Examples of texts (which may vary)
One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez (1967)
Midnight's Children - Salman Rushdie (1981)
Nights at the Circus - Angela Carter (1984)
The Hundred Secret Senses - Amy Tan (1995)
Venus as a Boy - Luke Sutherland (2004)

Selected Secondary Material
Faris, W.B. and L.P. Zamora eds. (1995) Magical Realism: Theory, Hostory. Community. London: Duke U.P.
Bowers, Maggie Ann (2004) Magic(al) Realism. London: Routledge.
Mendoza, P.A. (1983) The Fragrance of Guava: conversations with Gabriel Garcia Marquez. London: Faber and Faber

PC Projector
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.

Contact teaching will be a mix of of lecture, 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).

Key Information Set:
15% scheduled learning and teaching activities
85% guided independent learning

This module surveys the development of the magical realist novel throughout the late twentieth century and into the twenty-first. In doing so, it traces emergent voices from political positions which are marginalised in Western society: voices which must alter the standard realist contract in order to express their difference from hegemony. Through a study of this literary style, we will debate issues relating to gender, 'race', ethnicity, postcolonialism, nationality and class. In addition, we will keep a steady focus on postmodernity and its implications for the traditional realist novel, thus maintaining a strong theoretical and philosophical bent to this module.

1. DEMONSTRATE DETAILED AND COHERENT KNOWLEDGE OF SOME OF THE KEY ISSUES AND DEBATES IN THE STUDY OF MAGICAL REALIST LITERATURE.
Knowledge & Understanding

2. DEMONSTRATE SKILLS OF ENQUIRY AND ANALYSIS IN RELATION TO TWO OR MORE MAGICAL REALIST TEXTS AND A RANGE OF APPROPRIATE CRITICAL/THEORETICAL SOURCES.
Analysis

3. SHOW A CRITICAL UNDERSTANDING OF THE HISTORY, CONTEXT AND EVOLUTION OF MAGICAL REALISM.
Application
Learning

4. DRAW CONNECTIONS AND CONTRASTS BETWEEN MAGICAL REALIST TEXTS AND CRITICAL/THEORETICAL DEBATES.
Reflection

5. PRODUCTE A CLEARLY STRUCTURED PIECE OF CRITICAL OR CREATIVE WRITING WHICH ARTICULATES CONCEPTS ASSOCIATED WITH MAGICAL REALIST FICTION.
Communication

Mid-semester essay, 1500 words, 25% [Learning Outcomes 1, 3, 4, 5]

An end of course essay, 2500 WORDS weighted at 75% [Learning Outcomes 1-5].
OR
A short story in the magical realist style (Story 2,500 words, 75%) [Learning outcomes: 1, 3, 4, 5]
OR
A collection of poetry in the magical realist style (Poetry, 8 pages, 75%) [Learning outcomes: 1, 3, 4, 5]

The text discussed in the first essay may not be discussed in the second essay.
Students will receive guidance regarding which assessed format is most suitable to them.