20 Credits AUTUMN



Aims/Description: This module explores the ways early modern writers understood and portrayed what we usually call emotions, but which they might term passions, affections, and feelings. You will read a wide range of texts, including poetry, drama, letters, and diaries and will analyse them in the context of early modern theories of emotion. Considering emotions such as despair and anxiety through to belonging and ecstasy, you will investigate how literary texts both express and elicit feeling. The module addresses how early modern writers conceptualise the relationship between the mind and the body, the connections between emotion and literary form, the ways in which emotions were embodied in theatrical performance, and the intersections between emotion and gender, race, religion, and class.

Staff Contact: RHATIGAN EMMA K
Teaching Methods: Lectures, Seminars, Independent Study
Assessment: Course work

Information on the department responsible for this unit (English):

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Teaching timetable

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NOTE
The content of our courses is reviewed annually to make sure it's up-to-date and relevant. Individual modules are occasionally updated or withdrawn. This is in response to discoveries through our world-leading research; funding changes; professional accreditation requirements; student or employer feedback; outcomes of reviews; and variations in staff or student numbers. In the event of any change we'll consult and inform students in good time and take reasonable steps to minimise disruption.

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Teaching methods and assessment displayed on this page are indicative for 2025-26.

Western Bank, Sheffield, S10 2TN, UK