2 BA British and American Life and Institutions, part I (2011/12)

Course objectives:

to acquaint you with the basic knowledge and terminology of contemporary social, political
and cultural issues in the UK
to offer you an important factual background for your future studying of the English language,
literature and culture of English-speaking countries
to introduce you to the study of culture and expose its interdisciplinary character (selected
topics)

Course contents:
DATE
27.09.
04.10.

11.10.
18.10.
25.10.
08.11.

15.11.
22.11.
29.11.
06.12.
13.12.
20.12.
03.01
10.01
17.01.
24.01.

TOPIC
Introduction to the course
Geography. Contemporary UK in facts and figures. The UK, the British Isles, Great
Britain, crown dependencies. National symbols. Area. Physical features. Rivers. Climate.
Natural resources. Regions. The influence of geographical factors on settlement and
economy. The North/South divide.
Society. Population: distribution, migration trends. Immigration from Europe and from
outside Europe. The role of women. The family. Social class. The Poles in the UK.
Socio-economic issues. Structure of the economy. Main industries. Banking and finances.
Taxation. Trade unions. The welfare state. Health. Housing.
Political System. The constitutional framework. The Crown: its political and social roles.
The executive branch: the Government and the Opposition; the Civil Service. The parties.
Elections. The legislative branch: the functions, structure and functioning of Parliament.
The judicial branch: sources of law; the legal profession; the courts. Legal systems in the
UK. The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom. The police. Crime and punishment.
Devolution. Local government.
Religion. The status of churches. The Church of England. The Church of Scotland. The
Free Churches. The Roman Catholic Church. Other religions.
Education. The educational system. Reforms. The state sector. The independent sector.
Higher and further education.
Mass Media. The press. Radio and television. Media ownership. Regulating the media.
The role of the BBC.
Private Life. Holidays, customs, sports, tourism.
Cultural Life. The arts, music. Aspects of popular culture.
Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland. Historical background. Specificity of the three
territorial divisions. Current developments in Northern Ireland. Devolution processes in the
UK.
Britain and the World. British foreign and defense policy. British armed forces. The
Commonwealth and British Overseas Territories. Britain and the United States. Britain in
the European Union.
Revision
End-of-the-term test
Credits

Course requirements:
(a) Regular attendance. I strongly advise you to attend all the classes if possible. Formally, you are
entitled to no more than 2 unexcused absences per semester unless the reason for your absence is
medical and confirmed by a doctors certificate. NOTE that a doctors certificate should be presented

to the tutor in no more than one week since ones recovery. Absence in at least 1/3 of the classes, even
if excused, results in failing the course.
(b) Preparation for classes. Prior to each class you need to acquaint yourself with the reading assigned
in advance for a given meeting (see the Reading and Study Materials). Also, I might ask you to write
a short quiz at the beginning of the class in order to assess your preparation to discuss a particular
topic. The component can also involve completing small homework assignments. At the end of the
term your overall score should be no less than 60% on both quizzes and other tasks assigned by the
tutor.
(c) Class participation. Essential. I expect you participate actively in class and group discussions based
on the assigned reading as well as complete all classwork set by the tutor.
(d) Quizzes. Take place every two weeks and test your knowledge on the material covered in the
previous two meeting. If you miss the quiz, you have to take in two weeks from the date of the test.
NOTE that there are no retakes, therefore, at the end of the term you need to score no less than 60%
from all the quizzes in order to pass this component. If you fail it, there is only one retake possible,
covering all the issues included in the quizzes taken in the course.
(e) Geography test. Takes place towards the end of the semester (for a pass). It covers the key
geographical terms of the UK and test your ability to mark their locations on an outline map. It will be
assigned in advance; if failed, there is only one retake possible.
(f) Final test. Takes place at the end of the semester and covers all the topics discussed in classes. It is
aimed to test your knowledge on the whole course. The format of the test takes the form of that of the
final exam (a set of 30 short questions). It will be assigned in advance; if failed, a retake must take
place within 2 weeks of the date of the test.
Grading: quizzes (30%), attendance (20%), preparation and participation in the classes (20%), final
test (30%)
Grading scale: 60% and below (2), 61-68% (3), 69-75% (3+), 76-85% (4), 86-90% (4+), 91-100% (5)
References (recommended textbooks and additional sources):
Bromhead, Peter. 1991. Life in modern Britain. New Edition. Harlow: Longman.
Christopher, D. P. 2009. British culture. An introduction. 2nd Edition. London: Routledge.
Crowther, J. (ed.) 2006. Oxford guide to British and American culture. Oxford: Oxford University
Press.
Diniejko, Andrzej. 2010. English speaking countries. Warszawa: Wydawnictwa Szkolne i
Pedagogiczne.
Garwood Christopher, G. Gardani and E. Perris. Aspects of Britain and the USA. Oxford: Oxford
University Press.
Higgins Michael, C. Smith and J. Storey. 2010. The Cambridge companion to modern British culture.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Hollowell, J. (ed.). 2003. Britain since 1945. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers.
Knight, Julian. 2010. British politics for dummies. Chichester: John Wiley and Sons.
McDowall, David. 2008. Britain in close-up. Harlow: Longman.
Oakland, John. 2001. Contemporary Britain. A survey with texts. London: Routledge.
Oakland, John. 2003. British civilization. An introduction. (5th edition.) London: Routledge.
O'Driscoll, James. 2003. Britain A country and its people. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Rabley Stephen. 1996. Customs and traditions in Britain. Harlow: Longman.
Room, Adrian. 1990. An A to Z of British life. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Storry, M. and P. Childs. 2007. British cultural identities. 3rd Edition. London. Routledge.