Break It Down: English Students Launch New Podcasts

Holly and Hilary are students in the English Department who were introduced to podcasting as part of a second-year science fiction module taught by Dr Ciarán Kavanagh. Since then, they have launched their own podcast called "Break It Down!", which focuses on " the unexplored areas of popular culture". Each week the hosts explore an interesting facet of recent pop culture, from Ringo Starr to Irish boybands of the Celtic Tiger era. 

You can listen to episodes of "Break It Down!" here: https://breakitdownpodcast.buzzsprout.com/

And you can follow the podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/breakitdown_pod and Instagram https://www.instagram.com/breakitdown.podcast/

Third-Year Students Produce Science Fiction Podcasts

Students in Miranda Corcoran's seminar "Watching the Skies: Twentieth-Century American Science Fiction" have produced a series of podcasts exploring the relationship between science fiction and popular culture. 

Episodes cover everything from the representation of women in science fiction and the popularity of YA dystopian fiction to monstrosity in SF and the history of The Twilight Zone.

You can listen to the episodes here: 

https://sfculture.wordpress.com/

Visiting scholar

The Department of English was delighted to host Dr. Imke Lichterfeld (University of Bonn, Germany) on an Erasmus+ Teaching Mobility exchange in March 2020.

Students of the MA Texts and Contexts: Medieval to Renaissance programme participated in a masterclass on Thomas Middleton’s gory drama The Revenger’s Tragedy (c.1607), led by Dr Lichterfeld. This MA group, with Dr Lichterfeld and our own Dr Edel Semple, also toured Cork’s historic Elizabeth Fort and learned about the city’s and Fort’s development from the early modern era to the modern day. As part of the Department of English Research Seminar Series, Dr Lichterfeld delivered a research-in-progress paper entitled “Inclusion on Stage? Shakespearean productions and racism, sexism, and ableism.” The paper was followed by a Q&A and a lively discussion with the audience of undergraduates, postgraduates, and staff from the College of Arts.

Shakespeare on Screen

Students in the Third Year seminar “Shakespeare on Screen” have been busy with creative and critical work. The class recently designed and pitched adaptations of Shakespeare’s comedy Much Ado About Nothing. In groups, students proposed adaptations that centred on key scenes, and each proposal included details on the film’s casting, target audience, genre or style, setting, and camerawork. The proposed adaptations included a film set in the upper class milieu of eighteenth century London, a teen rom-com set in a modern university, a film made in the style of TV’s Love Island, and a film set on a Mediterranean island drawing inspiration from popular movies such as Mamma Mia! As part of their coursework, the “Shakespeare on Screen” class also visited the UCC Skills Centre. Here, students participated in a session on unpacking the question and began work on their end-of-term papers on Shakespeare on film.

First-year students produce magazine

First Year students on the BA in English module “Problems in Literature” have produced prototype magazines promoting and examining the short story as a genre. In this module, students conduct independent research and work in groups to explore the history, reception, and future of the short story. Over one semester, the groups create a unique magazine with a theme central to the short story form, critical and creative elements, and an appealing cover. With strong ties to the Cork International Short Story Festival, the module is coordinated by Edel Semple, taught by expert staff in the Department of English and in the Boole Library, and each year enjoys guest lectures from visiting writers.

Well done to our first-year students for creating such beautiful and unique magazines!

Second-Year Students Produce Podcasts on Witchcraft in Popular Culture

Second-year students in Miranda Corcoran's undergraduate seminar "Witchcraft in the American Popular Imagination" have created a series of exciting podcasts exploring the representation of witchcraft in history and culture. Looking at everything from the plays of William Shakespeare to Mary Poppins, each episode discusses the history, folklore and politics of witchcraft.

Episodes can be streamed online here: https://popwitchcraft.wordpress.com/