BA (Hons) History

This module is designed to give you the best possible start to your university studies, making sure you have all the essential skills you need to succeed. Through lectures and workshops we will teach you how to write in an academic style, how to find quality sources, and how to reference work, culminating in writing up a mini-research project.

This module equips you with a suite of analytical and theoretical tools to support you as you progress along your academic journey. You'll develop an interdisciplinary understanding of approaches to study in the humanities by working with a variety of resources, including novels, films and aspects of the visual arts.

This module will equip you with the necessary skills to conduct and analyse research in a specific interest, supported by academics within your subject. You'll navigate through the research process, from identifying an area of interest to presenting findings to your peers.

Formulate and execute a group led enquiry into texts, cultural artefacts, film, music or dance. You'll explore their topics in groups at supervised workshops and develop questions on the cultural object relates to the living world of human experience, as well as developing your own methods to answer these questions.

Develop a strong foundation in data collection and analysis. This module will introduce you to qualitative and quantitative data and how to analyse it; the collection of primary and secondary data; the production of high-quality graphics; and report writing.

Developing confidence in expression, oral as well as written, is a key feature of this module, which aims to familiarise you with university submission and assessment procedures. This is a clear building block towards your degree programme and places you at a distinct advantage when you move into the following year.

What does it mean to be free and how has the answer to this question changed over time? In ancient and medieval times, there was no expectation of individual freedom as we understand it today, rather there were degrees of ‘unfreedom’ such as slavery, serfdom, or vassalage. Later, in the age of empire, race determined who could be enslaved, and the slave trade’s legacies of racism persist into the present day: the civil rights movements and the struggle against apartheid are known as some of the most prominent recent fights for freedom. Nonetheless, the idea of freedom has far broader connotations, and you will also have the flexibility to explore diverse issues such as religious, cultural or personal freedoms.

Revolutions are processes and events of profound and enduring change, but they are not just about politics. Before the great revolutions in America, France, Haiti and Russia, global history experienced sweeping changes in society, ideas and technology. Revolutions are not modern phenomena, and they do not belong strictly to Europe: they are ancient and they have taken place all over the globe since the beginning of ‘recorded’ history. This module will widen your perspective on ‘revolutions’ by examining a number of revolutionary moments in world history, from ancient times to the present. These will range across technological, social, religious and political revolutions.

No matter how modern we think we are, we’re still shaped by the classical past. In every age, the classical world has been used as a benchmark for good taste and has been re-invented for present purposes. Using the artworks, archaeology and artefacts of material and visual culture, this module will explore topics such as how the classical world provided a blueprint for the projection of power through imagery and architecture. From the posturing of great leaders, such as the portraits of Napoleon, to the grand civic buildings of Washington DC or Albert Speer’s designs for Hitler’s Berlin, the classical world has been influential throughout history.