Medieval Cultures

MA Medieval Cultures

Modern classificatory distinctions between different artistic media, textual forms, areas of knowledge, even between languages and nation states, were not necessarily the same as those which were observed in the Middle Ages. By breaking down some of those distinctions, this programme promotes a thematic and interdisciplinary consideration of a range of medieval topics and ideas. At the same time the course encourages students to use modern theoretical frameworks to structure their observations about the people, places, artistic productions and social patterns in the medieval past.

On the core course, you will study topics such as the medieval body, race and ethnicity and lay piety. Optional modules will reflect the research interests of Birkbeck staff but will variously cover Middle English and Anglo-Saxon literature and books; religious, cultural, political and gender history; visual and literary theory; the archaeology of a number of different parts of Europe; and European architecture and art.

A combination of core and optional courses with independent research enables you to tailor the MA programme to your personal interests. Thanks to a thorough training in the skills required for medieval research, the course allows you to engage with advanced work at Masters level and is also an excellent preparation for doctoral research.

Suitably-qualified students may be able to substitute for one special subject either a course of directed reading in a defined subject area under the guidance of the relevant teacher; or an appropriate pre-existing course which is a component of another MA degree or of the higher levels of a BA course. A particularly appropriate such course might be a component of the MA Renaissance Studies.