M.A. in History Student Handbook 2011-2012

10. how to present your dissertation.
Assessment: Since the principal learning outcome of this module is to ensure the feasibility of
students’ M.A. dissertation topics, it will be assessed by a written feasibility study of 5,000 words,
which will include an annotated bibliography of secondary sources and a list of primary sources;
students will also be expected to give an oral presentation on their research.
HIST405: History for Life
Module Convenor: Dr Sandy Grant
Taught: Michaelmas, Lent and Summer
This module is designed to show how valuable History can be in understanding the world in which
we live beyond the academy. Unlike most other modules in the MA, it meets throughout the year.
The module is divided into five main thematic areas of enquiry: History and Historians, People and
Environment, Geopolitics, Finance and Economy, and Ideologies. Four workshops will be held on
each theme, addressing historical perspectives on contemporary debates and some potential
applications of historical research techniques and historical knowledge to problems in these areas.
The module is taught consortially, with different members of staff offering lectures according to their
own expertise and interests.
At the end of the module, you will give a presentation to the group and produce a 5,000 word piece of
work , showing how your chosen dissertation topic could be disseminated to a non-academic
audience, for example via a website, podcast or film.
All students, whether they opt for the 6:3 or 4:5 pathway, are strongly advised to attend the workshop
sessions in Michaelmas and Lent Terms.
HIST411: Approaches to Social History
Course Convenor: Prof. Paolo Palladino
This module introduces you to the work of Michel
Foucault, particularly his discussions of social
organisation and the constitution of the subject. We will
begin with a close reading of Discipline and Punish
(1977) and History of Sexuality (1979), and then turn to
the lectures at the Collège de France on which these two
texts were based for a more detailed discussion of
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