English in a Global Context: Linguistic Varieties and Literary-Cultural Productions
Code: 45346 ECTS Credits: 5| Degree | Type | Year |
|---|---|---|
| English Studies: Linguistic, Literary and Sociocultural Perspectives | OB | 1 |
Contact
- Name:
- Susagna Tubau Muntaņa
- Email:
- susagna.tubau@uab.cat
Teachers
- David Owen
Teaching groups languages
You can view this information at the end of this document.
Prerequisites
There are no prerequisites to take this course.
Objectives and Contextualisation
This subject offers a linguistic description (vocabulary, pronunciation and morphosyntax) of different varieties of English, both written and spoken, from around the world. These varieties will be studied from the perspective of their geographical origin and in relation to issues of social class, age, ethnicity and gender. Regional varieties, accents and creoles will be analysed through examples and studies related to literary and cultural texts, including poems, theatre plays, speeches, music and cinema. The differences between standard and non-standard varieties will be explored, as well as the positions, often stereotyped, of what "correct" English means, both in written and spoken language. The role of the language in Western civilization will be addressed, and so will be the differences between the language of prose and poetry, orality and the language of the novel, the role of language in culture and education and the limits of literary language.
Learning Outcomes
- CA04 (Competence) Formulate research proposals on the application of the study of varieties of English to speeches and social debates.
- CA05 (Competence) Participate effectively in working teams that reflect linguistic, cultural, and disciplinary diversity, both in terms of their composition and their approach to the content of the work.
- KA03 (Knowledge) Identify the various approaches (language, literary, cultural, and social) based on which the different varieties of English can be studied.
- KA04 (Knowledge) Recognise historical and contemporary standard and non-standard varieties of English (written and spoken) in literary and cultural productions.
- KA05 (Knowledge) Relate the use of varieties of English in literary and cultural productions to the representation of issues related to social class, age, ethnicity, and gender in these productions.
- SA06 (Skill) Apply knowledge about varieties of English to the study and the interpretation of literary and cultural texts.
- SA07 (Skill) Describe how the use of English and its varieties reflects the intersections of social class, age, ethnicity, and gender in the formation of identity.
- SA08 (Skill) Use tools for linguistic analysis and critical thinking in the study of the different uses and varieties of English in a global multilingual context.
Content
Week 1. From Chaucer to Stormzy – Literary Englishes Through Time
Week 2. Tongues of Rebellion – Youth, Slang and Invented Literary Englishes
Week 3. Creoles, Code-Switching and the Politics of Literary English
Week 4. Literary Limits – Who Owns English?
Week 5. Voice, Accent and Identity in Literary Global English
Week 6. Accent, language, dialect and variety; the expansion of English
Week 7 and 8. Some morphosyntactic features common to non-standard varieties of English
Week 9. Non-standard English pronunciation and its relation to language change
Week 10. Non-standard varieties of English and ethnicity, age and gender from a linguistic perspective
Weeks 1-5 will be taught by Dr. David Owen and weeks 6-10 by Dr. Susagna Tubau.
Activities and Methodology
| Title | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type: Directed | |||
| Lectures | 15 | 0.6 | |
| Practical classes | 5 | 0.2 | |
| Type: Supervised | |||
| Individual and group work and class discussion | 25 | 1 | |
| Type: Autonomous | |||
| Reading, personal study, assignment preparation and exercises | 55 | 2.2 |
Autonomous activities
Reading, personal study, assignment preparation and exercises
Directed activities
Lectures and practical classes
Supervised activities
Individual and group work and class discussion
Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.
Assessment
Continous Assessment Activities
| Title | Weighting | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assignment 1 | 25% | 6 | 0.24 | CA04, CA05, KA03, KA04, KA05, SA06, SA07, SA08 |
| Assignment 2 | 25% | 6.5 | 0.26 | CA04, CA05, KA03, KA04, KA05, SA06, SA07, SA08 |
| Assignment 3 | 25% | 6 | 0.24 | CA04, CA05, KA03, KA04, KA05, SA06, SA07, SA08 |
| Assignment 4 | 25% | 6.5 | 0.26 | CA04, CA05, KA03, KA04, KA05, SA06, SA07, SA08 |
Continuous assessment
Assignment 1 - On a topic connected with weeks 1 to 5 (25%)
Assignment 2 - On a topic connected with weeks 1 to 5 (25%)
Assignment 3 - On a topic connected with weeks 6 to 10 (25%)
Assignment 4 - On a topic connected with weeks 6 to 10 (25%)
The student will obtain a Not assessed/Not submitted course grade unless they have submitted more than 40% of the assessment items.
Single assessment
Submission of the 4 Assignments on a date specified at the beginning of the course (Assignment 1, 25%; Assignment 2, 25%; Assignment 3, 25%; Assignment 4, 25%).
The student will obtain a Not assessed/Not submitted course grade unless they have submitted more than 40% of the assessment items.
Procedure of review of marks
After completing each assessment activity, the teacher will inform the student about the date and review procedure of the marks.
Reassessment (it applies to both kinds of assessment)
Re-assessment for this subject will be undertaken on an item-by-item basis, for which the following conditions are applicable:
- The student must previously have submitted a minimum of two-thirds of the course-assessment items.
- Any item awarded a grade of less than 4 may be re-assessed. The grade for those items awarded 4 or higher will be included in the calculation of the global average grade for the subject.
- The maximum grade for re-assessed items is 5.
VERY IMPORTANT: Total or partial plagiarism of any of the exercises will automatically be considered “fail” (0) for the plagiarized item. Plagiary is copying one or more sentences from unidentified sources, presenting it as original work (THIS INCLUDES COPYING PHRASES OR FRAGMENTS FROM THE INTERNET AND ADDING THEM WITHOUT MODIFICATION TO A TEXT WHICH IS PRESENTED AS ORIGINAL). Plagiarism is a serious offense. Students must learn to respect the intellectual property of others, identifying any source they may use, and take responsibility for the originality and authenticity of the texts they produce.
In the event of a student committing any irregularity that may lead to a significant variation in the grade awardedto an assessment activity, the student will be given a zero forthis activity, regardless of any disciplinary process that may take place. In the event of several irregularities in assessment activities of the same subject, the student will be given a zero as the final grade for this subject. Irregularities refer, for instance, to copying in an exam, copying from sources without indiacting authorship, or a misuse of AI such as presenting work as original that has been generated by an AI tool or programme. These evaluation activities will not be re-assessed.
This subject entirely prohibits the use of AI technologies in all of its activities. Any submitted work that contains content generated using AI will be considered academic dishonesty; the corresponding grade will be awarded a zero, without the possibility of reassessment. In cases of greater infringement, more serious action may be taken.
Bibliography
Achebe, Chinua. “The African Writer and the English Language.” Morning Yet on Creation Day, Heinemann, 1975.
Adams, G. Brendan. 1977. The dialects of Ulster. In Diarmaid Ó Muirthe (ed.), The English Language in Ireland . Dublin: Mercier Press, 56-70.
Aitchison, Jean. 1991. Language Change: Progress or Decay?. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Alvi, Moniza. “Presents from My Aunts in Pakistan.” Carrying the Words, Bloodaxe Books, 2000.
Anderwald, Lieselotte. 2002. Negation in Non-Standard British English. Gaps, regularizations and asymmetries. London: Routledge.
Bauer, Laurie. 1994. English in New Zealand. In Robert W. Burchfield (ed.), The Cambridge History of the English Language. Vol. V: English in Britain and Overseas, Origins and Developments. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 382-429.
Bauer, Laurie. 2002. An Introduction to International Varieties of English. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
Bennett, Louise. Selected Poems. Sangster’s Book Stores, 1982.
Branford, William. 1994. English in South Africa. In Robert W. Burchfield (ed.), The Cambridge History of the English Language. Vol. V: English in Britain and Overseas, Origins and Developments. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 430-496.
Burgess, Anthony. A Clockwork Orange. Blake Morrison (ed.). London: Penguin Books. [1962]
Burns, Robert. “To a Mouse” and “A Man’s a Man for a’ That.” The Complete Poems and Songs of Robert Burns, Collins, 2009.
Butler, Susan. 2001. Australian English - an identity crisis. In David Blair and Peter Collins (eds.), English in Australia. Amsterdam and Philadelphia: Benjamins, 151-161.
Chaucer, Geoffrey. The Reeve’s Tale. The Riverside Chaucer, Oxford UP, 2008.
Das, Kamala. “An Introduction.” The Vintage Book of Modern Indian Literature, Vintage, 2004.
Dickens, Charles. Sketches by Boz. Oxford World’s Classics ed., Oxford UP, 2009.
Filppula, Markku. 1999. The Grammar of Irish English. London and New York: Routledge.
Johnson, Linton Kwesi. Mi Revalueshanary Fren: Selected Poems. Penguin Modern Classics, 2002.
Kortmann, Berndt & Edgar Schneider (eds.). 2004. A Handbook of Varieties of English: A multimedia reference tool. Mouton: de Gruyter.
Labov, William. 1994. Principles of Linguistic Change: Internal factors. Oxford and Cambridge, MA: Blackwell.
McClure, J. Derrick. 1994. English in Scotland. In Robert W. Burchfield (ed.), The Cambridge History of the English Language. Vol. V: English in Britain and Overseas, Origins and Developments. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 23-93.
McMahon, April. 1994. Understanding Language Change. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o. Decolonising the Mind: The Politics of Language in African Literature. James Currey, 1986.
Nichols, Grace. The Fat Black Woman’s Poems. Virago, 1984.
Noonuccal, Oodgeroo. My People: A Kath Walker Collection. Jacaranda Press, 1970.
Peters, Pam. 2001. Varietal effects: the influence of American English on Australian and British English. In Bruce Moore (ed.). Who's Centric Now? Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 297-309.
Shakespeare, William. Henry V. Edited by T. W. Craik, Arden Shakespeare, Bloomsbury, 1995.
Smith, Zadie. NW. Hamish Hamilton, 2012.
–––. White Teeth. Hamish Hamilton, 2000.
Sudbury, Andrea. 2001. Falkland Islands English. A southern hemisphere variety? English World-Wide 22: 55-80.
Thakur, Sophia. Somebody Give This Heart a Pen. Walker Books, 2019.
Trudgill, Peter. 1990. The Dialects of England. Oxford: Blackwell.
Wells, J.C. 1982. Accents of English. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Welsh, Irvine. Trainspotting. Vintage, 1994.
Wolfram, Walt and Natalie Schilling-Estes. 1998. American English. Malden, MA and Oxford: Blackwell.
Zephaniah, Benjamin. Talking Turkeys. Puffin, 1995.
–––. Too Black, Too Strong. Bloodaxe Books, 2001.
–––. “Miss World.” Wicked World!, Penguin, 2000.
Software
Not applicable.
Groups and Languages
Please note that this information is provisional until 30 November 2025. You can check it through this link. To consult the language you will need to enter the CODE of the subject.
| Name | Group | Language | Semester | Turn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (TEm) Theory (master) | 1 | English | first semester | morning-mixed |