Course Overview

This MA in Critical Theory gives you the opportunity to explore the provocations of various waves of critical theory in relation to culture. You will examine a multitude of critical theoretical approaches - with an emphasis on the contributions of the German critical tradition from Kant through Marx to the Frankfurt School, and all those thinkers following in its wake. You will also consider the crossings of politics and aesthetics and the theory’s acknowledgment of, and resistance to, social injustice.

Culture is understood here in its broadest sense, and you will explore it in relation to contestations around topics such as:

science and technology

materialism

ecological crisis

migrant

global and planetary forms

sexuality

gender.

You will consider how the insights and analyses of twentieth- and twenty-first-century critique relate to numerous forms, including literature, print culture, painting, film, photography, music, and digital formats such as touchscreens, gaming, or virtual environments. You will gain confidence in your ability to use constructive, explorative dialogue and debate to seek answers to complex questions.

This MA Critical Theory offers you a selection of optional modules that allow you to focus more specifically on such questions raised within the compulsory modules. These option modules also give you the chance to think across a wide range of cognate subjects and build up areas of expertise.

General Eligibility

Our standard postgraduate entry requirement is a second-class honors degree (2:2 or above) from a UK university or an equivalent international qualification. Your first degree does not have to be in arts or humanities.

Part Time Work Details

20 hours of work permit weekly for international students.

Language Requirement

• If English is not your first language or you have not previously studied in English, the requirement for this program is the equivalent of an International English Language Testing System (IELTS Academic Test) score of 7.0, with not less than 6.5 in each of the sub-tests.