Course Details in 2026/27 Session

Module Title	LH Bringing Out the Bodies: Technology, Transhumans and Skin
School	Eng, Drama, & Creative Studies
Department	English Literature
Module Code	09 27598
Module Lead
Level	Honours Level
Credits	20
Semester	Semester 2
Pre-requisites
Co-requisites
Restrictions	None
Contact Hours	Lecture-10 hours Seminar-20 hours Guided independent study-170 hours Total: 200 hours
Exclusions
Description	The word "technology" is used extensively throughout popular discourse to describe our material culture – something different is meant to be going on, something electronic, digital, microscopic. Technology, however, is nothing new, either as a concept or as a fact of human life. What, then, is distinct about the ways in which we use tools in the 21st century and how do the representations of technology in all forms of media question the ways in which our contemporary use of technology might (or should) unfold? This module focuses on the user’s body, how it might be supported and invaded, improved and supplanted by technology. The aim is to worm our way into the skin, starting with graspable and wearable technologies, then implants, before looking at genetic modifications, pharmaceuticals, and the end of aging and, finally, the “ideal” shedding of the human body for another kind of existence entirely. In exploring these topics we will consider why we might modify ourselves, how we might go about it, and why we might want to shape or even resist it. Students will start each two week section by considering a provocation from a theoretical, philosophical, and/or scientific work and then pairing these insights in the second week with an artwork (typically literature or film). The aim is to explore cutting edge thought, so many examples will be drawn from the 21st century, but ideas about technology and the body will also be grounded in work across history so that we might talk about the first stone tools and their direct lineage to mobile phones and beyond. Students with an interest in any time period will therefore be able to pursue many of these same discussions and find their own examples.
Learning Outcomes	By the end of the module students should be able to: Explore the relationship between current debates in philosophy and science and the representations of technology in literature, film, and other artworks. Reflect critically and theoretically on representations of the impact of technology in a variety of media including artworks, technical papers, and popular debate. Discuss in detail how technology has been defined and what might be distinct about the material culture of our current moment. Demonstrate an ability to interpret different kinds of writing from outside of the discipline and to bring relevant supporting evidence to their own work.
Assessment	27598-01 : 4,000 word essay : Coursework (100%)
Assessment Methods & Exceptions	1 x 4000 word essay
Other	None
Reading List