ENG31900 Yeats and the Arts

Academic Year 2022/2023

W. B. Yeats is one of the most significant poets of the twentieth century, and was also a key figure in a range of Irish cultural initiatives. As a theatre director, journalist and editor he influenced the production of texts and performances, and changed the character of Ireland's cultural life by helping to found the Abbey Theatre and the Dublin Municipal Gallery of Modern Art. His support for the Cuala Press, run by his sisters, sustained the practice of hand printing in Ireland, and gave an outlet for the work of a number of his associates. This module will explore Yeats's engagement with the arts in Ireland at a time of significant cultural and political change, and consider the impact of these activities on his published work. His poetry will be central to this exploration, but we will also examine his dramatic and prose writings, and the work of the Yeats family in the visual arts and book production. We will make direct use of the rich print resources at UCD Special Collections, as well as digital materials from the National Library of Ireland and the National Gallery of Ireland.

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Curricular information is subject to change

Learning Outcomes:

At the conclusion of this module students will be able to demonstrate

1. understanding of the cultural significance of W. B. Yeats in twentieth-century Ireland
2. critical awareness of his achievement as a poet and its relationship to his wider literary production
3. the ability to analyse key works by Yeats and his contemporaries
4. skill in the critical methodologies of close reading and broader cultural analysis
5. improved analytical, writing and communication skills
6. the ability to complete an essay of their choice on a topic related to the course


Indicative Module Content:

Topics include: Yeats and the Irish Revival; the Yeats family and the visual arts; the Abbey Theatre and performance history; the Cuala Press and Irish print history; W. B. Yeats in the museum

Student Effort Hours: 
Student Effort Type Hours
Seminar (or Webinar)

24
Specified Learning Activities

100
Autonomous Student Learning

76
Total

200
Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
Approaches include: active/task-based learning; critical and reflective writing; lectures; seminar discussion; research tasks 
Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations

Not applicable to this module.


Module Requisites and Incompatibles
Not applicable to this module.
 
Assessment Strategy  
Description Timing Open Book Exam Component Scale Must Pass Component % of Final Grade
Continuous Assessment: Short Written Exercises Throughout the Trimester n/a Standard conversion grade scale 40% No

50
Essay: 3000 words Coursework (End of Trimester) n/a Standard conversion grade scale 40% No

50

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
• Peer review activities

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

Online, peer review and/or face-to-face feedback will be offered on individual writing exercises throughout the trimester. Essay feedback will be provided on Brightspace after the module has been completed.

Name Role
Dr Conor Linnie Lecturer / Co-Lecturer
Timetabling information is displayed only for guidance purposes, relates to the current Academic Year only and is subject to change.
 
Spring
      
Lecture Offering 1 Week(s) - 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33 Thurs 15:00 - 16:50