Modern Literature from Conrad to Orwell

Module code: EN2330

On this module you will study a range of texts from the first half of the twentieth century, and we will place them in relation to significant historical and cultural developments. From Imperial expansion and Modernism to educational expansion and the politics of class, via the First World War and women’s suffrage, the writing of these years is embroiled with changes in society which still resonate today. The forms and styles of this writing also have a continuing currency in both contemporary fiction and contemporary poetry. On this course students will encounter writers such as Joseph Conrad, Chinua Achebe, Katherine Mansfield, Virginia Woolf, TS Eliot, Mulk Raj Anand and George Orwell. You'll learn about the theories of what was modern in literature which were developed at the time, as well as being invited to reassess the values and aspirations of the literature of this period from the perspectives of today.