Past & Present: Objects and History (V1467)

15 credits, Level 6

Spring teaching

The cultural politics of the present often feature objects from the past, held up as signifying the nation, colonialism, or even idolatry.

On this module, you’ll explore what an object can tell us about the past and what histories of objects tell us about the context in which they were written.

You’ll explore histories of objects written from objective and subjective perspectives, as well as how to use objects as a primary source. We’ll conclude by focusing on objects and power, including:

  • how objects are used by historical actors
  • the continuing impact of colonial, imperial and economic power structures on objects.

Teaching

33%: Lecture
67%: Seminar

Contact hours and workload

This module is approximately 300 hours of work. This breaks down into about 33 hours of contact time and about 267 hours of independent study. The University may make minor variations to the contact hours for operational reasons, including timetabling requirements.

We regularly review our modules to incorporate student feedback, staff expertise, as well as the latest research and teaching methodology. We鈥檙e planning to run these modules in the academic year 2026/27. However, there may be changes to these modules in response to feedback, staff availability, student demand or updates to our curriculum.

We鈥檒l make sure to let you know of any material changes to modules at the earliest opportunity.

Courses

This module is offered on the following courses: