A presentation on Beat writing that demonstrates an understanding of relevant critical/ theoretical material. Learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4. (20%)

Main assessment:
an essay (3500 words, 80%) [Learning Outcomes: 1, 2, 3, 4]
OR
a short story or collection of poetry in the Beat style or one that employs techniques studied on the module (3500 words, 80%) [Learning Outcomes: 1, 3, 4]

Students will be encouraged to seek advice from tutors regarding which main assessment piece is most appropriate for them.

When does a counter-cultural movement become canonized? Why do some cultural forms become synonymous with the radical past of the 1950s and 1960s, and why are others neglected? What happens when radicalism becomes popularized and commodified? This course will explore these and many other concerns by examining the popularity, mythology and currency of a group of writers known as the Beat Generation. We will explore how and why these writers gained counter-cultural ascendancy in post-war America; we will look closely at the formal techniques of these writers (the influence of Walt Whitman the relationship to surrealism and Dadaism) and we will look closely at the relationship between counter-cultural forms and the formation of a canon. How and why have some writers remained synonymous with his movement? Why have female Beat writers such as Diane Di Prima only recently received critical attention? What is the relationship between Beat writing and African American culture? During the course we will focus on a number of seminal Beat texts, such as Howl and Naked Lunch, but we will expand our understanding of this movement by looking at fringe writers, including Bob Kaufman and Harold Norse.

OHP
Video/DVD
Library
Internet

The Blackboard virtual learning environment will be available (where relevant) to support this module. Details will be supplied in the module handbook.

Burroughs, William. (2001) Soft machine. Flamingo.
Campbell, James. (1992). This is the Beat Generation. Faber.
Charters, Ann, ed. (1992) The Portable Beat Reader. Viking
Di Prima, Diane. (2002). Memoirs of a Beatnik.
Ginsberg, Allen. (2009). Howl, Kaddish and Other Poems. Penguin.
Kerouac, Jack. On the Road. (2007), Penguin.
Knight, Brenda. (1996). Women of the Beat Generation: The Writers, Artists, and Muses at the Heart of Revolution. Conari Press.
Lee, A. Robert. (1996). The Beat Generation Writers. Pluto

Contact teaching will be a mix of workshop and small group discussion. Students will be expected to work both independently (on research and preparation for both classes and assessments) and as part of a team (on some class exercises and presentation work).