Assessment

EN2M8-15: Choose a word – or words – and discuss the significance of its meaning in Hamlet (1500 words)

EN3M8-15: Choose a word – or words – and discuss the significance of its meaning in Hamlet (2000 words)

Assessment Guidance

• You can choose any word that appears in any or all editions of Hamlet. You can write about as many words as you want to: for example, you may want to write a series of 500-word entries on 3 or 4 words, or submit a 1,500/2,000-word submission on a single word.
• Resources to support your research are listed on the course webpage.
• Read across editions. You can also read across Shakespeare’s work if you would like to. Shakespeare’s Concordance will tell you where a particular word appears in Shakespeare’s work.
• Ensure you present your chosen word in its early modern context. However, you are welcome to also consider the word’s contemporary significance, or relevant critical responses.

Etymology Workshop Slides (note that a recording of this workshop can be accessed here)

Creative Project Assessment Guidelines

Creative projects must be devised in consultation with your tutor, and handed in by 15th December 2025.

Your creative project should respond to Hamlet in some way. Whilst you are welcome to draw on the various wider contexts introduced to you through the set secondary reading on the course, you can also choose to focus on something not explicitly discussed on the course that speaks to your wider interests. Like an essay, a creative project should be driven by a clear research question: this question should be developed in consultation with your tutor, and should enable you to demonstrate how your creative output is developed in response to your wider research. Either way, the aims of your project should be clear and focused, and expressed in the accompanying critical reflection (1,500/2,000 words).

The 'creative' component of your submission can take any form - from performance, to music, to art, to writing - and make use of any medium - words, movement, paint, digital resources. You will need to submit a final piece based on your research activities (guidance on submission below). You may also want to submit additional materials to demonstrate the development of your work. Note that the submission of additional materials to evidence project development is not a compulsory component of the assessment, but may be useful as a way to demonstrate how your final piece responds to your wider research activities.

The 'critical reflection' component of your submission should indicate the thinking, analysis and research which has led to your final creative piece. It should be structured in the manner of a normal academic essay, with a clear sense of focused, analytical thinking and wider reading. You should reflect on the extent to which your project has helped you to explore, and perhaps answer, your research question. The essay should include a bibliography and be presented to normal scholarly standards.

Note that there is no lower word or time limit on creative projects. The maximum word limit is 5,000 words. This means that the maximum word limit for your creative project and critical reflection is 6,500 for Intermediate students, and 7,000 for Finalists.

Please note that the University Health and Safety department provides guidance on all aspects of health and safety at the university for all staff, students and visitors. When planning your creative project, do discuss your planned work with your tutor and/or a health and safety adviser if you have any concerns.

Creative Project Submission Guidelines

 You are only able to submit one piece of work for assessment on Tabula, so you will need to include all your digital materials - creative piece, supportive materials, and critical reflection - in one file that is uploaded to Tabula. Note that all critical reflections must be submitted on Tabula.

• If you need to upload additional digital files for your creative piece - for example, a music/film recording - you should upload your files to your student OneDrive account, and display the link to this file prominently at the top of your submission. Ensure you have correctly edited viewing/sharing rights to enable your tutors to access the file by granting access to users with existing Warwick accounts. Guidance on file sharing using OneDrive can be found here.
• If you have produced a physical artefact, please provide appropriate photographic documentation of the artefact as part of your Tabula submission.
• If your project involves a live performance, you should speak to your tutor as soon as possible to arrange a time for the performance which is convenient for both markers. You will be responsible for the booking of rooms and equipment yourself.

Marking Creative Projects

The project will be marked according to the assessment criteria in the English handbook. Clearly these criteria apply more to the essay than the project itself. The essay should therefore make the rationale for the project and the thinking behind it as clear as possible, since it is ultimately by this that the project itself will be judged. You are not, remember, being marked on your ability to create a skilfully-produced artefact: the project will be marked first and foremost as a piece of intellectual exploration