Satire, Scandal and Society 1700-1740

Credits: 15.0
Overlap: None
Prerequisite: None

This module examines the role played by satire and satirists in the cultural debates of the early eighteenth
century, introducing students to modes of satire in a variety of genres. The module traces the genealogy of
English Augustan satire and explores the ways in which classical models are imitated and adapted in response
to the challenges of an increasingly commercial society. We will consider how the idea of $ùGrub Street reflects
satirists anxieties about the innovative energy of a modern and supposedly debased literary culture. The module
will also examine new forms of satiric writing in the period (such as scandal and gossip) and the social
construction of the satirist, and will treat as central the question of the gendered status of satire.

Assessment: 100.0% Coursework
Level: 5