HI7113 Big House and Hidden Ireland: Representation and Reality in Rural Ireland 1650-1840
Module Coordinator: Professor David Dickson
Duration: Hilary Term Term
ECTS: 10
Assessment:
Students will complete the equivalent of two essays of c.3,500 words. The first essay or equivalent assignments will be preliminary work. The second essay will carry the mark for the module.
This module will examine Irish rural society over two centuries, beginning with the writings of four canonical authors, William Petty, Arthur Young, Maria Edgeworth and Daniel Corkery; then, drawing on very different categories of historical evidence, it will survey the evolution of landed estates, landscape, agriculture and rural social relations. Running through the module will be the issue of Irish exceptionalism: students will be encouraged to explore relevant comparative literature on pre-industrial peasant societies in Europe and the European colonies.
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this module students should be able to:
- identify key political, social, economic and cultural issues in eighteenth and nineteenth-century Ireland, as revealed by in-depth analysis of relevant sources
- place this knowledge in the context of a broader knowledge and understanding of pre-industrial peasant societies elsewhere
- formulate research questions for the purposes of essay writing and oral presentations
- assess the various historiographical approaches and methodologies applied the this area of Irish history
- engage critically and in-depth with primary texts and secondary literature
- complete an intensive, self-motivated study of a relevant historical problem, with high quality research organization and presentation