Postgraduate Research in English Literature
Page for Postgraduate Events and Research in English Literature
A new year, and a new theme for Works Loved. In our first session of 2020, we’ll share texts that explore fresh starts, new beginnings, and other kinds of reinvigoration. All types of texts are welcome – and as always, feel free to mix up the tone with a drastic ending! An extra challenge: accounts … Continue reading “Works Loved: New Beginnings (Wed 15 Jan)”
For this festive edition of Works Loved, we’ll be sharing texts that explore festivities, celebrations, and other occasions that are – or should be – joyful. All types of texts, phrases, and festive figures are welcome, from Scrooge to Santa – or feel free to change the tone with a non-festive favourite. Reflections: We had … Continue reading “Works Loved: Festive Favourites (Wed 11 Dec)”
On the first day of UCU industrial action at UoB, we’re taking Page Breaks to a teach out and discussing ‘literary activism’. Join us at the S’Oak, in Selly Oak, and see the full schedule of teach outs here: https://tinyurl.com/BUCUteachouts
On 20 November, we’ll be reading a longer work than usual: James Baldwin’s 1956 novel Giovanni’s Room. Sometimes described as Baldwin’s most controversial fiction, Giovanni’s Room explores home, nationality and sexuality in the setting of postwar Paris.
Stephen King is one of the authors whose work we encountered in our Halloween Works Loved session. This week we’ll discuss his advice on writing a compelling opening sentence. As you’re reading King’s suggestions and examples, you may also think of opening lines that have drawn you into a text – if so, please bring … Continue reading “Page Breaks: Opening Lines (Wed 13 Nov)”
Launching with a first session on 7 November, GOTHICA is a new, interdisciplinary, postgraduate-led reading group interested in the ever-present role of the Gothic in popular fiction and culture.
James Baldwin’s essay recounts his brief imprisonment in late 1940s Paris, exploring institutional systems, race, and being American in Europe.
In this chapter from his 1964 book The Machine in the Garden, Leo Marx examines American pastoral, Elizabethan travel narratives, and Shakespeare’s Tempest.
For the Halloween edition of Works Loved, we’ll be sharing some texts that explore elements that are eerie, unsettling, or downright terrifying. These might be fiction, theory, or something else – and you’re also very welcome to bring a non-spooky text you’ve enjoyed.
Toni Morrison’s essay on altruism and the literary imagination explores the role of goodness in fiction and reflects on why “evil has a blockbuster audience”.
