First Module down for Imperialism and Culture

I just received the evaluation of my second paper for my first course in Sheffield Hallam's MA in Imperialism and Culture. I am glad to report that I passed.

Grades weren't great, but good enough to get me through this time. First paper was a 48 and second was a 54. I definitely enjoyed the course and am looking forward to the next one which is supposed to be on its way to me right now.

clint

 

Good morning, Clint!

Thanks for the update on the MA program at Sheffield Hallam. It's always good to hear first-hand accounts of experiences with particular programs, and the course at SHU sounds quite unique. Was the "Theories of Imperialism" module a "broad brush" introductory module, or did they expect you to dig right into a particular era or topic?

Good luck on the next module!

Sincerely,

James

 

The theories course basically scanned British Imperialism from the 1850s up to modern times, focusing upon particular folks along the way as examples. It concluded with a look at Edward Said and his theory of Orientalism.

Evaluation, as mentioned before, was via two papers written during the course. There were two separate sets of questions (4 in each set) and we were allowed to choose one from each to be our essay topic.

My first was on British views in the 1870s and the second was on Said.

They are not looking for book reports. They are looking for the student to engage the material and do some independent thinking. My grades reflected this. The first was not independent enough, while the second was more so and my grade was higher (though I am still not satisfied with them).

Thanks for the kind words and I am definitely looking forward to my next module (especially since I am on hiatus with the theological studies for the time being...)

clint

 

Well, between the Ritterorden, the Swedes, the Russians, the Soviets, the Nazis, the Soviets (again), and the Danes*, you're at quite a vantage point for the study of imperialism and the tenacity and splendor of resistance to it.




*The Danes? Gotta watch those people. Rejecting the Euro is the first step. Just wait.

 

So true...

One course I am projected to take deals with Soviet Imperialism.

The Danes are very important....you know the name of Tallinn actually comes from "Danish City" in Estonian, since they were in control back in those days.

I am not sure who the Ritterorden refers to, but if it was not the Hansiatics, then they need to be included in the list as well. One of the major banks in the area is still called Hansabank.

clint

 

Teutonic Knights. An early German experiment in tactful persuasion.

 

Accreditation of course

Is this school equivalent to RA? My employer will only credit me for courses completed through a RA university.

 

It is a real university with a good History Dept. It is foreign (in the UK), but would be equivalent to RA, I would think. You would have to check with your employer to see if they covered foreign equivalents.

clint

 

Don't feel bad, my grades were similar (1st lower, 2nd higher).

I experienced a "learning curve" with regard to the writing formats - a bit different from US Universites - you're expected to be more colorful, more entertaining.

On to Shakespeare & Marlowe: "The first thing let's do...is kill all the Lawyers" - The Merchant of Venice.

 

Yes, there was definitely a learning curve. I assumed they were wanting a synopsis of the info on the first paper - wrong. They wanted me to engage the subject more. So I did. My last paper on Edward Said was probably not exactly in agreement with what the profs believe, but they still graded pretty fairly, I guess.

So you are doing the Lit module next, huh? I am gonna do the Free Trade one. I received most of the material last week but the first part of the course, was missing. Then when it got sent again, it got lost. Yesterday, they sent it again - hopefully, third times the charm...

clint

 

I've always had a fondness for Gwenneth Paltrow..er...I mean Shakespeare....

 

Ha. Since my BA is in English, I considered that module, as well. But I finally decided to do something different. I took two full courses just about Shakespeare back then. Since there are plenty of modules to choose from, I decided to branch out a bit.

BTW, my module was finally made complete today. The missing parts finally arrived. So now I start on Free Trade...

clint