and 20th centuries. Themes will include the relationship between artist and collector; the contribution of art dealers and auction houses; and the compartmentalisation of art in and between museums by period, geography, religion and media. The impact of social, political and ethical environments on museum collection, display and documentation will be explored, with particular reference to Australian public collections and collecting policies.
Two hours of lectures per week and a tutorial in alternate weeks
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: The course will examine the emergence of the modern print in nineteenth century Europe and trace its development up to the present day. Questions of technique, from etching, lithography and relief prints, through to photograph-based printmaking and the computer digitised image, will be considered in considerable detail. Questions of what constitutes an original print and some of the theoretical implications of these definitions will be discussed. Although the course will examine the heritage of European and American printmaking, a major focus will be twentieth century printmaking in Australia. Extensive use will be made of the major collections of Australian and international prints in public collections in Canberra.
Two hours of lectures per week and a tutorial in alternate weeks
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: The course will examine aspects of Australian painting, printmaking, sculpture, photography and the applied arts from a methodological perspective. It will raise questions concerning the analysis of Australian art by art historians and art critics and will suggest possible alternative readings of Australian art history within a broader international context.
Two hours of lectures per week and a tutorial in alternate weeks
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or Australian History HIST1203 or Lines of Growth in Australian Literature ENGL2004 or 20th Century Australian Fiction ENGL2011 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: The course will examine a variety of visual sources for mainly non-Aboriginal art in Australia during our century and up to the present day. While it will in no way attempt a survey of Australian art, it will range widely, looking at different media and art forms including architecture, printmaking and sculpture.
Two hours of lectures per week and a tutorial in alternate weeks
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or Ancient Israel HIST2137 or The Historical Jesus HIST2138 or RELS1002 Introduction to Religion A and RELS1003 Introduction to Religion B or Rome: Republic to Empire HIST1019 and Illuminating the Dark Ages HIST1018 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: A study of the Palaeologan culture after 1204 through to the capture of Constantinople by the Turks in 1453. The course will examine Byzantine art and culture in particular regions: Greece (especially Thessaloniki and Mount Athos), Cyprus and the Levant, Bulgaria, Serbia and Russia, Crete and Renaissance Italy.
Two hours of lectures per week and a tutorial in alternate weeks
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or Ancient Israel HIST2137 or The Historical Jesus HIST2138 or RELS1002 Introduction to Religion A and RELS1003 Introduction to Religion B or Rome: Republic to Empire HIST1019 and Illuminating the Dark Ages HIST1018 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: A study of Byzantine art, cultural institutions and patronage from AD 330 to AD 1204. Specific works of art and architecture ranging in provenance from Syria and Armenia to Constantinople and Sicily will be studied in the context of the society: theology and liturgy; politics and investment; court ceremony; and urban, provincial and monastic life.
Average of 2.5 hours/week in lectures and tutorials (13 weeks). The lectures will not be taped, but outline material and images will be available on the web as well as on CDROM
Lecturer: Professor Greenhalgh
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or Rome: Republic to Empire HIST1019 and Illuminating the Dark Ages HIST1018 or Myths and Legends of Greece and Rome ANCH1012 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: This course will examine aspects of the impact of Roman example on the Carolingian and Ottonian renaissances, the convergence of Christian and Islamic influences in Spain, Sicily and the Crusader states, and the startling efflorescence of large cathedrals after the millennium. Illuminated manuscripts, silver and ivories, will receive as much attention as church architecture, frescoes and sculpture. The unit will conclude with an overview of Gothic art and architecture.
Proposed Assessment: One research essay, plus two Take-Home Visual Papers available both in printed form and on the web;
Not offered in 2002 may be offered in 2003
Two hours of lectures per week and a tutorial in alternate weeks
Prerequisites: 12 units of Ancient History or Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or Rome: Republic to Empire HIST1019 and Illuminating the Dark Ages HIST1018 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: This course is an examination of the various ways (stylistic, intellectual, political and social) in which the art and architecture of Antiquity has been of use and value to later generations. Special consideration will be given to Charlemagne at Aachen, the Renaissance in Italy, Rome and the Papacy, the rediscovery of Greece, and Classicism and Romanticism in the 19th and 20th centuries.
An average of two and a half class contact hours a week
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: This course critically examines the role of the curator of cultural objects in museums and art galleries. Topics will include the development of art galleries and museums, especially in the 20th century; the development, management and display of art collections; and approaches to documentation and publication. The course will study issues related to the responsibilities of the curator to the community (accessibility, education, exhibition and public relations) as well as responsibility to the objects (conservation, storage, accessioning and loan policies). The course will focus on Australian institutions and collections at national and regional levels.
Average of 2.5 hours/week in lectures and tutorials (13 weeks). The lectures will not be taped, but outline material and images will be available on the web, as well as on CDROM.
Lecturer: Professor Greenhalgh
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or Rome: from Republic to Empire HIST1019 and Illuminating the Dark Ages HIST1018 or Myths and Legends of Greece and Rome ANCH1012 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: This course will examine aspects of late antique and early medieval art from the later Roman Empire to ca AD 800 in an historical context. The focus will be on choices of architectural design, style and iconography, materials and techniques of production, lay and ecclesiastical patronage, and regional influences. Areas of special study will include the breakup of urban life, early Christian art and its variations throughout Europe, Anglo-Saxon and Viking art, the impact of Islam, and the continuing influence of Roman art and architecture during the Middle Ages.
Proposed Assessment: One research essay, plus two Take-Home Visual Papers available both in printed form and on the web;
An average of two and a half class contact hours a week
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: This course will provide a broad historical introduction to textile arts in Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, the Americas and Australia. Contrasting the role and importance of textiles in Western and non-Western societies, the course will examine textiles in court and village cultures, as symbols and markers of religious and social affiliations and hierarchy; the impact of colonialism, trade and industrialisation on the organisation of textile manufacture and traditional gender roles; and the evolution of textile motifs, designs, materials and technology. The history of textile collecting, display and analysis will also be studied.
Two hours of lectures per week and a tutorial in alternate weeks
Prerequisites: Either 12 first-year or 6 later-year units of Art History or Rome: Republic to Empire HIST1019 and Illuminating the Middle Ages HIST1023 or any 2 first year courses of classical language -- Ancient Greek or Latin
Syllabus: A study of aspects of the art of the ancient Greek world from the Bronze Age to the Hellenistic period, and of the Italian peninsula, including Etruscan art, to the end of the Roman Republic. Topics will include the design, function and decoration of buildings in cities and sanctuaries; developments in sculpture, painting, ceramics, metalwork and coinage in relation to the society. There will be a focus on works which have influenced later art and on ancient theories about art. Use will be made of the antiquities in the Classics Museum in the ANU and there will be a visit to the Nicholson Museum in the University of Sydney.
Two hours of lectures per week and a tutorial in alternate weeks
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or Rome: Republic to Empire HIST1019 and Illuminating the Dark Ages HIST1018 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: Rome and Venice during the early 16th century generated ideas, themes and artworks, which form the bedrock of European culture until well into the 19th century. The course will study the ensembles which give their complexion to the age -- Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel; Raphael in the Papal Apartments; Bramante and the building of the New St Peter's; Titian in the Farari and in his great paintings for Philip II -- and the ideological and political horizons of the connoisseurs, statesmen and prelates who commissioned them. It will conclude with an assessment of the impact of the High Renaissance on later art -- the Baroque in Italy; Velasquez in Madrid and Poussin and French art.
Two hours of lectures per week and a tutorial in alternate weeks
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: The course will address the exciting developments in architecture and urbanism worldwide from 1900 to the present day. These will be studied through themes (such as the skyscraper, the planned city, postwar reconstruction) related to the major social, economic and political changes of our century.
Two hours of lectures per week and a tutorial in alternate weeks
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or Urban Society SOCY2035 or Modern Society SOCY2034 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: The course will examine the evolution of art and design from 1900 to the present day. An understanding of the idea of modernism as an aesthetic and theoretical concept will be a predominant theme. Differing views about the social role of visual culture and the institutions which maintain it will be explored. The course will include studies of original works held in Australian galleries.
Two hours of lectures per week and a tutorial in alternate weeks
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: The course examines aspects of 19th-century art and architecture in Europe after Romanticism, and will concentrate on the emergence of modernism in the painting of the Impressionists and their circle. Themes to receive special attention will include the representation of everyday life, realism and naturalism, and the changing roles of academic art.
Two hours of lectures per week and a tutorial in alternate weeks
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: This course will focus on the history and theory of photography from its beginnings to the present day. Its aim is to examine the critical questions and methodological framework of photography as an art form. Topics to be covered will include: the development of photographic technologies and their impact; theoretical constructs; art and photography; documentary photography; photography and politics; word and image; photography of the body; postmodernism; Australian photography.
Two hours of lectures per week and a tutorial in alternate weeks
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or Australian History HIST1203 or Introduction to Australian Literature ENGL1004 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: Current debates about the question of 'art on the periphery' and the idea of 'the other' have direct relevance to the development of art in Australian colonial life and to the practice of art today. This course will examine these questions by concentrating on aspects of art, architecture and design in Australia, both in the colonial era and in the current re-appropriation of early Australian imagery. The course will address such issues as the dependence on imported modes, the role of landscape imagery, and the distinctions between 'high' and 'popular' art forms.
Two hours of lectures per week and a tutorial in alternate weeks
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: This course will both survey postmodern art in general, and will pursue a more focussed approach to a dominant theme of such art, the sublime. In this respect, we will concentrate on the writing of Lyotard. Once the issue of the sublime is raised, the question of the links to Romanticism automatically follows, and the course will investigate whether postmodern art should be considered fundamentally neo-Romantic, or whether it should stand as an independent, revolutionary category in itself. The relation of Modernism to neo-Romanticism will also be investigated, thus allowing for a consideration of Modernism and Postmodernism to each other. Other topics to be examined include the political values and claims of postmodern art and the status of the art-producer as artist-theoretician.
Two hours of lectures per week and a tutorial in alternate weeks
Prerequisites: Either 12 first-year or 6 later-year units of Art History or Rome: Republic to Empire HIST1019 and Illuminating the Middle Ages HIST1023 or any 2 first year courses of classical language -- Ancient Greek or Latin
Syllabus: A study of aspects of the art and architecture of the Roman Empire from the time of Augustus to the sixth century AD. Topics will include historical and funerary monuments, urban planning and amenities, especially in Rome, Pompeii and Ostia, but also in the provinces, and the foundation of Constantinople. A range of sculpture, silver and coinage, frescoes and mosaics, manuscripts and textiles will be studied in their social and religious context, including early Christianity. Particular attention will be paid to technological innovations, ancient treatises and literary sources, and modern approaches to the subject.
Two hours of lectures per week and a tutorial in alternate weeks
Prerequisites: Introduction to Art History ARTH1002 and Introduction to Modern Art ARTH1003 or permission of the Convener.
Syllabus: This course will examine recurring themes in Russian art from the period of Kievan Rus to the postmodernist art of the Perestroika period. Two major focal points for the course will be Russian avant-garde art of the revolutionary period and Russian theatre art connected with the Ballets Russes. Both of these areas are extensively represented in the collection of the National Gallery of Australia and a number of classes will be held at the Gallery working with original major art objects by Malevich, Goncharova, Tatlin, Chagall, Bakst and Larionov. The course will also examine the impact of Russian art on Australian visual culture.
Two hours of lectures per week and a tutorial in alternate weeks
Lecturer: Professor Greenhalgh
Prerequisites: Any first-year course.
Syllabus: Directed at all who recognise the success and potential of the Internet and Web as a force in education and commerce, it will be especially useful for those concerned with initiating, developing and managing the provision of electronic information, whether in organisations like the Public Service, museums or galleries, or in commerce. This course requires no more than a basic knowledge of computers, because students will be brought up to speed on Internet technologies in early sessions. It offers an overview and detailed examination of the opportunities offered by the Web as a flexible, modular and easy-to-use vehicle for various information formats and structures from text and images to sound and video. Lectures will be illustrated by online networked demonstrations, and students will be trained in making class presentations using web resources.
ARTH2018 Northern Renaissance Art
ARTH2021 Romanticism in European Art 1750-1850
ARTH2032 Computer Applications in the Humanities
ARTH2035 Publishing Humanities on the World Wide Web
Coordinator: Professor Greenhalgh
Intending honours students should first read the general statement `The degree with honours' in the introductory section of the Faculty of Arts entry, and should consult the Honours Coordinator about their proposed courses at an early stage.
(a) Completion of the requirements for the pass degree;
(b) Ten courses to the value of 60 units of Art History with an average grade of Credit and including at least 2 Distinctions; up to two later-year Film Studies courses may be included in the 60 units. Either Computer Applications in the Humanities ARTH2032 or Publishing Humanities on the World Wide Web ARTH2035 or World Wide Web Strategies ARTH2036, although not forming part of an Art History major, may be included; in some circumstances, with the approval of the Faculty, up to 2 cognates may be included in the 60 units provided that there are at least 48 units of Art History.
(c) Competence in a second language, at least at an elementary level.
Assessment: Seminar papers and essays; 30%.
Students are expected to consult with the honours course coordinator in November of the previous year about their choice of thesis topic, and are required to seek approval for their topics and arrange supervision with a member of staff no later than mid-January, when work on the thesis should commence.
A student may commence Art History IV (Honours) in the second semester.
Two semester duration, starting either first or second semester
In collaboration with the National Gallery of Australia, the National Library of Australia and other Canberra institutions, a system of internships has been established whereby, as part of the course for their degree or diploma, selected students may undertake curatorial work at the approved art gallery and museum under host institution supervision. Honours IV, GradDip, MLitt, MA (coursework) and PhD students are eligible to apply. Available intern positions in specific curatorial areas and institutions will be advertised in Art History towards the end of the preceding semester.
Graduates in any field may study for a Graduate Diploma in Art History or in Art History and Curatorship.
These degrees can be taken in Art History and Film Studies. A good honours degree is normally required for admission to these courses. A graduate with a pass degree in Art History or a higher degree in another field who wishes to proceed to the degree of Master of Arts may be required to undertake a Master of Arts qualifying course.
Convener: Professor Ann Curthoys BA Syd., DipEd SydTchColl, PhD Macq., PhD Hon.causa UTS
This is a multi-disciplinary major that draws on the ANU's considerable strengths in the area of Australian Studies, in both the humanities and social sciences. It takes Australia as its focus, and provides opportunities for the detailed study of Australian history, environment, geography, society, politics, and culture. Emphasis is given to both indigenous and non-indigenous Australia, with many courses focusing specifically on indigenous Australian societies and cultures, and most courses considering the contact and connections, past and present, between indigenous and non-indigenous peoples. In the courses which make up this major, Australia is studied in a series of relationships and comparisons: to the European origins and allegiances of many of its people and institutions; to similar settler societies, especially those which also have British connections; and to the societies and cultures of the Asia-Pacific region. The theoretical and methodological frameworks used to consider Australian society are varied, according to the approach of the contributing disciplines and teachers. Some of the themes and concepts used include: national identity and nationalism, class and power, popular culture, colonialism and postcolonialism, gender and sexuality, and race, ethnicity and diaspora.
The requirements for the major are 42 units with:
(a) a maximum of 12 units at first year level, from the list below.
(b) no more than 18 units may be taken from a single discipline (signified by a common alpha in the subject code).
There are no compulsory courses or additional requirements.
In selecting courses for the major, students are advised to remember that many are offered each alternate year. Details are given in the course descriptions in the various major's entries. Existing prerequisites apply, except that, with the permission of the relevant Head of School, twelve units in Australian Studies may be used as a mode of entry to the later-year courses listed below.
Archaeological Artefact Analysis ARCH3017
Archaeology of Culture Contact ARCH2031
Archaeological Field and Laboratory Methods ARCH3004 (12 units)
Australian Archaeology ARCH2004
Australian Art: Methods and Approaches ARTH2049
Australian Art: Twentieth Century ARTH2027
Australian Federal Politics POLS2065
Australian Film: Ned Kelly to Mad Max ENGL2066
Australian Government Administration and Public Policy POLS2005
Australian Political Economy POLS2054
Australian Political Parties POLS2067
Australian Foreign Policy POLS3001
Belonging, Identity and Nationalism ANTH2056
Contemporary Australian Cultures an Anthropological View ANTH2058
Contemporary Australian Political Issues POLS2083
Convicts and Immigrants: Colonial Australian History HIST2128
Country Lives: Australian Rural History HIST2129
Globalism and the Politics of Identity POLS2075
Healing Powers: Medicine and Society since 1750 HIST2111
Elections and Campaigning POLS2084
Environment and Society SOCY2022
Indigenous Australian Societies and Cultures ANTH2005
Language in Indigenous Australia LING2016
Indigenous Australians and Australian Society ANTH2017
Indigenous Australian History HIST2022
Landscape Archaeology ARCH2017 (12 units)
Lines of Growth in Australian Literature ENGL2004
Modern Australian Drama DRAM2008
Music in Indigenous Society MUSM2088
People and Environment GEOG2013
Politics, Policy and the Media POLS2080
Population and Australia SOCY2032
Postcolonial Discourses in Australian Art ARTH2093
Pressure Groups and Political Lobbying POLS2043
Religions and Politics in Australia POLS2081
Savage Dreams, Native Truths: Representations of the `Native Other' in America and Australia ENGL2072
Studies in Social Problems SOCY3027 (3units)
20th Century Australia HIST2134
Twentieth Century Australian Fiction ENGL2011
Understanding Early Technologies ARCH2036
Urban Australia 1850-1980 HIST2119
Women and Australian Public Policy POLS2074
Check course descriptions in majors for information on availability in future years.
Coordinator: Professor Ann Curthoys BA Syd., DipEd SydTchColl, PhD Macq., PhD Hon.causa UTS
Intending honours students should first read the general statement `The degree with honours' in the introductory section of the Faculty of Arts entry, and should consult the Honours Coordinator about their proposed courses at an early stage.
Honours in Australian Studies is available, subject to negotiation between the student, the Convener, and the relevant Heads of School. Students hoping to undertake a combined honours year, which includes Australian Studies, should consult with the Convener early in their second year of study. The honours year will consist of a thesis, and two special subjects.
Convener: Dr Livio Dobrez, MA PhD Adel.
The English syllabus at the ANU is wide-ranging and varied. There are courses on the whole range of English-language literatures from British and Australian to American and Postcolonial. British literature covers the period from medieval times to the present, from Chaucer's Canterbury Tales to Samuel Beckett, from Shakespeare and Milton via Austen and Wordsworth to TS Eliot and Seamus Heaney. There are three courses on Australian writing, two on American writing, and three on Postcolonial (one on postcolonial writing generally, one on Indian writing, and the third on 'first contact' writings). Australian texts studied include works by Aboriginal authors, by poets of the 60s and by novelists such as Patrick White and Christina Stead. American authors range from Walt Whitman to Toni Morrison. Postcolonial texts include First Fleet journals and work by Salman Rushdie, Jean Rhys, VS Naipaul, KS Maniam and Ee Tiang Hong. There are courses of an interdisciplinary kind - on philosophy and literature, on history and literature, on gender studies, and on literary and cultural theory. There are also film courses (Shakespeare and Film, Australian Film, Classic Novel into Film, and Modern Novel into Film) and courses offering wide-ranging introductions to themes in, and classics of, European literature (Souls and Lives, Thinking Selves). As well as seeking to broaden students' knowledge and enjoyment of the literature studied, our courses aim to enhance their powers of analysis, argument and expression, both on paper and in class discussions.
The English Program offers a Distinguished Scholars Program for high-achieving students. Students who are accepted into the Program will have a member of the academic staff as a mentor, who will assist in planning a course tailored to their needs and interests. Distinguished Scholars are selected on merit. Applicants should contact the English Convener, the Faculty of Arts Office, or the Admissions Office for details.
English cooperates closely with Theatre Studies, and students will find the two majors highly complementary. A major in English, indeed, combines well with many other disciplines, both in the Humanities and elsewhere (eg. Linguistics, Law).
All courses are semester-long and have a value of 6 units. Later-year courses are normally offered in alternate years.
All courses are offered subject to staff availability and sufficient enrolments.
General requirements: Students are required to submit written work by the due dates, to attend all lectures, workshops and tutorial classes, and to present any prescribed tutorial exercises. Students are expected to possess copies of the prescribed texts.
Taping of lectures: Lectures are normally taped.
Assessment: Methods of assessment will be discussed with students enrolled in each course before they are finalised. A substantial proportion of final marks come from written work presented during the year.
Further information: It is not possible to give full details of courses or full lists of recommended reading in the entries in this Handbook. Prospective students are encouraged to approach the relevant Administrator in the Humanities School office for a copy of our descriptive brochure. In addition, the Coordinators responsible for each course will be pleased to provide further information.
From this year onwards a major in English consists of:
(a) Any two of the following first-year courses: ENGL1004, ENGL1008, ENGL1009, ENGL1010, DRAM1006 or LING1020 (ENGL1001, ENGL1002, ENGL1003 and ENGL1007 are no longer offered but may still be counted in the major as first-year courses): plus
(b) Five later-year courses to the value of 30 units, including at least one from the following list:
Duchesses and Drudges ENGL2062
Eighteenth-Century Literature ENGL2050
Introduction to Old English ENGL2014
Jane Austen: History and Fictions ENGL2074
Literature and Gender in the Eighteenth Century ENGL2059
19th and 20th Century Poetry ENGL2008
Renaissance and England ENGL2056
Representations of Nature ENGL2057
16th, 17th and 18th Century Literature ENGL3005
Souls and Lives: Models of the Self in Literature ENGL2073
The above courses are marked with an asterisk in the course descriptions below.
The following later-year courses are no longer offered but may still be counted as part of the above list:
English Literature 1789-1939 ENGL2001
Literature and Politics in Early Modern England ENGL3013
Sex and Terror: The Gothic Novel 1764-1824 ENGL2060
17th and 18th Century Literature ENGL3001
The 1790s: Representations of Revolution ENGL2017
A major in English may contain one course from the following list of cognates (in place of one later-year English course):
Modern Australian Drama DRAM2008
Post-War British Drama DRAM2009
Speaking and Persuading ARTS2001
Theories of Interpretation in Law and Literature PHIL2090
Writing a Woman's Life GEND2016
AUST2005 Sociology of Australian Literature and Art and WOMS2012 Fiction and Domesticity are no longer offered but may be counted in this list.
In the case of a student who includes an English first-year course in another Arts major, a major in English may consist of English courses to the value of 42 units (including at least one asterisked course) at least 30 units of which must be from later-year courses.
Certain English courses may be taken as part of other Arts majors: Australian Studies, Theatre Studies, Film Studies, Contemporary Europe, Applied Linguistics and Gender, Sexuality and Culture. In some cases this involves altered prerequisites. For details see the individual major/course entries.
Offered in 2002 and succeeding years
24 hours of lectures and one 1-hour tutorial per week
Syllabus: A study of Australian literary as well as some visual and filmic texts, by way of introducing the diversity of Australian cultural production. We shall look at the short stories of Henry Lawson and Barbara Baynton in conjunction with the pictures of the so-called Heidelberg painters for images of Australian life at the turn of the twentieth century; then at two celebrated texts which became equally celebrated film features (focussing both on novel and film), namely My Brilliant Career and The Getting of Wisdom; also at Martin Boyd's writing in conjunction with the visual art of the Boyd family in the mid-twentieth century; at a major Australian novel by Patrick White; at the drug poems of Michael Dransfield; finally at a recent translation of Aboriginal song poems.
Proposed assessment: Written exercises totaling 2,500 words and a final two-hour examination with take-home option.
Offered in 2002 and succeeding years
24 hours of lectures and one 1-hour tutorial per week
Syllabus: In this course we will usually study four or five novels in depth. The detailed exploration of each text will allow students to consider such issues as the depiction of human relationships, gender, and self-realisation in the novel as well as focussing on a variety of aspects including characterisation, structure and themes. The texts selected will usually include at least one work written in the eighteenth century as well as novels from the nineteenth century and they will cover a sufficient chronological range to give students some sense of the history of the genre and of the development of the novel.
Proposed assessment: One 1,000 word essay, one 1,500 word essay and a final two-hour examination.
Offered in 2002 and in succeeding years
24 hours of lectures and one 1-hour tutorial per week. Lectures will be taped.
Syllabus: This course is intended to help students to think, talk and write about poetry. If you have already read some poetry, the course aims to deepen your appreciation and enjoyment of it. But no prior knowledge is assumed; the course is designed to offer a useful introduction. Poems studied will range from the fourteenth century to the year 2002, from medieval Scottish erotica to Shakespeare in love to Bob Dylan, rap and limericks, from England to Australia, from Ireland to India. Poetry in performance (e.g. Shakespeare) and poetry in translation (e.g. from French and Russian) will be included. Readings by poets will be included. Students will be given a broad picture of the history and development of poetry in English, as well as an introduction to some key critical terms and approaches; the course will also serve as a more general introduction to the methods of literary criticism (useful, too, for those studying other literatures). Teaching and assessment will aim at developing students' capacity to explore their own responses to what they read, to construct cogent arguments and to write and speak clearly.
Proposed assessment: One 1,000-word essay, one 1,500-word essay and a final examination.
Offered in 2002 and succeeding years
24 hours of lectures and 13 one-hour tutorials.
Syllabus: This course will explore the diverse range of literary texts by Indigenous Australian writers that have appeared in Australia in recent decades. Emphasis will be upon close analysis of a relatively small number of texts, with a view towards enabling first year students to develop the critical skills essential to the study of literary discourses.
But wider theoretical and sociopolitical issues will also be foregrounded. In what ways does Indigenous Australian literature seem to embrace, ring changes upon, or depart from significant features and strategies in texts produced by Euroaustralians, and by English language writers elsewhere in the world? Is Aboriginal writing best understood as a distinctively "native" discourse? In what respects does it tend to reflect elements of traditional cultures? And how (if at all) is it similar to the literatures of other colonised peoples throughout the Anglophone world?
Proposed Assessment: one essay of 1,000 words; one essay of 1,500 words; final two-hour examination.
Offered in 2002 and succeeding years
This course can be counted towards a Linguistics, English or an Applied Linguistics major.
20 hours of lectures and one 1-hour tutorial per week
Prerequisite: Any two first-year English courses.
Syllabus: A study of some of the most fascinating literary texts produced in the United States in the modern era. While the course encourages the close reading of each text, it also attempts to address fundamental issues relating to the study of modern American society, such as race, class, and gender divisions. More broadly still, it seeks to raise and explore basic questions about the study of literature and other cultural productions.
Proposed assessment: One 1,000-word essay and one 3,000-word essay.
Offered in 2002 and in alternate years
One 2.5-hour combined lecture/seminar session per week
Prerequisite: Any two first-year English courses, or permission of the Convener of English
Syllabus: This course explores the development of Australian English in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, looking especially at its role in constructions of Australian identity. Dialects of Australian English (e.g. Aboriginal English) and regional Australian English will also be considered. Selections from texts of various kinds will be provided in a `reading brick'; for example: convicts and convictism; early explorers naming and describing an alien landscape; the language used to describe and control the indigenous population; accounts of life on the goldfields; creative writing which illustrates the development of an Australian vocabulary; the development of the Australian accent; evidence for the public suppression of Australian English in the first half of the twentieth century; examples of writing in Aboriginal English; texts which demonstrate the American influence on Australian English. The material covered will be wide-ranging and, in work for assessment, students will be encouraged to focus on topics that are of special interest to them. In their study, students will be encouraged to use the resources of the Australian National Dictionary Centre.
Proposed assessment: One 1,500 word essay and a final two-hour examination.
Offered in 2002 and in alternate years
One three-hour period for film screenings and lecture plus one one-hour tutorial per week.
Prerequisite: Any two first-year English courses or Intro to Film Studies FILM1001, or permission of the Convener of English
Syllabus: This course spans the development of Australian film from its early achievements before 1920 to its internationalisation circa 1980. Its primary focus is the cultural study of Australian film, with particular attention to changing depictions of the bush and the city, of Aboriginal, Australian and immigrant men and women, of Australian nationalism, and of our myths and heroes. The history of Australian film itself and its significant turning points, from the innovations of the silent era to later developments in art films, will also be a continuing consideration. Films chosen for study, such as The Sentimental Bloke, The Rats of Tobruk, The Overlanders, Jedda, Picnic at Hanging Rock, Breaker Morant, Mad Max, Hightide, Bedevil, Romper Stomper, The Piano and Beware Greeks Bearing Gifts will represent the work of major directors, producers and script writers, and screenings of the principal films will be supplemented by introductory talks and by the screening of related short film material.
Proposed assessment: One 1,500 word essay and a final two-hour examination (with a take-home option).
One 2.5-hour combined lecture/seminar session per week
Prerequisite: Any two first-year English courses.
Syllabus: A study of a selection of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales and of other literature of his period.
Proposed assessment: (i) a mid-semester essay of 2,000 words, (ii) a take-home examination including critical comments.
Offered in 2002 and in alternate years.
20 hours of lectures and one 1-hour tutorial per week and four film viewing sessions of up to three hours.
Prerequisites: Any two first-year English courses or Intro to Film Studies FILM1001.
Syllabus: An exploration of four 19th Century novels and how they have been turned into movies. The set texts will vary from year to year but in 2002 they will probably be Jane Austen's Persuasion, Leo Tolstoy's Anna Karenina, Henry James's The Portrait of a Lady and Bram Stoker's Dracula.
Proposed assessment: One 2,000 word essay and a final two-hour examination (with take-home option).
This course can be counted towards an English or Film Studies major.
20 hours of lectures and one 1-hour tutorial per week
Prerequisite: For students taking the course as part of an English major, any two first-year English courses; for others, two first-year Arts courses or two compulsory courses in the Gender, Sexualtity and Culture major
Syllabus: What perceptions of place and of other human beings are generated by the situation of first contact? How are these perceptions constructed? This course examines the phenomenon of contact with reference to Australia and the South Pacific, with some consideration of the Americas. Texts used include those traditionally marginalised in literary studies (journals, diaries, letters), as well as novel-extracts, poetry and visual material. We shall analyse European notions of the Savage (Noble and Ignoble) and of the State of Nature from their origins in Antiquity to their application in eighteenth-century explorers' journals, First Fleet journals, diaries and letters. Material aimed at promoting discussion of Aboriginal perceptions of Europeans is also set. The course is suitable for all students, but may be of special relevance to those interested in contemporary theory, postcolonial studies and Australian studies. It focuses on issues still alive today, particularly in the wake of the Mabo debate.
Proposed assessment: One 1,500 word essay and a final two-hour examination (with take-home option).
This course can be counted towards a History, Gender, Sexuality and Culture or Indigenous Australian Studies major.
20 hours of lectures and one 1-hour tutorial per week
Prerequisite: Any two first-year English courses.
Syllabus: An introduction to the great formative period of American literature in the 19th century. This was the period in which the national literature came of age, as several brilliant, eccentric writers wrought radical changes upon traditional English models of prose and verse and thereby created a body of distinctively American forms of literary art. To read and study the most influential works of this period is thus a particularly exciting project. Not only are the texts themselves marvelous and unusual creations, but, studied in conjunction with one another, they afford us the opportunity of witnessing elements of a national culture that is in the process of forming and becoming conscious of itself. Writers considered will ordinarily include Walt Whitman, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Herman Melville, Emily Dickinson, Mark Twain, and Kate Chopin.
Proposed assessment: One 1,000-word essay and one 3,000-word essay.
20 hours of lectures and one 1-hour tutorial per week
Prerequisites: Any two first-year English courses.
Syllabus: This course is an introduction to British literature of the eighteenth century through close critical analysis of selected texts in a variety of genres including poetry, drama and prose. Attention will be given to historical context -- the social and literary environment in which the texts were produced and to which they refer. Satire is a dominant literary mode in the early decades of the eighteenth century. The course will focus on writings by some of the major satirists of the period such as Pope, Swift, and Gay.
Proposed assessment: Written assignments totaling 4,000 words.
Offered in 2002 and in alternate years
20 hours of lectures and one 1-hour tutorial per week
Prerequisite: Any two first-year English courses. Students may count either Introduction to the Western Theatrical Tradition DRAM1006, or Introduction to Dramatic Form ENGL1002 as a prerequisite, if ENGL2012 is counted towards a major in Theatre Studies
Syllabus: This course is designed to introduce students to some of the most important dramatic texts of the Elizabethan and Jacobean periods by authors such as Marlowe, Shakespeare and Jonson. Teaching will be based on a consideration of these plays as literary, cultural and theatrical texts; that is, we shall examine the social and literary environment in which they were first produced, relating this to the conditions of theatrical performance in the period. Topics to be considered in relation to the drama include -- the representation of religion, kingship, sexual and political morality, national histories, gender and the family. Indeed, Elizabethan and Jacobean drama has become the focus for the most dynamic and controversial work in English studies, some of which will be considered in this course. 'Elizabethan Drama' will complement present or subsequent work in ENGL3005.
Proposed assessment: One 1,500 word assignment, 2,000 word essay, plus one tutorial paper.
Offered in 2002 and in alternate years
20 hours of lectures and one 1-hour tutorial per week
Prerequisite: Any two first-year English courses, or permission of the Convener of English
Syllabus: This course examines some landmarks in the literary history of late 19th and early 20th century imperialism. The focus in 2002 will be on novels of the British Empire, although a French novel in English translation will also be studied. The course involves the analysis of literary works and investigation of germane contexts (political, social, literary etc). Particular attention will be paid to issues of race relations, gender and class generated by the texts. The course will explore some significant metropolitan works that are striated by empire and its discontents. The set texts include novels by H. Rider Haggard, Joseph Conrad, H.G. Wells and Evelyn Waugh. The course concludes with the incendiary first novel of one of the most infamous authors of the 20th century, Journey to the End of the Night by Louis-Ferdinand Céline.
Proposed assessment: Written assignments totaling 4,000 words.
20 hours of lectures and one 1-hour tutorial per week
Prerequisites: Any two first-year English courses.
Syllabus: The aim will be to explore the phenomenon of Indian national identity as it has emerged within one of the world's oldest literary traditions, with particular attention to modern print and film texts. These will be, primarily, English-language texts of relatively recent vintage, although translations of some older works will also be incorporated. And while the focus will be upon the construction of a postcolonial India, the more general issue of imagined nationhood in the modern era will be considered as well. It is a course that is specifically designed to complement the Program's offering entitled 'Postcolonial Literatures', but to be of interest also to students of English language literatures generally, and to those specialising in Asian studies.
Proposed assessment: One 1,500 word essay and either a final two-hour examination or a 2,500 word essay.
Prerequisite: A first-year course in English, History, Linguistics or Modern European Languages
Syllabus: An introduction to the language and literature of Anglo-Saxon England based on study of selected passages of Old English prose and verse.
Proposed assessment: One take-home mid-semester grammar exercise, and a final take-home examination including passages for translation.
Offered in 2002 and alternate years
Two one-hour lectures and one one-hour tutorial for 11 weeks. Two weeks will be designated research weeks. One research week will be mid Term 1; the second will occur mid Term 2 when essays are due.
Prerequisites: First-year History courses to the value of 12 units or any two first-year English courses
Syllabus: This interdisciplinary course will focus on five novels by Jane Austen. Each novel will provide a starting point from which we'll explore the representation within them of broad themes of historical and literary significance, relating to late eighteenth and early nineteenth century Britain. We shall examine the ways in which a knowledge of the period in which Austen wrote enriches our understanding of her fiction and how the novels in turn participate in certain crucial debates and developments of the period. A concern of the course will be to challenge on the one hand, the idea of literary texts as mere illustrations of historical change, and on the other, the idea of history as a 'background' to literature. Topics to be covered will include the representation within the novels of the following: the Navy, marriage and adultery, fashion and consumption, slavery and empire, the landed estate, Bath, the concept of 'improvement', the female reading public and its institutions, leisure, the Gothic, ideas of the family and domesticity, music, the theatre, female friendship, philanthropy, and science.
Proposed assessment: Tutorial participation and presentation; a 1,000-word essay; a 3,000-word research essay.
Offered in 2002 and in alternate years
20 hours of lectures and one 1-hour tutorial per week
Prerequisite: Any two first-year English courses.
Syllabus: This course is divided into three sections. In the first section attention is concentrated on writers of the late nineteenth century and the Federation period who took a strong interest in Australian nationalism and bush life. The second and third section contains the work of writers published in the middle and later parts of this century. Studying their work will naturally raise questions about the evolution of Australian literature -- not only its divergences, but also the lines of continuity, which include a continuing interest in Australian identity and Australian landscapes -- cities, suburbia, or the bush.
Proposed assessment: One 2,500 word essay and a final two-hour examination.
Offered in 2003 and in alternate years
20 hours of lectures and one 1-hour tutorial per week
Prerequisites: Any two first-year English courses.
Syllabus: This course will explore the construction and representation of gender in a range of 18th-century texts by men and women authors, including autobiographical and biographical materials, poetry, essays, drama and works of prose fiction. The primary focus in studying these texts will be on their dramatisation of such issues as the interrelationships between class and gender and between morality and gender; the 'performance' of gender in cultural forms such as the drama, the construction of the gendered self and the gendered construction of 18th-century sensibility and sentiment. Attention will also be given to the social and historical backgrounds against which this literature was written and which it addresses, and to contextual aspects such as the representation of gender in changing modes of masculine and feminine dress. Texts studied will include poems, letters and diaries, as well as novels and drama by such authors as Samuel Richardson, Charlotte Lennox, Hannah Cowley and Laurence Sterne.
Proposed assessment: One 2,000 word essay and a final two-hour examination.