LFU:online

- Introduction to the histories, impact and representations of the British class system.

- Discussion of class in a variety of text-types from novels, to music, photography and film.

In this seminar, we will discuss the histories, cultural impact, representations, and sense of identity resulting from the realities of the British class system. After an introduction to the emergence and development of the class system, we will explore a variety of text types to examine the (cultural) impact of this specific form of economic and social stratification.

We will also investigate how the class system intersects with cultural consumption, as seen in the debate on high-, middle-, and lowbrow culture. The seminar will conclude with a discussion on whether and how the class system is still a viable lens through which to perceive and discuss contemporary Britain, considering the impact of economic crisis, decades of austerity policies, Brexit, and ongoing de-industrialization.

Discussions will include, but are not restricted to, illustrations such as William Hogarth’s Gin Lane and Beer Lane, novels ranging from Charles Dickens's Great Expectations to Natasha Brown’s Assembly, documentary photography by Paul Graham and others, sociological, economic, and aesthetic discussions by the likes of Henry Mayhew and Virginia Woolf, as well as responses to the class system in pop culture from Punk to Pulp.

- In-Class Discussions

- Presentations

(Methods may change based on the content, class-size, specific learning outcomes.)

- Term-Paper

- Abstract

Please buy the following two novels:

Brown, Natasha. Assembly. London: Penguin, 2022. ISBN:  ‎ 0241992664

Dickens, Charles. Great Expectations. London: Penguin, 2003. ISBN: 9780141439563.

All other texts will be provided via OLAT.

MA: keine

Lehramtsstudium 2001: abgeschlossener 1. Studienabschnitt

Aufgrund der substanziell unterschiedlichen Zuteilung von ECTS-AP in den verschiedenen Curricula des MA Anglistik und Amerikanistik und des Lehramtsstudiums Englisch ergeben sich für diese Lehrveranstaltung unterschiedliche Anforderungen. Informationen hierzu erhalten Sie bei Beginn der Lehrveranstaltung durch die Lehrveranstaltungsleiterin/den Lehrveranstaltungsleiter.