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Module Catalogue

HI291-15 Britain in the Twentieth Century: A Social History

Department
History
Level
Undergraduate Level 2
Module leader
Laura Schwartz
Credit value
15
Assessment
100% coursework
Study location
University of Warwick main campus, Coventry

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Introductory description

n/a

Module web page

Module aims

This undergraduate second-year option module explores the history of Britain in the twentieth-century from a social history perspective. It pays special attention to the experiences and everyday lives of ‘the people’ rather than focusing on the actions of a powerful elite. It introduces students to historiographical, methodological and political approaches associated with social history, such as ‘history from below’, labour history and the history of everyday life, critically examining them in light of feminist and postcolonial scholarship. It examines how gender, race and class united and divided ‘the British people’ and shaped British identity. It examines the roles of social change, war, Empire, culture, and politics in the construction of the nation. It considers the relationship between British identity and that of the four constituent nations of the United Kingdom, and it concludes with examination of the roles of history and the heritage industry in the narration of the nation. Throughout the module students will be asked to reflect upon their own position as students living and studying in Britain, and how the past has shaped the world we live in today

Outline syllabus

This is an indicative module outline only to give an indication of the sort of topics that may be covered. Actual sessions held may differ.

The course introduces students to the rapidly expanding body of historical work on twentieth-century Britain. Its focus is primarily cultural and social rather than political, and it considers the following themes:

  • the position of Empire in national life
  • the impact of the First World War
  • the role of mass forms of popular culture in a democratic age
  • changing gender roles
  • the impact of the Second World War
  • the extent to which the Welfare State changed the relationship between the people and the state
  • the changing shape and fortunes of the working class
  • the degree to which traditional values declined in the 1960s
  • immigration and race in post-war Britain
  • nationalism, Europe and the ‘break-up’ of Britain
  • the role of the heritage culture

Learning outcomes

By the end of the module, students should be able to:

  • The further development of study, writing and communication skills.
  • The opportunity, through writing a 3,000 word essay, to develop capacities needed to advance a well-informed and independent historiographical argument. This will involve: o Locating and analysing relevant material - mainly secondary literature, but also an awareness of the potential for supplementing this with primary material if appropriate; o understanding, summarising and intelligently responding to the historiography on the subject in question; o and writing up research findings in a form similar to that employed by articles for academic journals.
  • The ability to think critically about nation, gender, race and class as organising categories in the writing of modern history.
  • A critical appreciation of the idea that the nation is in part an ‘imagined community’, an awareness of the multiple factors, contestation, ideology and power which may lie behind this process, and an appreciation of the divisions of class, gender and race.
  • The development of an historical and reflexive perspective to situate contemporary debates about national identity and sovereignty in Britain.
  • The ability to think critically about a variety of historiographical and methodological models associated with ‘social history’.

Indicative reading list

Reading lists can be found in Talis

Subject specific skills

No subject specific skills defined for this module.

Transferable skills

No transferable skills defined for this module.

Study time

Type Required
Lectures 9 sessions of 1 hour (6%)
Seminars 9 sessions of 1 hour (6%)
Tutorials 1 session of 1 hour (1%)
Private study 131 hours (87%)
Total 150 hours

Private study description

No private study requirements defined for this module.

Costs

No further costs have been identified for this module.

You do not need to pass all assessment components to pass the module.

Assessment group A1
Weighting Study time Eligible for self-certification
Assessment component
Oral Participation 10%
Reassessment component is the same
Assessment component
Essay plan 40% Yes (extension)
Reassessment component is the same
Assessment component
Word Essay 50% Yes (extension)
Reassessment component is the same
Feedback on assessment
  • written feedback on essay and exam cover sheets\r\n- student/tutor dialogues in one-to-one tutorials\r\n

There is currently no information about the courses for which this module is core or optional.