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ENG41650

Academic Year 2026/2027

Expressions of Modernity (ENG41650)

Subject:
English
College:
Arts & Humanities
School:
English, Drama & Film
Level:
4 (Masters)
Credits:
10
Module Coordinator:
Professor Nicholas Daly
Trimester:
Autumn
Mode of Delivery:
On Campus
Internship Module:
No
How will I be graded?
Letter grades

Curricular information is subject to change.

Expressions of Modernity: Victorian London

At the start of the nineteenth century London was the world’s largest city, with a population of more than a million, and by the early 1900s it had swollen to 6.5 million, roughly three times the size of Denmark or Norway. It was an increasingly diverse city, a magnet for internal and international migrants, including those fleeing famine in Ireland and persecution in the Russian Empire. Long a centre of trade and manufacture, London also became a financial and information giant, channelling investment in Britain’s sprawling empire, and acting as a news and publishing hub. Such dramatic changes – demographic, social, and economic – shaped and were shaped by cultural production. In this course we will look at some facets of the relationship between the Victorian metropolis and culture, including: London as a centre for journalism and publishing; representations of sex and sexuality in Victorian London; the London stage; popular culture; urban detective fiction; and Gothic images of London.
Authors will include such figures as: Charles Dickens, Henry Mayhew, W.T. Moncrieff, Charlotte Riddell, Baroness Orczy, Arthur Conan Doyle, E.W. Hornung, Olive Christian Malvery, and Hulda Friederichs.

About this Module

Learning Outcomes:

On completion of all requirements for this module, students should be able to:
1. Demonstrate a critical understanding of a wide range of writing on this course.
2. Identify and engage in key critical and theoretical debates.
3. Examine ways in which writing on this course is in dialogue with contemporary historical events.
4. Engage in class discussion and debate
5. Be able to write critically about literature's engagement with modernity.
6. Produce a critical essay informed by the one or more of the themes addressed in this module.
7. Understand the importance of engaging with the research of others

Indicative Module Content:

Authors will include such figures as: Charles Dickens, Henry Mayhew, W.T. Moncrieff, Charlotte Riddell, Baroness Orczy, Arthur Conan Doyle, E.W. Hornung, Olive Christian Malvery, and Hulda Friederichs.

The United Nations identified seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as core to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and UCD contributes in general to SDG 4 Quality Education. Further SDGs explored within this module if relevant are listed below. A scale of 1 - 5 indicates the extent to which the SDG is covered.


 

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

18
Specified Learning Activities

91
Autonomous Student Learning

111
Total

220

Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
Teaching and Learning approaches in this module include active/task-based learning; peer and group work/feedback; critical writing; reflective learning; and theoretical debates. Seminars will usually include short overviews, group discussion, theoretical approaches, close-reading practice and/or student presentations.

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 Component repeat (in-module) Offered
Assignment(Including Essay): A final essay of 3500
NO AI is to be used		 Week 14 Graded No
80
 No
Individual Project: Presentation
NO AI is to be used		 Week 6 Graded No
20
 No

As part of UCD's student support, under the Additional Consideration policy, extensions may be available for the following assessments in the module: Assignment (including essay/poster), Portfolio, Reflective Assignment, Report(s), and Individual Project.


Carry forward of passed components
No
 

Resit In Terminal Exam
Spring 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?

Students will have the option to receive informal feedback on essay proposals prior to their final essays. Students will have the opportunity to receive individual post-assessment feedback on their final essay. Students will engage in informal peer-review feedback exercises.

Name Role
Professor Nicholas Daly Lecturer / Co-Lecturer
Professor Fionnuala Dillane Lecturer / Co-Lecturer

Timetabling information is displayed only for guidance purposes, relates to the current Academic Year only and is subject to change.
Autumn Seminar Offering 1 Week(s) - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8 Tues 14:00 - 15:50
Autumn Seminar Offering 1 Week(s) - 6, 7 Tues 14:00 - 15:50
Autumn Seminar Offering 1 Week(s) - 9, 10, 11, 12 Tues 14:00 - 15:50
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