Romance: Narratives of Imagination (ENGL1114)
School of Social and Cultural Studies (School of Humanities) - University of Western Australia
Semester 2 / 2009

Texts

y separately published work icon The Submerged Cathedral Charlotte Wood , Milsons Point : Vintage Australia , 2004 Z1099939 2004 single work novel (taught in 1 units)

‘Set me as a seal on your heart, for love is stronger than death.'

'Spanning many years, travelling across Australia's vast continent and through some of Europe's great cities, The Submerged Cathedral is a beguiling, heartbreaking story of paradise and the fall, of sacrifice and atonement, and of sisterly love and rivalry. Most of all, however, it is about an enduring and sacred love – a love stronger than death – and the journeys undertaken in its name. Written in spare, haunting prose, this novel is a work of the highest literary merit, as well as a timeless love story that will enthrall readers. The release of Charlotte Wood's acclaimed first novel, Pieces of a Girl, marked her as a young writer of great promise; The Submerged Cathedral thrillingly confirms that promise with astonishing assurance and lyricism.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.
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In the Skin of a Lion!$!Ondaatje, Michael!$!!$!Pan Macmillan!$!1988
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Jane Eyre!$!Bronte, Charlotte!$!!$!Oxford University Press!$!2008
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Description

Outcomes: Students are able to (1) read and analyse a major cultural genre, romance, through the close study of a wide selection of its varieties in literature and film; (2) understand and employ key concepts used in the interpretation of literary and film narratives; (3) read and analyse individual texts in relation to the culture, history and ideology of the periods in which they were written; (4) decode the ideologies of contemporary forms of romance; (5) inform and challenge one's independent analyses and ideas with discriminating reading in critical, scholarly and theoretical literature; (6) express ideas, information and argument concisely and clearly in written and oral forms; (7) inform others helpfully in discussion and learn from their contributions; and (8) respect and practise the correct forms of citation, quotation and bibliographical reference.

Content: Romances are beautiful lies, always entertaining, but also ideologically loaded. This unit examines a range of stories of love and war, of mystery and imagination, with an emphasis on their social and political implications in different historical eras from the Middle Ages to the postmodern present. The materials used include films and an exciting variety of written texts including a modern romance novel.

Assessment

This comprises tutorial participation, written assignments and a final examination.

Other Details

Current Campus: Crawley, Albany
Levels: Undergraduate
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