1851: Science, Empire & Exhibitionism (V1373)
Time and Place 1851: Science, Empire and Exhibitionism
Module V1373
Module details for 2021/22.
15 credits
FHEQ Level 5
Module Outline
In 1851, the census results revealed that Britain's population stood at about 20 million, having more than doubled in the first half of the century. But what was more astonishing was that the majority of the British people now lived in towns and cities. At mid-century, Britons were living in what one contemporary observer called 'the age of great cities'.
On this module you examine life in Victorian towns and cities by using contemporary poetry, novels and journalism to analyse people's experiences of modernity. The Great Exhibition at the Crystal Palace was an exhibition of the things the Victorians perceived as having changed their world, from cheap, manufactured consumer goods, to the latest scientific discoveries and devices, and above all the wealth of the expanding empire.
The sciences and technologies that were exhibited in 1851 will be central to this module. However, the Exhibition put the Victorians themselves on display, allowing large crowds from diverse classes to meet in public and celebrate their sense of themselves as a unified, modern nation. The module will subject the Victorians' self-congratulatory sense of themselves to close critical scrutiny.
Module learning outcomes
To understand a historical moment by reference to the particular context in which it occurred.
Critically evaluate the applicability of historical concepts to particular cases
Supply evidence of these skills in extended essay form.
Demonstrate ability to use limited amounts of primary source material in extended historical argument
| Type | Timing | Weighting |
|---|---|---|
| Coursework | 100.00% | |
| Coursework components. Weighted as shown below. | ||
| Essay | A2 Week 1 | 100.00% |
Timing
Submission deadlines may vary for different types of assignment/groups of students.
Weighting
Coursework components (if listed) total 100% of the overall coursework weighting value.
| Term | Method | Duration | Week pattern |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring Semester | Lecture | 1 hour | 11111111111 |
| Spring Semester | Seminar | 2 hours | 10101010101 |
How to read the week pattern
The numbers indicate the weeks of the term and how many events take place each week.
Prof Martin Francis
Assess convenor
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Prof Darrow Schecter
Assess convenor
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Prof Jim Endersby
Assess convenor, Convenor
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Prof Vinita Damodaran
Assess convenor
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