Photography/English Literature BA (Hons)

Studying Photography and English Literature at Aberystwyth University will allow you to develop proficiencies related to photographic image capture and reproduction in analogue and digital form, while exploring a wide range of literary texts from the early medieval period to the present day. You will gain research skills and a specialist knowledge of world literature, alongside practical competencies in an array of photographic dimensions. You will develop forms of expression and critical thinking, all grounded in a detailed and broad understanding of literary history and an applied knowledge of literary theory. Your practical, critical, theoretical and historical engagement with photography and literature throughout your degree will furnish you with a wide range of transferrable skills that are highly sought by employers.

What will I learn?

In the first year you will gain an awareness of the relevance of cultural, philosophical and historical contexts to the interpretation of literary texts and will develop an appropriate critical vocabulary for their analysis. You will also explore the language of photography and gain essential practical skills through the consideration of themes such as identity, environment, tradition and sense of place.

In the second year you will become acquainted with a range of theoretical approaches applicable to the practice of literary criticism. You will have the opportunity to delve into the literature of the periods that intrigue you, exploring their geographical and historical contexts, narrative techniques and genres. You will consider the debates surrounding contemporary photographic practice and acquire the critical apparatus to evaluate photographic imagery as an art form, while furthering your self-directed photographic practice.

In the third year, you will have the opportunity to explore a range of contemporary or historical literary works and explore the relationships between different theoretical approaches to literary criticism, while the dissertation module will allow to specialise in a particular area of interest. You will further refine your own photographic practice in preparation for an exhibition of your work in the Graduation Show.

Employability

Studying Photography and English Literature at Aberystwyth University will allow you to develop your specialist technical knowledge while enriching your creative and cultural understanding of the world around you. The skills you acquire will afford you many career opportunities, including: Copywriter, Editorial assistant, Lexicographer, Librarian, Teacher, Information officer, Arts administrator, Magazine journalist, Newspaper journalist, Press photographer, Magazine features editor, Media researcher, Film/video editor and Web designer.