English Literature Summer School
**For 2013 Debate Chamber is offering TWO English Literature Schools, allowing us to cover the material in much greater depth**
The English Summer School – Part 1 will cover literature dating from 650 to 1790, including Middle English, Medieval Literature, Chaucer, The Renaissance, Shakespeare, Restoration Literature and the Rise of the Novel. In addition we will also be covering Historicist and Feminist critical approaches as part of this Summer School.
The English Literature Summer School – Part 1 will be held on 29th July – 2nd August 2013 (places available). See a full schedule here.
The English Summer School – Part 2 will cover literature dating from 1790 to 2013, including Romanticism and the Gothic Movement, Victorian Sensation Novels, Literature and the British Empire, Modernism, Postmoderism and Contemporary Literature. We will be covering the ‘Death of the Author’ and Postcolonial criticism as part of this Summer School.
The English Literature Summer School – Part 2 will be held on 5th – 9th August 2013 (places available). See a full schedule here.
Please note that students can attend both Parts of the Summer School, or just one, depending on their literary interests. Although the courses complement one another, they can also be treated as stand alone events and there is no requirement to have attended Part 1 in order to register for Part 2.
Thematic coverage by period, combining close study of texts with lectures on historical and cultural context, and setting major authors side-by-side with less familiar works, will help students to appreciate the development of prose, verse and drama in English from the middle ages to the present day. We will not only engage in close textual analysis but also evaluate these movements in the light of the poets’ own critical writing. In drama, we will compare playscripts to film adaptations, read through sections of the works using different performance theories, and attend a performance at the Globe theatre (optional evening activity for English Summer School – Part 1). Literary theory and criticism will play an important role in each Summer School, and students will be invited to examine texts they have studied in the light of competing theories of the nature and value of literature and the role of the critic. We will look in particular at Feminist, Historicist, Postcolonial and Deconstructivist approaches to literature.
The tutors for the course range widely in their specialisms, from Medieval folk tales to Renaissance drama to contemporary criticism. This ensures that students will benefit from the broadest possible range of perspectives and approaches.
University of London Union • 5 days • open to students aged 15-18
Feedback from the English Literature Summer School 2012 – read more here:
“The Debate Chamber English Literature course takes English to a level that I had not yet covered at AS and so it was extremely useful in preparation for my A2 course. Not only this, but as it covered literature through all ages it helped give me a very broad idea of all literature and opened my eyes to types of literature that I had not yet come across. Thoroughly enjoyable.”
“I returned home Friday evening and my parents said “did you enjoy it then?” and I replied by explaining how it was one of the best weeks of my life. An opportunity that should not be missed out on! First class teaching, good friends to be made and new things to learn. Loved it is an understatement!”
“Attending English Literature Summer School has broadened my interests outside the A Level curriculum. Subjects I thought I disliked – Shakespeare, Medieval Lit, Middle English – have become exciting and approachable. I know what I have learned during this week will become invaluable in application to A Level work.”
“This great course gives you a real feel for all English literature from middle English to current day. It was brilliantly organized, and the tutors were wonderful. It not only gave me the tools I need to analyze literature, it also made me realize that I really enjoy it! I loved it!”
Book a place:
The cost of the English Literature Summer School – Part 1 is £390, the cost of the English Literature Summer School – Part 2 is £390, and the cost of booking both parts together is £700. Please note that accommodation is not included, and must be arranged independently if required. Bookings for any event may be made by individual students or parents or through the school. To book a place or places at the English Summer School, or if you have any further questions, simply call on 0845 519 4827, email info@debatechamber.com, or use the form below.
Debate Chamber offers a limited number of full and partial bursaries to students who could not otherwise afford to attend. If you are applying for a bursary please do not complete this form, but instead complete the ‘Bursary Application Form’ here.