Share your thoughts about this Booker-winning novel. It uses a variety of different types of 'telling'. Do these work? When? How? It has been called a 'literary mystery' and a 'voyage of discovery'. It blends history with fiction, can we call it a 'historical novel'? This best selling novel won two prizes. We'll be considering themes and investigating characters. There will be a reading schedule on the Canvas site, so that we can focus on the novel in sections. Please read to the end of Chapter 4 for discussion at the first session.
Course aim
To discuss our responses to the novel Possession, by AS Byatt, and think about whether it achieves Byatt's stated aim, 'to heighten the reader's imaginative entry into the world of the text'.
Do I need any particular skills or experience?
- This course is for beginners and improvers
By the end of the course I should be able to:
- Discuss the variety of ways Byatt makes use of the word 'Possession'.
- Compare and contrast the way the two time periods are presented.
- Assess the various ways in which Freedom and Autonomy are presented.
What else do I need to know?
You will need a copy of Possession; A Romance, by AS Byatt
View full course information sheet
Literature: Discussing 'Possession' - A Romance by A.S.Byatt with Cath Humphris
