How to Read a Novel

Online Course

The University of Edinburgh

Future Learn

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How to Read a Novel

What is the course about?
Prerequisites & Facts
Cost, Certificate & Degree
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What is the course about?

How to Read a Novel

The course How to Read a Novel is an online class provided by The University of Edinburgh through Future Learn. It may be possible to receive a verified certification or use the course to prepare for a degree.

Get underneath the skin of a novel by understanding some of the main building blocks of modern fiction.

Course description

Get more from your reading
4 weeks

What makes a great novel? How is a novel woven together? How can we best appreciate works of fiction?
Answer these questions and more with this course from The University of Edinburgh and the Edinburgh International Book Festival.
On the course you’ll discover four of the main building blocks of modern fiction: plot, characterisation, dialogue, and setting using examples from a range of texts including the four novels shortlisted for the 2018 James Tait Black fiction prize. You’ll also explore the formal strategies authors use, how they came to be, and how they affect us as readers.

The course examines specific techniques relating to plotting and temporality including flashbacks, unreliable narration and framed narratives.
The course considers ways of understanding character, such as behaviour and motives.
It explores issues relating to the presentation of dialogue, including conversational mood and dialect voices.
The course examines the impact of various different settings on the development of plot and character.
It invites learners to test their understanding through weekly quizzes and a final peer assessment task.
The four novels explored for this course are:
Crudo by Olivia Laing
Heads of the Colored People by Nafissa Thompson-Spires
Murmur by Will Eaves
Sight by Jessie Greengrass

Identify key strategies used by authors to alter the temporal progression of the narrative.
Reflect on the effects generated by a narrative frame.
Evaluate novels for signs of narrative unreliability.
Discuss my reading of contemporary fiction with a large online learning community.
Explore ways of understanding character, such as behaviour, speech, and motives.
Explore the impact of various settings on the development of character and plot.
Evaluate the effect of different ways of presenting dialogue, and the impact of dialect speech.

This course is for anyone who enjoys reading. You don’t need any past experience.

The University of Edinburgh
Founded in 1583, the University of Edinburgh is one of the world’s top universities and is globally recognised for research, innovation and high-quality teaching.

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Prerequisites & Facts

How to Read a Novel

Course Topic

Literature

University, College, Institution

The University of Edinburgh

Course Skill Level

see course summary

Course Language

English

Place of class

Online, self-paced (see curriculum for more information)

Degree

Certificate

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Degree & Cost

How to Read a Novel

To obtain a verified certificate from Future Learn / The University of Edinburgh you have to finish this course or the latest version of it, if there is a new edition. The class may be free of charge, but there could be some cost to receive a verified certificate or to access the learning materials. The specifics of the course may have been changed, please consult the provider to get the latest quotes and news.

The University of Edinburgh

How to Read a Novel

provided by Future Learn

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