11 - 20 of 68 results for: OSPOXFRD

Emergence and rise of the professional woman writer from playwright and Royalist spy Aphra Behn (1640-89) to novelist and proto-feminist Charlotte Bronte (1816-55). How women writers dealt with criticism for writing publicly, placing each author and text in its historical and literary context. Range of poets, playwrights, and novelists including Eliza Haywood, Frances Burney, and Mary Elizabeth Braddon. Topics: gender roles and proto-feminism, the public versus the private sphere, sexuality, courtship and marriage.

Study of Shakespeare's work alongside that of his contemporaries. Characteristics of his art as well as insight into this period of British history. Visits to performances of plays.

London's physical growth, emphasizing characteristics which set it apart from other capitals, and its economic, social and political development, including the problems of poverty and the inner city, the provision of public services, and the growth of suburbs and public transport. Challenges facing London in modern times. Walking tours, especially less frequented areas.

The art, science, and culture of the creation, transmission and collection of valuable, useful and informative objects and texts before the twentieth century, and the associated theories, purposes, and methods for collecting `worldly' goods and other valuables. Means by which local academic practices engaged with global developments in the arts and sciences through examination of primarily early modern material and intellectual culture in and around Oxfordshire. Assessments of quality, meaning, usage, cultural significance and the reception of material ¿treasures¿ in the storage rooms, vaults, and on display in museums, galleries, and libraries.

Readings will cover aspects of how thinking about the brain and the functions of thought and sensation evolved from ancient times to the present, including the influence of political and religious history on scientific development. There will be a focus on the period of the 17th century when developments in Oxford were a major force in the birth and early development of modern medicine and physiology. In Oxford, Thomas Willis played a central role in the birth of neurology as a field within medicine. Readings can include works about Thomas Willis and the natural philosophers with whom he interacted. Selected topics in modern neuroscience and the role of new techniques in addressing questions in brain function can be explored.

Changes in the social institutions, attitudes, and values in Britain over the past 20 years with specific reference to shifts in gender relations. Demographic, economic and social factors; review of theoretical ideas. Men's and women's shifting roles in a fast-moving society.