Module outline
The period from 1500 to 1800 saw seminal changes in the geography of Britain. Britain itself was forged out of the multiple kingdoms of England, Scotland and Wales. Within that nation, massive changes were effected in towns and countryside by industrialisation, population growth and other social and economic forces. Beyond the nation, an empire was built by the British in North America, India and later in Africa, all this occurring in the face of opposition from both indigenous peoples and rival imperialist powers. This course looks at the ways in which these massive shifts in the geography of Britain were reflected in English literature, broadly conceived to include not only novels and poetry, but also essays, travel accounts and other tracts. In this course, we will see how Britian was conceptualised at the time of its construction and how the British saw their European neighbours and the wider world, all this through the eyes of some of the greatest writers the English language has produced: Shakespeare, Milton and Johnson, for example.

Areas covered:

• Relations in Britain: images of the Welsh, Scottish, Irish and English in literature
• British national identities in literature
• Town, country and gardens in English literature
• British images of its European rivals
• The British Empire and literature
• British literature and the wider world
• British literary utopias

Aims of the module
This module aims to introduce students to the history of geography and geography's interweaving with literature, seeing both as forms of human enquiry.