Studying at York
Comprehending Nature in the Middle Ages - ENG00156M
- Department: English and Related Literature
- Credit value: 20 credits
- Credit level: M
- Academic year of delivery: 2023-24
Module summary
What we define as ‘nature’ is the result of processes of cultural elaboration and exchange. Therefore, it is crucial to understand how the idea itself of nature was constructed at different times. Literature plays a decisive role in formulating the relationship between humans, the environment, and the cosmos. It is both the place in which ideas about this relationship is negotiated and a space in which this negotiation can be represented. Literature has thus contributed fundamentally to the creation of notions of environmental spaces, of the human/animal divide, or the cultural/natural dichotomy. This module investigates the development of representations of nature in the interconnected medieval literatures of the Mediterranean, including texts from Europe as well as the Middle East. The module explores how humans wrote about their interactions with their physical environment and represented the cosmos and positioned themselves in it. These notions defined the boundaries between the human and the natural as well as the natural and the supernatural in Medieval cultures. This module will build on the new literary field of ecocriticism, but it will incorporate reflections on how the relationships between humans, animals, and landscapes are influenced by various economic, technological, and cultural factors. In the Middle Ages, the environment could be understood as a danger, but also as a resource or cultural space. People were very aware of the human potential to reshape their environment according to their interests. This module will help understand the complex perceptions and interactions between humankind and nature in the Middle Ages in their literary representations. The course material will introduce these texts and their contexts, and no preliminary knowledge of medieval languages is required: all texts will be read in Middle or Modern English.
Module will run
| Occurrence | Teaching period |
|---|---|
| A | Semester 1 2023-24 |
Module aims
The module aims to understand how medieval literatures play a decisive role in formulating the relationship between humans, the environment, and the cosmos. The module will do so also showing how it is necessary to look at literatures that connected across the Mediterranean area in the Middle Ages (Western European, Byzantine, Arabic and Hebrew Literatures and others) in their reciprocal connection.
Module learning outcomes
On successful completion of the module, you should be able to:
- Demonstrate an advanced understanding of and engagement with medieval literatures and their different constructions of nature
- Demonstrate an advanced understanding of and engagement with medieval texts as well as gaining close reading skills
- Evaluate key debates within the relevant critical fields dealing with literary representations of nature
Produce independent arguments and ideas which demonstrate an advanced proficiency in critical thinking, research, and writing skills.
Indicative assessment
| Task | % of module mark |
|---|---|
| Essay/coursework | 100 |
Special assessment rules
None
Indicative reassessment
| Task | % of module mark |
|---|---|
| Essay/coursework | 100 |
Module feedback
You will receive feedback on all assessed work within the University deadline, and will often receive it more quickly. The purpose of feedback is to inform your future work; it is designed to help you to improve your work, and the Department also offers you help in learning from your feedback. If you do not understand your feedback or want to talk about your ideas further you can discuss it with your module tutor, the MA Convenor or your supervisor, during their Open Office Hours
Indicative reading
Main texts for the module:
1) Augustine, Confessions
2) Augustine, City of God
3) Felix, Life of Saint Guthlac
4) Beowulf
5) Brethren of Purity, The case of the animals versus man before the King of the Jinn
6) Physiologus
7) The Secret of Secrets
8) Bernardus Silvestris, Cosmographia
9) Saint Francis, The Canticle of the Sun
10) Thomas of Celano, The lives of S. Francis of Assisi
11) The little flowers of st. Francis of Assisi
12) Frederick II, The art of falconry (De arte venandi cum avibus)