BA (Hons) English Literatures and Law with Foundation Year

The Criminal Law module involves study of the general principles of criminal law including secondary participation and attempts. It covers the requirements of various offences that may be committed against the person including murder, manslaughter and non-fatal offences. As well as offences against the person, the module involves the study of theft, burglary, robbery, fraud, criminal damage and arson. As criminal liability requires that the actus reus and mens rea of the crime has been committed in the absence of a valid defence, the module also looks at intoxication and self-defence, along with murder-specific defences.

This will be a team taught module that utilises the expertise of the entire team and will cover a range of texts from different eras, cultural heritages, genres and forms, but all with a local connection to the West Midlands region.

This module will cover the basic character of tortious liability; The origins of the tort of negligence. The historical development of the duty of care. The standard of care and breach of the duty of care. Causation in fact and law. Nervous shock law. Pure economic loss and liability for omissions. Occupiers' liability and trespass to the person. You will also examine the availability of tortious defences in these areas.

This module introduces you to the principles of drama in performance. Aided by theatre professionals the module takes you through the practicalities and theory of putting on a play: interpretation, staging, directing, producing and acting. Using the Arena Theatre's stage and resources, you'll take key scenes from the page to the stage.

This module explores representations of crime in literature and culture from the Victorian era to the present day. Students will learn about the cultural construction of criminality and deviancy, and consider the ideologies at work in crime, victimhood and punishment in relation to gender, sexuality, ethnicity, religion, class, and disability.

This module aims to provide knowledge and understanding of the basic principles of English land law and an introduction to the various rights and interests which can exist in land, with particular reference to the development of equity, registered & unregistered land, trusts of land & co-ownership, freehold covenants, leases, easements and mortgage.

This module explores the social, political and philosophical contexts of the English and global Renaissance through its literary culture.

This module aims to provide both a thorough introduction to the main areas of contemporary literary criticism and theory, with a particular emphasis on textual/cultural constructions of identity. Students will be equipped with a set of theoretical terms and concepts that will enable them to understand what is at stake in current debates in critical and cultural theory, and the way in which such debates inform the politics of literary and cultural representation. Topics covered include Structuralism/Post-Structuralism; Psychoanalysis; Marxism; Feminisms; Postcolonialism; Disability Studies; Animal Studies. Students will be provided with copies of theoretical essays via the VLE, with particular emphasis on thinkers from beyond the white, European-American 'canon' of theory.

This module will look at the procedure and processes involved in criminal investigation and litigation with regards to the core principles of criminal liability, building upon the substantive criminal offences covered in the level 4 module Substantive Crime. This is an application based module, where students will learn about the criminal litigation process based on real life scenarios, interactive learning, role play, lectures and seminars. Students will be expected to draw on and apply knowledge f the following areas of law and practice: • Core legal principles of criminal liability relating to a number of offences; • The procedure and processes at the police station, including advising the client prior to interview; • The procedure and processed involved in prosecuting and defending a case before the Magistrates, Crown and Youth Courts.

This module will explore the representation of disability in Victorian literature and culture, using a definition of the 'Victorian era' which expands beyond the colonial centre and considering texts as part of a long nineteenth century as well. With a particular emphasis on the way in which the 'extraordinary' body and mind are constructed in Victorian popular culture, students will study a selection of nineteenth-century texts via the lens of contemporary disability theory. The ideologies of empire are explored alongside issues of gender, class and religion (Christianity and Islam). Students will encounter nineteenth-century novels, drama, poetry, short stories, pamphlets, religious tracts, newspaper articles and advertising.

How do we think about the outside world, the relationship between our environment, humanity and its living inhabitants? What cultural and philosophical, religious, political and racial attitudes shape the literature of space, and place and do they affect our daily lives? This module examines historical and contemporary cultural attitudes to nature and the environment by examining a range of texts across multiple genres, places, cultures and periods which engage with notions and representations of 'nature', place, the pastoral, cities, development, agriculture, animals, gardening, outdoor leisure, environmentalism, industry, climate change, social justice and the ways in which humans have conceptualised our relationships with the natural world. You will engage with poems, plays, novels, non-fiction, religious texts from multiple traditions, film, television and other media from across the world and throughout history, plus appropriate critical and theoretical work including eco-fiction theory.

The module examines literary and cultural responses to political debates and to key moments in social history. Particular reference will be made to the impacts of socio-cultural change and political movements on popular literature and culture, and how such productions have been used to advance or resist various ideological interests. Issues addressed will include the relationships between various types of representation and their claims to truth and authenticity, the impact of social, commercial, political and moral issues on cultural production; the significance of the audience; the role(s) of culture within particular social formations such as ethnic and sexual identities, with particular reference to practices of collaboration, recuperation, and resistance. Students will draw on theoretical perspectives acquired through 5EN001 and in the course of this module including but not limited to queer theory, decolonisation, Marxism and feminism Texts may include: Black Panther (2018); James Baldwin's The Fire Next Time; Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale; The Fresh Prince of Bel Air; Doctor Who; Drag Race UK; The Crown, South Park, South Park, Jilly Cooper's Riders; Watchmen; American Psycho; The Book of Mormon (the musical, not the religious text), Lessing's The Good Terrorist.

Forms of punishment have changed over time from the infliction of retributive and immediate bodily pain (hanging, branding etc) in public to the wider use of imprisonment and non-custodial based punishments, such as probation and fines. The module will discuss how and why these changes have taken place. It will explore the types of punishments employed in the UK in the period 1718-1948, as well as the social and intellectual forces that have had a seminal impact on the development of punishments and sentencing during that period. It will also consider how, over time, the role of the victim in sentencing has altered, as well as the wider social, historical, economic and cultural factors which various theorists argue have driven these changes.

Membership of the European Union has had a profound, and often controversial, effect on the constitutions and national legal systems of its member states, as well as the lives of the citizens of those states. The Treaty of Rome and a succession of subsequent amending treaties, together with the jurisprudence of the Court of Justice of the European Union and the work of other Union institutions, have significantly advanced the cause of European legal integration. This integration has been achieved sometimes with the support of member state governments and often times in the face of significant member state government and popular opposition. & nbsp; The most significant development in European Union law has perhaps been the establishment of the internal market (sometimes referred to as the & lsquo;single market& rsquo;), which provides for the free movement of citizens, goods, services and capital within the external boundaries of the Union. The establishment of the internal market has in turn led to an increasing harmonisation of national laws in the European Union in a large number of areas. The drive to achieve the realisation of the internal market has also caused the Union& rsquo;s institutions, in particular its Court of Justice, to develop and expand the treaties& rsquo; existing enforcement mechanisms to ensure the uniformity and effectiveness of European Union law. & nbsp; This module explores the themes above, focussing particularly on the institutional framework of the Union; the manner in which Union laws are made; the effect of Union law; the mechanisms to ensure the enforcement of Union law; and, the law of the internal market.

Why is Austen's work filmed, adapted, re-read and referenced across different cultures, social classes and ethnic communities in such profusion? This module examines the evolving history of Jane Austen fandom, the changing cultural position of Austen's work across a range of global cultures, sexual identities and communities, the different critical perspectives brought to bear on her work including Marxist, feminist and decolonising lenses, and a range of adaptations, sequels, retellings and responses across different media. You will study some of Jane Austen's work as well as films, novels, fan fiction and Austen-related material in various media.

The module will provide an overview of general employment law matters in the context of the employer employee relationship from recruitment to dismissal. It will introduce the key themes which need to be aware of in order to comply with their obligations and act within the law. It will explore current issues from time to time for example dealing with underperformance, absenteeism and related contractual matters within the legal framework. Major topics for example dismissal and discrimination and rights within the workplace will also be covered.

This module provides an opportunity to apply academic skills and knowledge to a project negotiated with an external organisation. Students are required to identify, negotiate and research an issue which is relevant to both their academic study and the external organisation. This enables the student to demonstrate an awareness of academic research within an organisational context, together with an understanding of the parameters of research methodologies within an academic framework.

This module provides the opportunity for students to conduct their own research into a negotiated subject of their choice within the areas of English Language Studies or English Literary Studies. It requires students to demonstrate the analytical skills acquired over length of their English degree, including the abilities to construct and sustain an argument, and to support it using evidence.

This module maps, historicises and analyses our rapidly changing experience in the digital age, which confronts us with new and diverging forms of social relationships, identities and changing human behaviour. The module explores how narrative form is changing by paying attention to new modes, media, formats, platforms and reading devices with new temporalities and possibilities, such as literature published via Twitter, gaming narratives, cell phone novels, and new genres such as 'tech thrillers'. We also analyse game narratives. Particular attention is paid to gender representation in the digital age, digital inequality in relation to class and ethnicity, and how technology responds to post-secular contexts. Relevant theoretical contexts include post-humanism, digital humanities, AI and computational literary studies.

This module aims to provide students with an understanding of the Modernist period and the terms ‘modernism’ and 'avant-garde' in some of their classifying and critical uses, and to develop and deploy reading skills appropriate to modernist and avant-garde texts across a selection of works, including some from continental Europe and the USA and Latin American. We will begin with a screening of Salvador Dali's film 'Un Chien Andalou' and end with a short story by the first openly gay black writer in the USA, Richard Bruce Nugent, in between we will examine the work of James Joyce, Latin American Frida Kahlo, Virginia Woolf, D.H. Lawrence, T.S Eliot, David Garnett, and Leonora Carrington amongst others. In addition, some sessions will be dedicated to the analysis of Modernist theory and the texts and to an examination of relevant contextual tropes such as gender theory, psychoanalysis and the concept of the fragmented subject (Freud, Jung and Spielrein) and theories of time (Bergson) and race (Walker).

The module will focus on three different topics: nationality law with particular attention to British nationality, the concept of statelessness and EU citizenship. International migration with particular attention to migration from countries not belonging to the EU to the EU and the UK, irregular migration and the connected crimes of human trafficking and people smuggling. International Refugee law where we will explore the International Convention of Refugee Law, asylum law in the UK and in the EU and the interaction between these two legal systems.

The module aims to provide students with the opportunity to study a topic in the area of law, Criminology or Criminal Justice in greater detail than is possible on a taught module. By undertaking this module the students will not only increase their knowledge of the principles and topical issues concerning the particular area selected but also the opportunity to develop skills in legal and/or sociological research and academic writing and presentation. Students will employ appropriate research theories and methodologies to facilitate the deeper understanding of a topic required to underpin the completion of an extended piece of writing.

This module examines concepts and theories of serious and organised crime and evaluates its development, impact and initiatives taken to tackle it. Case study material will include drug smuggling, human trafficking, environmental crime and maritime piracy.        

This module explores the ways postcolonial texts challenge dominant discourses of 'race', gender, sexuality, class, disability, and religion. Students will study a range of texts by authors of colour from Britain, the U.S. and other parts of the world and consider the intersections between different constructions of identities in literature and culture. Postcolonial cultural theory and critical race theory will be central to this module, alongside feminism and disability studies. Guest speakers will contribute towards the module at various points. Alongside the set texts on the module, students will be encouraged to bring literary and cultural texts from their own experiences to the classes, and to feed into the assessment. Students will have the opportunity to work together to produce a digital artefact which communicates their expert knowledge of this topic to audiences beyond academia.

This module draws on a range of texts and cultural practices to address the extremes of representation. We will examine some examples of the ‘high’ and ‘low’ cultural texts that are hidden from mainstream society, and those which are rejected by both/either the populace and the academy. Our objects of enquiry will be representational strategies, and their real effects on individuals and on society. Topics may include debates around representations of racism, genocide, disablism, sexual 'deviance', blasphemy, obscenity, political extremism, cancel culture, screen violence, animal rights and wrongs. Students are asked to contribute their own examples of problematic texts and to engage with current and ongoing culture wars. A wide range of theoretical approaches will be applied, including postcolonialism, psychoanalysis, queer theory, cultural materialism, animal studies, disability studies.

This module examines Romanticism as a concept encompassing literature and global culture between 1780 and 1840. With reference to poetry, fiction, and non-fictional prose, the module explores in particular how the Romantic imagination intersects with, is modified by, and contests developments in material culture, science and technology, politics, religion, and the arts. Sites of cultural debate to be considered include: representations of revolution; the abolition of slavery; gender rights and sexuality; landscape, travel, and colonialism; and the writer in society.