ENGL3713: Semester 1, 2025

Units ENGL3713 Semester 1 2025 [Normal day]

Unit outline_

ENGL3713: Shakespeare

Semester 1, 2025 [Normal day] - Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney

Overview

Shakespeare is sometimes taken to be a writer with a particular capacity to represent human nature. In this unit, you will test the limits of this assumption by considering some of the following: Shakespearean inhumanity; Shakespeare's animals; Shakespeare and the natural world; Shakespearean scepticism. At the same time as considering and questioning Shakespeare's treatment of the human, you will also discover new and productive ways to read his complex figurative language. Shakespeare writes for the stage, but he does so in a very particular way. This unit will allow you to engage with how, as well as what, he writes.

Unit details and rules

Academic unit	English and Writing
Credit points	6
Prerequisites ?	12 credit points at 2000 level including 6 credit points from English
Corequisites ?	None
Prohibitions ?	ENGL2640
Assumed knowledge ?	None
Available to study abroad and exchange students	Yes

Teaching staff

Coordinator	Huw Griffiths, huw.griffiths@sydney.edu.au
Lecturer(s)	Huw Griffiths, huw.griffiths@sydney.edu.au

Assessment

The census date for this unit availability is 31 March 2025

Details
Criteria

Type	Description	Weight	Due	Length
Assignment	Written Assignment Iterative essay, partly based on work undertaken within seminars.	45%	Formal exam period Due date: 13 Jun 2025 at 23:59	2000 words
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Short Comprehension Task A written assignment that asks students to analyse Shakespeare's language	20%	Week 04 Due date: 21 Mar 2025 at 23:59	1000 words
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Written Assignment Iteratively produced essay, partly based on work performed during tutorials	35%	Week 09 Due date: 02 May 2025 at 23:59	1500 words
Outcomes assessed:
= AI allowed ?

Assessment summary

(1). Metaphor Exercise (1000 words; 20%); (2) Short Essay (1500 words; 35%); (3) Longer Written Piece (2000 words; 45%)

Assessment criteria

Please refer to The University of Sydney “Guide to Grades”: https://www.sydney.edu.au/students/guide-to-grades.html

How this will be applied in individual assessments will be embedded in the instructions for each task within Canvas.

For more information see guide to grades.

Use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) and automated writing tools

Except for supervised exams or in-semester tests, you may use generative AI and automated writing tools in assessments unless expressly prohibited by your unit coordinator.

For exams and in-semester tests, the use of AI and automated writing tools is not allowed unless expressly permitted in the assessment instructions.

The icons in the assessment table above indicate whether AI is allowed – whether full AI, or only some AI (the latter is referred to as “AI restricted”). If no icon is shown, AI use is not permitted at all for the task. Refer to Canvas for full instructions on assessment tasks for this unit.

Your final submission must be your own, original work. You must acknowledge any use of automated writing tools or generative AI, and any material generated that you include in your final submission must be properly referenced. You may be required to submit generative AI inputs and outputs that you used during your assessment process, or drafts of your original work. Inappropriate use of generative AI is considered a breach of the Academic Integrity Policy and penalties may apply.

The Current Students website provides information on artificial intelligence in assessments. For help on how to correctly acknowledge the use of AI, please refer to the  AI in Education Canvas site.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

This unit has an exception to the standard University policy or supplementary information has been provided by the unit coordinator. This information is displayed below:

Late penalties as per University regulations.

Academic integrity

The Current Student website provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. The University expects students and staff to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.

We use similarity detection software to detect potential instances of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breach. If such matches indicate evidence of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breaches, your teacher is required to report your work for further investigation.

Learning support

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

Support for students

The Support for Students Policy reflects the University’s commitment to supporting students in their academic journey and making the University safe for students. It is important that you read and understand this policy so that you are familiar with the range of support services available to you and understand how to engage with them.

The University uses email as its primary source of communication with students who need support under the Support for Students Policy. Make sure you check your University email regularly and respond to any communications received from the University.

Learning resources and detailed information about weekly assessment and learning activities can be accessed via Canvas. It is essential that you visit your unit of study Canvas site to ensure you are up to date with all of your tasks.

If you are having difficulties completing your studies, or are feeling unsure about your progress, we are here to help. You can access the support services offered by the University at any time:

Support and Services (including health and wellbeing services, financial support and learning support)
Course planning and administration
Meet with an Academic Adviser

Weekly schedule

WK	Topic	Learning activity
Week 01	Introduction to Shakespeare: Text and Performance	Lecture (1 hr)
Week 01	The Ghost Scenes in _Hamlet_: What are we seeing and hearing?	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 02	Reading Shakespeare: Figurative Worlds	Lecture (1 hr)
Week 02	Metaphors in _Hamlet_/ Work towards first assessment	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 03	"To be" x 2; Beginning _Titus_ / Some more Assessment work	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 04	Forests in _Titus_ / Reading Lavinia	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 05	Daughters in _Titus_ and _AMND: endings and beginnings	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 06	Shakespeare's Stages	Lecture (1 hr)
Week 06	Considering the Stage / Start Working on Second Assessment	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 07	Shakespearean Performance	Lecture (1 hr)
Week 07	Staging the Forest in _AMND_: a group experiment	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 08	Structured Reading and Writing Activity, Contributing to Second Assessment	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 09	Human and Non-Human Animals in Shakespeare	Lecture (1 hr)
Week 09	Approaches to Human and Non-Human Animals	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 10	Writing about _The Winter's Tale_	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 11	Genders in Shakespeare	Lecture (1 hr)
Week 11	Approaches to Gender	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 12	Preparing a Fake-Out; Writing Check-Up	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 13	Fake-Outs	Lecture (1 hr)
Week 13	Looking Backwards; Looking Forwards	Tutorial (2 hr)

Attendance and class requirements

Students are expected to attend all scheduled classes, including both lectures and tutorials. Attendance will be taken at both. The usual Faculty guidelines apply, whereby any attendance that falls below 90% can be referred to the exam board for consideration and any attendance that falls below 50% must be reported to the board.

An expectation for this class is that students contact both their tutor and the unit coordinator if they know that they are unavoidably going to miss a class.

Some tutorials in this unit will include work that forms part of submitted assignments. Those tutorials are clearly marked on the weekly schedule. If there is an unavoidable absence on one of those days, then students will be expected to collaborate with the unit coordinator in putting together alternative arrangements in support of the assignment.

Study commitment

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 6 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 120-150 hours of student effort in total.

Required readings

We read five Shakespeare plays, all of which can be accessed online in the most up-to-date electronic edition (this is the edition I recommend people use) here: New Oxford Shakespeare

The five plays (in the order in which we study them) are:

Hamlet;
Titus Andronicus;
A Midsummer Night’s Dream;
As You Like It; and
The Winter’s Tale.

If you are the kind of person who prefers to read hard copies of individual plays, let me know and I will recommend good editions. I need you to read from well-edited editions with all the notes so please don’t rely on any school copies that you might have lying around.

Critical readings will also be required, as detailed each week on Canvas. A link to some introductory readings that you might find helpful as general background is here:

https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/O6IbCvl1rKiE10lzofXR3Xz?domain=sydney.leganto.exlibrisgroup.com

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

Outcomes
Graduate qualities

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

LO1. understand key aspects of Shakespeare's dramatic language.
LO2. relate Shakespeare's dramatic texts to critical aspects of his and our own contexts
LO3. produce (in writing or other means) cogent, evidence-based arguments that develop independent interpretations of Shakespearean language and drama.

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1	Depth of disciplinary expertise Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.
GQ2	Critical thinking and problem solving Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.
GQ3	Oral and written communication Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.
GQ4	Information and digital literacy Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.
GQ5	Inventiveness Generating novel ideas and solutions.
GQ6	Cultural competence Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.
GQ7	Interdisciplinary effectiveness Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.
GQ8	Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.
GQ9	Influence Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes	Graduate qualities
Learning outcomes

Responding to student feedback

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

The main change to this unit, following the surveys from last year, is an increase in the "event lectures" from five to seven. We got good attendance from the five lectures last year, so it would be good to keep that up for all five in 2025. There are also some updates to the assessments which are now more fully intergrated into the work that we do during tutorials.

Additional information

In this unit, we will read, read about, and write about, five different Shakespeare texts in the original sixteenth and seventeenth-century language: Hamlet, Titus Andronicus, A Midsummer Night's Dream, As You Like It, and The Winter's Tale.

Along the way, we will work with three big questions:

HOW do we read Shakespeare?
WHEN and WHERE do we read Shakespeare?
WHY do we read Shakespeare?

Starting with the “how” question in the early part of the unit, we develop strategies for reading the Shakespeare text, paying particular attention to the complexity of his language and, also, how his dialogue might relate to action.

Next, we will think about the “when” and “where” of his plays. Can we learn anything about the plays by considering the particular circumstances in which he worked?

And then, we will think about why people still read his plays. We will do that by considering three critical contexts: Animals and Humans; Genders; Doubt and Belief.

Even though we take the questions roughly in that order (how? where and when? why?) in reality they will weave their way through all of our work.

The work that you need to do each week is available under “Modules” in the menu, where you will also find a module containing general information for the unit, such as a week-by-week outline, and a booking system for making an appointment with the unit coordinator.

You will also get a weekly email from the unit coordinator (Associate Professor Huw Griffiths) that will give you a step-by-step guide to “What You Should Be Doing This Week”. Look out for these in your University email inbox each week.

Disclaimer

The University reserves the right to amend units of study or no longer offer certain units, including where there are low enrolment numbers.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.

Current students

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) and automated writing tools

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Support for students

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Additional information

Additional information

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links