English – Diploma in Arts

An introduction to the nature and functions of literary texts and the ways in which they are invested with meaning, with a focus on the skills necessary for reading and writing critically about them.

Restrictions: 139171

A study of the relationship between self and nature as explored in texts by British writers of the period 1780-1830.

A study of selected dramatic works by William Shakespeare, taking a thematic overview across a variety of dramatic genres and considering the plays in their original contexts as well as significant contemporary interpretations.

Restrictions: 139301

A study of the fundamental elements of crime stories and the social significance of crime as a narrative genre in relation to questions of social order, law and justice.

An introduction to reading, thinking, and writing about literature from the past four centuries, with a focus on the way that literary texts reflect and engage with the historical, social, political and cultural contexts in which they were written.

A course in writing non-fiction genres for the public, informed by a broad historical understanding of the emergence of the public sphere and its current reshaping in the digital age. Students apply rhetorical theory and theories of argument in their own writing and in analysing works by selected public intellectuals.

Prerequisites: 230100 or 230111 or 119155 or 247155 or 119177 or 219100 or 192102 or 247177

An introduction to American literature, focusing on key novels, short stories and poems from the Romantic period through to the postmodern, and their relation to their historical and cultural contexts.

An introduction to New Zealand’s literary history, focusing on important novels, short stories and poems in relation to their social and political contexts.

A study of young adult fiction and its reception. Focussing on classic and contemporary examples, the course explores the definition of the genre and its characteristic concerns, with a focus on case studies of popular and controversial texts.

A study of a variety of twentieth-century fiction and poetry. Emphasis will be given to aspects of literary modernism and postmodernism in order to contextualise the literary works.

An advanced exploration of the Early Modern poetry and drama of Shakespeare’s contemporaries, focusing on key themes, prominent genres, and the differing contexts of the royal court and the new world of the empowered citizen.

Restrictions: 139201

An advanced introduction to Victorian literature, highlighting the engagement by nineteenth century writers with questions of liberalism, democratisation, and the expansion of the British empire.

A study of the term 'Gothic' in literature and film, relating the enduring Gothic themes of fantasy, the unconscious and death to contemporary literary and social debates.

Restrictions: 139275

An exploration of the poetics and politics of experimentation and subversion in contemporary fiction and metafiction including analysis of the work (both creative and critical) of major practitioners, theorists and original student compositions.

In this course, students study and experience the principles, processes and practice of publishing, through the co-production of an online publication. Key concepts include teamwork, co-production, theme selection, peer review, production scheduling, source selection, and online publishing.

Prerequisites: Any 200-level course with a 139 prefix or 219202

A study of late-nineteenth and twentieth century novels in English, from diverse cultures, paying special attention to the ways in which these address the consequences of European colonisation. Recent postcolonial theory will provide a frame for textual analysis.

A study of contemporary Oceanic (Māori and Pasifika) literature in English contextualised in relation to customary and pre-colonial Oceanic literatures, narratives, and storytelling methods.

A study of patriarchal society and gender identity in selected literary texts.

Restrictions: 139361