Master Early Modern English Literature: Text & Transmission
ObjectivesThe programme – taught in collaboration with the British Library –aims to provide teaching and research training at graduate level in the production, transmission and reception of early modern literary texts in English
Entry requirementspeople with at least 2:1 BA honours degree or equivalent in English or in a subject in which English plays a significant part; well-qualified candidates from other disciplines may also be considered.
Academic titleMA Early Modern English Literature: Text & Transmission
Course descriptionProgramme description
- a strong tradition of Shakespeare and early modern literary studies at King’s.
- world leading expertise in the bibliographical make-up of early printed books and manuscripts at the British Library.
- unique focus on the transmission of key early modern literary texts.
This new MA programme marks the beginning of an innovative and exciting partnership between the Department of English at King’s and the British Library. It offers students the unique opportunity to study early modern literary texts not only in light of recent critical and literary approaches but also as material artefacts. The focus of this new MA course is on the transmission of key early modern literary texts. This makes it unlike any other programme of its kind. Transmission is understood both as the circulation of literary texts in manuscript and print and their reception. You will therefore study literary texts in their original editions and will learn about the contexts within which these texts were first produced, read or performed, as well as with their legacy, with particular emphasis on the afterlife of Shakespeare.
By focusing on transmission, this MA course will make you aware of the impact of the materiality of the text and of the material conditions of its (re)production on its interpretation. The specific process whereby a literary text reaches its readers or its audience is always central to its interpretation. The impact of publication is even more crucial during the early modern period, when the rise of print, the steady growth of a literary market and the advent of commercial playhouses did not displace but radically altered the structures of aristocratic patronage and coterie circulation associated with the production and reception of literary works at earlier times.
This MA programme draws on the great strengths of the Department of English at and the British Library. From Sir Israel Gollancz to Geoffrey Bullough to Richard Proudfoot the Department of English has been at the forefront of scholarship in the field of textual editing, particularly of the plays of Shakespeare. Current members of staff include three Arden editors one of whom is a general editor of the Arden Shakespeare, another of Arden Early Modern Drama. Equally, curatorial staff at the British Library are renowned for their expertise in historical bibliography and the history of the book.
Programme format and assessment
Core and optional modules assessed by coursework, plus a dissertation.
Duration
One year FT; two years PT; September to September.