ML3IC: Identity and Conflict in Modern Europe

Module code: ML3IC

Module provider: Languages and Cultures; School of Humanities

Credits: 20

Level: Level 3 (Honours)

When you'll be taught: Semester 1

Module convenor: Dr Athena Leoussi, email: a.s.leoussi@reading.ac.uk

Pre-requisite module(s):

Co-requisite module(s):

Pre-requisite or Co-requisite module(s):

Module(s) excluded:

Placement information: NA

Academic year: 2024/5

Available to visiting students: Yes

Talis reading list: Yes

Last updated: 21 May 2024

Overview

Module aims and purpose

This inter-disciplinary, cross-national and comparative module introduces students to modern notions of race, gender, and how the public intellectual and a range of modern ideologies have set out to redefine individual and collective identities (Liberalism, Nationalism, Fascism, Communism) both in Europe and the rest of the world. By using a range of sources, both visual and textual, and drawn from political, religious, scientific, aesthetic, and literary domains, the module develops students’ understanding of the diversification, evolution and fluidity of definitions of what it is to be human. Spanning a period from the Enlightenment to the present, the module encourages students to engage with competing and conflicting visions and values through which humans have sought to define themselves and achieve self-realisation. Students explore these issues both through set case studies and through group projects which give them the opportunity to choose their own case studies, both European and non-European.

Module learning outcomes

By the end of the module, it is expected that students will be able to: 

1. Identify the problems and conflicts associated with defining individual and collective identities.   
2. Contextualise a range of modern visions of humanity, and assess their relative impact  
3. Define the role and impact of the public intellectual in different national contexts  
4. Analyse the ways in which specific works of art have become icons of particular visions of humanity and discuss the claim that works of art are documents of expression

Module content

The content is organised thematically in the form of individual case studies. The emergence of the modern idea of race is traced back to its 18th-century roots in the context of Enlightenment explorations of what it is to be human. The case of anti-Semitism and its culmination in the Holocaust is at the centre of this investigation. The construction of modern identities by modern political ideologies, such as Liberalism, Fascism and Socialism, is examined through the study of political manifestos and the cultural products (paintings, sculptures, posters, international exhibitions) which propagated them. Gendered identities are examined in the context of the rise of organised feminism on an international scale, and the developments of second and third wave feminism. The key demands of the European feminist movements, and the issues that women faced from 1945 to the present day, will be set out and discussed. In all of these cases of re-imagining and actually transforming personal and collective identities, the role of intellectuals has been crucial. A case study is thus devoted specifically to the modern public intellectual.  

Structure

Teaching and learning methods

This module is taught through a mixture of lectures and student-led seminars/discussions. Students will acquire background information from the lectures and will be encouraged to undertake independent work and prepare seminar presentations. 

Study hours

At least 33 hours of scheduled teaching and learning activities will be delivered in person, with the remaining hours for scheduled and self-scheduled teaching and learning activities delivered either in person or online. You will receive further details about how these hours will be delivered before the start of the module.

Please note the independent study hours above are notional numbers of hours; each student will approach studying in different ways. We would advise you to reflect on your learning and the number of hours you are allocating to these tasks.

Semester 1 The hours in this column may include hours during the Christmas holiday period.

Semester 2 The hours in this column may include hours during the Easter holiday period.

Summer The hours in this column will take place during the summer holidays and may be at the start and/or end of the module.

Assessment

Requirements for a pass

Students need to achieve an overall module mark of 40% to pass this module.

Summative assessment

Penalties for late submission of summative assessment

The Support Centres will apply the following penalties for work submitted late:

Assessments with numerical marks

• where the piece of work is submitted after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): 10% of the total marks available for that piece of work will be deducted from the mark for each working day (or part thereof) following the deadline up to a total of three working days;
• the mark awarded due to the imposition of the penalty shall not fall below the threshold pass mark, namely 40% in the case of modules at Levels 4-6 (i.e. undergraduate modules for Parts 1-3) and 50% in the case of Level 7 modules offered as part of an Integrated Masters or taught postgraduate degree programme;
• where the piece of work is awarded a mark below the threshold pass mark prior to any penalty being imposed, and is submitted up to three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline), no penalty shall be imposed;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): a mark of zero will be recorded.

Assessments marked Pass/Fail

• where the piece of work is submitted within three working days of the deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): no penalty will be applied;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): a grade of Fail will be awarded.

The University policy statement on penalties for late submission can be found at: /cqsd/-/media/project/functions/cqsd/documents/qap/penaltiesforlatesubmission.pdf

You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.

Formative assessment

Formative assessment is any task or activity which creates feedback (or feedforward) for you about your learning, but which does not contribute towards your overall module mark.

Students will be given guided assignments to prepare for the next class and for the summative assignments. Class discussions and oral presentations will help students prepare for the learning journal. Students will also be given an opportunity to submit a formative entry to prepare themselves for the learning journal assignment. 

Reassessment

Additional costs