MO4968 Curiosity, Empire and Science in Eighteenth-Century Europe

Academic year

2023 to 2024 Full Year

Further information on which modules are specific to your programme.

Key module information

SCOTCAT credits

60

The Scottish Credit Accumulation and Transfer (SCOTCAT) system allows credits gained in Scotland to be transferred between institutions. The number of credits associated with a module gives an indication of the amount of learning effort required by the learner. European Credit Transfer System (ECTS) credits are half the value of SCOTCAT credits.

SCQF level

SCQF level 10

The Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF) provides an indication of the complexity of award qualifications and associated learning and operates on an ascending numeric scale from Levels 1-12 with SCQF Level 10 equating to a Scottish undergraduate Honours degree.

Availability restrictions

Available only to students in the second year of the Honours Programme.

Planned timetable

TBC

This information is given as indicative. Timetable may change at short notice depending on room availability.

Module coordinator

Dr S Easterby-Smith

This information is given as indicative. Staff involved in a module may change at short notice depending on availability and circumstances.

Module Staff

Dr S Easterby-Smith

This information is given as indicative. Staff involved in a module may change at short notice depending on availability and circumstances.

Module description

The world was shrinking in the eighteenth century. Overseas travel increased exponentially and societies and cultures were transformed on a global scale. This course examines how overseas exploration affected science and society in eighteenth-century Europe, focusing primarily on France and its empire. The history of collecting is central: travel and trade meant that an unprecedented quantity of outlandish objects and new information circulated the globe. This course uses textual, visual and material sources to examine the histories of French exploration and empire-building, popular curiosity and collecting, and the making of the modern museum. We will link these themes to broader narratives concerning the significant cultural, social and scientific changes that took place more generally in Enlightenment Europe: education and religion; economic and industrial development, empire and the making of modern science, to name just a few.

Assessment pattern

Written Examinations = 20%, Coursework = 80%

Re-assessment

New Coursework: 1 x source exercise (2,500 words) and 1 x 5,000-word essay = 100%

Learning and teaching methods and delivery

Weekly contact

1 x 3-hour seminar, plus 1 office hour.

Scheduled learning hours

66

The number of compulsory student:staff contact hours over the period of the module.

Guided independent study hours

534

The number of hours that students are expected to invest in independent study over the period of the module.