Literature
Literature provides the gateway to human experience transfigured by the imagination. The imagination is a source not only of inspiration but also meaning. It offers both practical and moral insights. It deals with the immediate sphere of human experience as well as the ultimate reality of human destiny. It gives entry to the human mind and heart in which the perennial engagement of truth and falsehood, of good and evil, is laid bare.
The Campion curriculum in literature has a twofold purpose. It aims to nurture in students an understanding of verbal and literary forms together with an advanced ability to express themselves, clearly and cogently, in both written and spoken language. It will also provide a systematic introduction to the vast and varied tradition of mainly Western literature, covering major periods, authors and genres.
When studied in sequence, literature units at Campion proceed chronologically. After a grounding in the fundamentals of composition, students read the seminal epics of the ancient world by Homer and Virgil and consider examples of classical drama and literary criticism. Students then progress through the literature of the Middle Ages, Renaissance and Modernity, as we study works by Dante, Shakespeare, Milton, Austen and Eliot, among many others. Elective units in literature are devoted to the study of Catholic, modern, and Australian literature, as well as the plays of Shakespeare.
Studying Literature at Campion
All students enrolled in the Diploma of Liberal Arts (1-year) complete LIT101 and LIT102 as part of Campion’s core curriculum.
All students enrolled in the Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts (3-years) complete LIT101, LIT102, LIT201 and LIT202 as part of Campion’s core curriculum. Students who wish to graduate with a major in literature should choose LIT301, LIT302, LIT303 and LIT304 in third year, thus completing eight literature units overall to satisfy the requirement for a major.
Individuals who do not wish to enrol in a full course may enrol in single units as a non-award (for academic credit) or auditing student.
Literature units on offer
LIT101: Composition and Literature
This unit presents an introduction to the nature of language as a means of communication, and to literature as a setting and stimulus for the language arts.
LIT102: Literature of the Western World – Ancient
This unit presents an overview of ancient literature and explores the foundational works of the Western literary imagination.
LIT201: Literature of the Western World – Medieval and Renaissance
This unit examines major works of Western literature from the Middle Ages through to the late Renaissance including Chaucer, Dante, Shakespeare and more.
LIT202: Literature of the Western World – Milton to Modern
This unit emphasises the study of authors from the 17th to the 20th century, including John Milton, Jonathan Swift, Jane Austen and T.S. Eliot.
LIT301: The Search for Meaning in Twentieth Century Literature
This unit presents a study of major twentieth and twentieth-first-century literary works, exploring fundamental questions of life’s meaning.
LIT302: Australian Literature
This unit presents a study of distinctive works of Australian literature, as well as the struggles and concerns that have helped shape Australian culture.
LIT303: The Catholic Imagination in Modern Literature
This unit investigates aspects of the Catholic imagination as expressed in important works by G.K. Chesterton, Evelyn Waugh and Flannery O’Connor.
LIT304: Shakespeare
This unit presents an overview of the life and canon of William Shakespeare, exploring a representative selection of work from across the span of his career.