IP226/IP326 The Liquid Continent

Module leader: Dr William RuppLink opens in a new window

Optional module

15 CATS

Term 2

10 weeks

Moodle Platform

Important information

This module will be open to final year students in Liberal Arts and other departments.

Principal Aims

The Mediterranean occupies a complex and critical place in the development of human culture and society, and of its psyche. Plato described the inhabitants of its shores as 'liv[ing] around the sea like ants and frogs around a pond.' Herodotus and al-Idrisi wrote of its coasts and wondered and mapped its islands and inlets. Poets from Homer to Cavafy have mythologised its dangers and wonders. Traders from the Phonecians on its eastern shores to the Nasrid Kingdom of the Iberrian Penninsula at its western end have grown rich (and poor again) on its resources and, in the process, created a dense web of intercultural connections. Empires spanning continents have used it as both super highway and defensive wall. It is easy to get lost in the alluring grand narratives of the Mediterranean world. Few of us, however, have stopped to consider the Mediterranean as a entity in and of itself. This module, through an interactive and transdiciplinary design, seeks to contextualise the Mediterranean as Jean Cocteau envisaged it: as a liquid continent.

Taking an intellectual lead from scholars such as Braudel and via the lens of four micro case studies centred on important ports (Alexandria (Egypt), Beruit, Istanbul, and Vencie), this module will explore how the Mediterranean has been a key factor in the development of political systems, global exchange, three major world religions, and social movements from pre-history to the modern day. Participants will be able to chart their own personal and intellectual journeys across one of the most visible -- and invisible -- global geographic features. Students will be encouraged to focus on specific aspects of interest and relevancy to them, including but not limited to archaelogy, trade and commerce, conservation and sustainability, migration and refugees, tourism, religion and belief, and politics. Collaborative learning will be a key aspect of the collective experience, with the final assessment offering a wider sharing of ideas and debates.

Principal Learning Outcomes

This module aims to broaden out both the spatial offerings of the Liberal Arts catalogue and provide students with different epistemological perspectives. It will do so by looking at the Mediterranean region from a variety of perspectives and allow students to focus on topics and elements of focus that are relevant to them. This can range from historical and cultural approaches, through to religion and philosophy, to geopolitics and sustainability issues, and beyond. The assessments are designed to give students the opportunity respond authentically to the content prompts.

Additionally, this module seeks to augment the wider offering of Liberal Arts modules. Students will be able to readily transfer skills and concepts from this module to other modules and vice versa. This module is also designed to integrate well to the Venice offerings.

Upon completion of this module, you will be able to:

Describe key aspects of the Mediterranean world's history, geopolitics, culture, religion, and environment.
Demonstrate problem-based learning skills.
Examine key critical issues relating to the Mediterranean world with the goal of identifying appropriate solutions and responses.
Critique theoretical positions drawn from a number of disciplines relating to various aspects of the Mediterranean.
Design and construct responses that articulate your own investigations in topics presented in or inspired by topics included.

Indicative Syllabus

Week 1: Defining the liquid continent: the Mediterranean in human consciousness.

Week 2: 'Our one and only tent… and our one and only star' (Darwish): Beruit and the linkages between 'east' and 'west'.

Week 3: Second part of Beruit case study.

Week 4: 'Only the city is real' (Durrell): Alexandria and the linkages between 'north' and 'south'.

Week 5: Second part of Alexandria case study.

Week 6: 'If the earth were a single state, Istanbul would be its capital' (Bonaparte): Istanbul as a global crossroads

Week 7: Second part of Istanbul case study.

Week 8: 'What news on the Rialto?': Venice and the problems of empire(s).

Week 9: Second part of Venice case study.

Week 10: Voyages of the mind made manifest (presentations/poster session). Students will present their itineraries in poster form. Each student will be asked to give a brief presentation of their work and view, and ask questions, of what their peers have produced.

Assessment Illustrative Reading List Employability Skills

Through this module, you will develop different skills that are sought by employers which will support your professional development. We have highlighted this to enable you to identify and reflect on the skills you have acquired and apply them throughout your professional journey including during the recruitment process whether this is in a CV/application form or at an interview.

Critical and independent thinking — developed through: Weekly tasks, readings, and homework; encounters with and employment of complex theories of spatial poetics, orientalism, and postcolonial thought; encounters with earthly paradise depictions from ancient world to present day and the need to find, evaluate, and critique connections between these (along with their reception); and Problem-Based Learning activities and in-class discussion.
Written communication – developed through: Research Essay; and weekly reflection diaries (blogs) with ongoing weekly feedback for each student.
Oral communication – developed through: Presentation at the end of term where students create their own paradise space and explain why/how they created it in line with texts and theories seen in the module; and weekly seminar tasks and presentations.
Research and evaluation – developed through: Weekly problems and tasks that require the students to research and evaluate issues concerning the origin, function, purpose, and power of earthly paradise narratives; and the final research paper involves the formulation of their own research question and conducting their own in-depth reviews and analysis of theories, archival materials, case studies, or interpretations of expressive works (fiction, non-fiction, and many works that defy and question this binary).
Time and self-management — developed through: Weekly groupwork and problems; a series of five pop quizzes throughout the term that measure engagement both with the readings and with in-class discussions; group presentation where students create their own paradise and provide analysis of the choices that shape the spatial poetics, illusory nature of joy and healing, cultural appropriation, and underlying problems in their earthly paradise. The project requires consistent group work, task management, and the keeping of a groupwork diary/log; and Weekly readings, problems, and tasks (sometimes in groups, other times individually).

Please note: Module availability and staffing may change year on year depending on availability and other operational factors. The School for Cross-faculty Studies makes no guarantee that any modules will be offered in a particular year, or that they will necessarily be taught by the staff listed on these pages.