This course will introduce students to the many choices and dilemmas, both scholarly and worldly, faced by biographers, and give them a sense of the genre’s development. It will examine several case studies of how professional biographers have used primary sources in interesting ways, taking subjects largely but not exclusively from Britain 1500-1800. There will be emphasis on excellence of writing as much as research, with students required to produce one short piece of written work early in the course and, at the end, a 4000 word essay for examination. The latter will focus on assessment of previous biographies of a single subject, selected by each student, or a single biographical subject of the student's own choosing.
CITATIONS FOR SUMMER READING:
In order of importance:
Field, Ophelia, The Kit-Kat Club (HarperPerennial paperback 2009)
Field, Ophelia, The Favourite (Hodder & Stoughton paperback 2002)
and to start exploring general issues of biography:
Holmes, Richard, Dr Johnson and Mr Savage (HarperPerennial paperback 2005)
Malcolm, Janet, The Silent Woman (Granta paperback 2005)
Provisional schedule for the first half of the module, up to Reading Week (week 7):
Week 1
Introductions and discussion of course structure, requirements and students’ expectations.
A short history of biography and its implications for biographers today, including discussion of The Silent Woman (1995).
Week 2
Case Study: The Favourite (2002), in comparison with extracts from An Account of the Conduct of the Dowager Duchess of Marlborough (1742) and various other primary sources, including portraits.
Week 3
Case Study: Dr Johnson & Mr Savage (1993) in comparison with extracts from Johnson’s Life of Savage (1744), Boswell’s Life of Johnson (1791), Johnson’s Rambler No.60 (1750), etc.
Week 4
Case Studies: The Unequalled Self (2002) in comparison with extracts from The Diary of Samuel Pepys (1660-69).
The Ballad of Dorothy Wordsworth (2008) in comparison with extracts from The Grasmere and Alfoxden Journals (2002 edition).
Week 5
Case Study: The Kit-Cat Club (2008) in comparison to various source materials, including an exercise on note-taking, using Jonathan Swift’s Journal to Stella.
Discussion of group biography as a genre subset. How to write a book proposal.
Week 6
Case Study: A Year in the Life of William Shakespeare, 1599 (2005) in comparison to extracts from other Shakespeare biographies. Dealing with fragmentary and fictional evidence.
Week 7
Reading Week
Weeks 8-12
TBC (second part of semester tailored to student needs)
