HIS33120 Women in Early Modern Ireland

Academic Year 2024/2025

This module will examine the various roles and experiences of women in early modern Ireland (1541-1800). This was a period characterised by significant religious and political upheaval, and great economic, social and cultural change. Utilising a broad base of primary source material (e.g. correspondence, diaries, marriage settlements, wills) and printed primary sources (e.g. pamphlets, domestic manuals), students will consider the legal realities, social and cultural expressions and individual experiences of womanhood in early modern Ireland. Looking at marriage and the family, students will explore the impact of the English Common Law system on women's position and on the making and breaking of unions, comparing and contrasting law with practice by examining accounts of everyday lives and relationships. Students will also examine the role of women in conflict and the shared and divergent experiences on each side of the religious divide. The position of women in the declining Catholic elite and in the Protestant ascendancy in the late seventeenth and eighteenth century will be examined, with particular attention given to social and cultural expressions of status, political engagement and economic activity. The module will look at the practices and experiences of the aristocracy, the gentry, the emergent middle class and the ‘lower orders’. Engaging with the extant historiography, students will be encouraged to contextualise primary source material within wider historical debates to consider the issues that attend the study of women, with a particular focus on the methodologies used in women's and gender history in Ireland, Britain and Europe.

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Curricular information is subject to change

Learning Outcomes:

At the end of this course you should have:
• an understanding of the main issues and debates concerning the roles of women in early modern Ireland
• an awareness of the historical debates concerning this topic
• developed skills in dealing with primary and secondary sources
• experience of working and learning with others
• developed your skills in written analysis

Indicative Module Content:

Marriage and family
Women and the home
Women in widowhood
Women, the law and legal practice
Women and experiences of property ownership
Women and war
Women and work
Queer lives in early modern Ireland

Student Effort Hours: 
Student Effort Type Hours
Lectures

11
Seminar (or Webinar)

22
Specified Learning Activities

95
Autonomous Student Learning

95
Total

223
Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
This module combines a one-hour lecture with a 2-hour seminar. Weekly lectures provide overviews of the topic, with focus on background to readings, and its relation to modern scholarship. Weekly seminars focus on small-group active and task-based learning by means of class debates, discussion and presentations. Autonomous learning is advanced through student-led debate and discussion of set primary sources and student presentations. Student reflection is promoted by weekly learning journals. Advanced research, writing and citations skills are developed through an end-of-semester essay. 
Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations

Not applicable to this module.


Module Requisites and Incompatibles
Not applicable to this module.
 
Assessment Strategy  
Description Timing Component Scale Must Pass Component % of Final Grade In Module Component Repeat Offered
Participation in Learning Activities: Class participation and engagement Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, Week 4, Week 5, Week 6, Week 7, Week 10, Week 11, Week 12, Week 14 Graded No

20

 No
Reflective Assignment: Learning journals Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, Week 4, Week 5, Week 6, Week 7, Week 10, Week 11, Week 12, Week 14 Graded No

40

 No
Assignment(Including Essay): 3-4,000 word essay Week 14 Graded No

40

 No

Carry forward of passed components
No
 
Resit In Terminal Exam
Autumn No
Please see Student Jargon Buster for more information about remediation types and timing. 
Feedback Strategy/Strategies

• Feedback individually to students, on an activity or draft prior to summative assessment
• Feedback individually to students, post-assessment
• Group/class feedback, post-assessment

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

Feedback on learning journals, presentations and participation is given individually and to the class, verbally and in writing, throughout the semester. Feedback on end-of-semester essays is given individually and to the class on drafts and essays plans before final submission, and by appointment after submission and grading.