Chronology (30%) (900 words approx) [Learning outcomes 1, 3]
Essay Brief (40%) (1200 words) [Learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4]
Assignment consisting of take-away unseen sources paper (30%) (900 words) [Learning outcomes 1, 2, 3]

The module encourages a critical attitude towards the designation `modern' and to C19 and C20 notions of the primacy of the nation and of progress. It seeks to provide C21 perspectives on the `modern' period from c.1750 onwards through an examination of the history of 'modern', 'modernism' and 'modernity'. Themes include: The Enlightenment 'project' of modernity; late C19 and early C20 modernism as a cultural movement; C20 critics and defenders of modernity; global and environmental history in contrast to the modern as the product of the industrial and French revolutions and national progress; the conceptual pairings of `West' and `Other', colonial and post-colonial, subject and hybridity, modern and postmodern; how postmodernism challenges Enlightenment and later positivist views of knowledge and truth, including the writing of history.

Weekly two-hour workshops introduce the main themes and arguments of the module content, including video extracts and images. They will also provide for follow-up discussion of the themes, and some analysis of primary source extracts and video extracts. Guidance is given on research techniques, including at Level 3 journal article and on-line resource usage. The independent study element should be used for background reading, reading for the seminars, and research and preparation of the written assignments with consistent, accurate and fully traceable referencing and bibliography.

Library books, journals, and electronic resources.
The Blackboard virtual learning environment will be available (where relevant) to support this module. Details will be supplied in the module handbook.

Bayly, C.A. The Birth of the Modern World 1780-1914: Global connections & Comparisons Blackwell, Oxford, 2004
Bennett, Tony et al. (eds.) New Keywords: A Revised Vocabulary of Culture and Society, Blackwell, Oxford, 2005
Hall, Stuart et. al (eds.) Modernity: An Introduction to Modern Societies, Blackwell, Oxford, 1996 Iggers, Georg G. & Wang, Q. Edward A Global History of Modern Historiography, Pearson, Harlow, 2008
Jervis, John Exploring the Modern: Patterns of Western Culture and Civilization, Blackwell, Oxford, 1998
McGuigan, Jim Modernity and Postmodern Culture, Open University Press, Maidenhead, 2nd edn.
2006
Peterson del Mar, David Environmentalism, Pearson, Harlow, 2006