Anglo-American Cultures
A.Y. 2019/2020
Learning objectives
Focusing on the literary and non-literary works, films, art forms, discourses and cultural practices which inform and characterize the current debate on US national, racial and cultural identities against the backdrop of the continent's history and global scope, this course aims to enhance the students' knowledge and understanding of these themes, which are central concerns in our experience of contemporaneity. This aim is pursued through the methodological and critical tools of cultural studies, which, in line with the main objectives of the Degree Course, favour an understanding of ideological, intercultural and socio-spatial relations, as well as a multicultural and interdisciplinary approach. The course is meant to foster active participation from the students, and, besides advancing their English skills, aims to enhance their ability to make judgements and recognize the differences and connections among divergent forms, genres, and cultures, according to the wider mission of Mediazione Linguistica.
Students will acquire the skills relevant to making more informed and autonomous judgements. Thanks to their familiarity with different perspectives of intercultural analysis, they will develop analytical and critical attitudes towards cultural productions and literary texts and draw comparisons and establish connections between the various contexts under scrutiny and their own situated experience.
Students will acquire the skills relevant to making more informed and autonomous judgements. Thanks to their familiarity with different perspectives of intercultural analysis, they will develop analytical and critical attitudes towards cultural productions and literary texts and draw comparisons and establish connections between the various contexts under scrutiny and their own situated experience.
Expected learning outcomes
Within the frame of the linguistic and cultural specificity and multiplicity of the US, tudents are expected to show interdisciplinary methodological and cultural tools for discussing and analyzing cultural, political and media discourses and practices, fictional and non-fictional texts, visual culture, documentaries and films. This is to be done using the methodological approaches of Cultural Studies. The acquisition of the required skills will be fostered by encouraging active participation and dialogue, and by enabling the students to draw comparisons between the US context and their own situated experience of being Italians and citizens of the world, so as to facilitate forms of analysis and engagement with the issues and challenges of the American present which are consistent with the avowed specialist and intercultural mission of their Degree Course.
Lesson period: Second semester
Assessment methods: Esame
Assessment result: voto verbalizzato in trentesimi
Single course
This course cannot be attended as a single course. Please check our list of single courses to find the ones available for enrolment.
Course syllabus and organization
Single session
Responsible
Lesson period
Second semester
Course syllabus
We will focus on the current political and cultural situation in the US, and on the consequences of the conservative turn marking the transition from the mandate of the first African American President, Barack Obama, to the new regulations imposed by the all-white-and-Western President Trump, that seem to radicalize social conflicts and increase environmental risks.
Diachronically, the course articulates a reflection on the end of what used to be the American dream, its failure and the current need to reshape it, imagining new and different forms of the fight for freedom and equality as basic needs stated by the US constitution. The selection of texts wants to foreground the prevailing issues concerning class, gender and race discriminations and the ways in which these are represented in documents, literature, filmic narratives and popular cultures.
Unit I -Nightmares with lipstick
Unit II - The dream that failed
Unit III -Broken Earth
Diachronically, the course articulates a reflection on the end of what used to be the American dream, its failure and the current need to reshape it, imagining new and different forms of the fight for freedom and equality as basic needs stated by the US constitution. The selection of texts wants to foreground the prevailing issues concerning class, gender and race discriminations and the ways in which these are represented in documents, literature, filmic narratives and popular cultures.
Unit I -Nightmares with lipstick
Unit II - The dream that failed
Unit III -Broken Earth
Prerequisites for admission
Before sitting for the exam of AngloAmerican Culture, students must have taken the exam of English Language I and English Culture I. They must be able to read and understand texts in English and they must prove fluent in both written and spoken English.
Teaching methods
Classes will develop on a lecture-based method, with the occasional involvement in public events and with guest speakers. Whenever possible, team-working will be encouraged.
Teaching Resources
Unit I -Nightmares with lipstick
ATTENDING STUDENTS
Documents:
Declaration of independence - Congress Assembled - July 4, 1776: http://www.foundingfathers.info/documents/decindep.html
Gettysburg address - Abraham Lincoln - Nov. 19, 1863: http://www.abrahamlincolnonline.org/lincoln/speeches/gettysburg.htm
I have a dream - Martin Luther King - Aug 28, 1963: https://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkihaveadream.htm
Yes We Can - Barack Obama, Jan 8, 2008:https://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/08/us/politics/08text-obama.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dunIj0rzeU8
Victory Speech - Barack Obama Nov 4- 2008:
http://obamaspeeches.com/E11-Barack-Obama-Election-Night-Victory-Speech-Grant-Park-Illinois-November-4-2008.htm
Victory Speech - Donald Trump Nov. 9, 2016: https://edition.cnn.com/2016/11/09/politics/donald-trump-victory-speech/index.html; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qsvy10D5rtc
Tweets - Donald Trump: https://edition.cnn.com/interactive/2017/politics/trump-tweets/
Films:
John Ford, The Grapes of Wrath (1940) (Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOuAZLA_jWQ)
Raul Peck, I'm not your Negro (2016)
NON ATTENDING STUDENTS
Documents:
Declaration of independence - Congress Assembled - July 4, 1776: http://www.foundingfathers.info/documents/decindep.html
Gettysburg address - Abraham Lincoln - Nov. 19, 1863: http://www.abrahamlincolnonline.org/lincoln/speeches/gettysburg.htm
I have a dream - Martin Luther King - Aug 28, 1963: https://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkihaveadream.htm
Yes We Can - Barack Obama, Jan 8, 2008: https://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/08/us/politics/08text-obama.html
Victory Speech - Barack Obama Nov 4 - 2008:
http://obamaspeeches.com/E11-Barack-Obama-Election-Night-Victory-Speech-Grant-Park-Illinois-November-4-2008.htm
Victory Speech - Donald Trump Nov. 9, 2016: https://edition.cnn.com/2016/11/09/politics/donald-trump-victory-speech/index.html; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qsvy10D5rtc
Novel:
John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath (1939, any edition)
Bibliographical ref. as for history:
D. Campbell, D. Levinson (eds), This is America. A Short History of the United States (also Kindle Edition)
Unità II - The dream that failed
ATTENDING STUDENTS
Documents:
The First play in New York, at: http://www.theatrehistory.com/american/hornblow02.html
Play and film:
Arthur Miller, Death of a Salesman (1949; qualunque edizione purché integrale e in lingua originale)
Film: Death of a Salesman (Volker Schlöndorff, 1985)
Critical Ref.:
Fielder, Oxford Literature Companions: Death of a Salesman, OUP Oxford 2017
NON ATTENDING STUDENTS
Documents:
The First play in New York, at: http://www.theatrehistory.com/american/hornblow02.html
Play and novel:
Arthur Miller, Death of a Salesman (1949; any edition)
Arthur Miller, Focus (1945, novel; any edition)
Critical Ref.:
Fielder, Oxford Literature Companions: Death of a Salesman, OUP Oxford 2017
Unità III -Broken Earth
ATTENDING STUDENTS
Documents:
President Trump and Climate Change: https://time.com/5622374/donald-trump-climate-change-hoax-event/
https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2019/07/trump-officials-deleting-mentions-climate-change-us-geological-survey-press-releases
Grassrootspeeches and movements: https://extinctionrebellion.us/
Writers on environmental issues and climate change: https://www.elementascience.org/article/10.1525/elementa.364/
Science fiction and Climate change: https://www.tor.com/2019/01/22/why-science-fiction-authors-need-to-be-writing-about-climate-change-right-now/
Novel:
N. K. Jemisin, The Fifth Season (2015; any edition, also in Italian)
NON ATTENDING STUDENTS
Documents:
President Trump and Climate Change: https://time.com/5622374/donald-trump-climate-change-hoax-event/
https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2019/07/trump-officials-deleting-mentions-climate-change-us-geological-survey-press-releases
Grassroot speeches and movements: https://extinctionrebellion.us/
Writers on environmental issues and climate change: https://www.elementascience.org/article/10.1525/elementa.364/
Science fiction and Climatechange: https://www.tor.com/2019/01/22/why-science-fiction-authors-need-to-be-writing-about-climate-change-right-now/
Novels:
O. Butler, Kindred (1979, any edition)
Nora K. Jemisin, The Fifth Season (2015, any edition)
U.K. Le Guin, The Word for World is Forest (1972, any edition)
Suggested readings:
Eleonora Federici, Quando la fantascienza è donna (Roma, Carocci, 2016)
NB: Students are required to get info on the authors, their works and their contexts.
ATTENDING STUDENTS
Documents:
Declaration of independence - Congress Assembled - July 4, 1776: http://www.foundingfathers.info/documents/decindep.html
Gettysburg address - Abraham Lincoln - Nov. 19, 1863: http://www.abrahamlincolnonline.org/lincoln/speeches/gettysburg.htm
I have a dream - Martin Luther King - Aug 28, 1963: https://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkihaveadream.htm
Yes We Can - Barack Obama, Jan 8, 2008:https://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/08/us/politics/08text-obama.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dunIj0rzeU8
Victory Speech - Barack Obama Nov 4- 2008:
http://obamaspeeches.com/E11-Barack-Obama-Election-Night-Victory-Speech-Grant-Park-Illinois-November-4-2008.htm
Victory Speech - Donald Trump Nov. 9, 2016: https://edition.cnn.com/2016/11/09/politics/donald-trump-victory-speech/index.html; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qsvy10D5rtc
Tweets - Donald Trump: https://edition.cnn.com/interactive/2017/politics/trump-tweets/
Films:
John Ford, The Grapes of Wrath (1940) (Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOuAZLA_jWQ)
Raul Peck, I'm not your Negro (2016)
NON ATTENDING STUDENTS
Documents:
Declaration of independence - Congress Assembled - July 4, 1776: http://www.foundingfathers.info/documents/decindep.html
Gettysburg address - Abraham Lincoln - Nov. 19, 1863: http://www.abrahamlincolnonline.org/lincoln/speeches/gettysburg.htm
I have a dream - Martin Luther King - Aug 28, 1963: https://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkihaveadream.htm
Yes We Can - Barack Obama, Jan 8, 2008: https://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/08/us/politics/08text-obama.html
Victory Speech - Barack Obama Nov 4 - 2008:
http://obamaspeeches.com/E11-Barack-Obama-Election-Night-Victory-Speech-Grant-Park-Illinois-November-4-2008.htm
Victory Speech - Donald Trump Nov. 9, 2016: https://edition.cnn.com/2016/11/09/politics/donald-trump-victory-speech/index.html; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qsvy10D5rtc
Novel:
John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath (1939, any edition)
Bibliographical ref. as for history:
D. Campbell, D. Levinson (eds), This is America. A Short History of the United States (also Kindle Edition)
Unità II - The dream that failed
ATTENDING STUDENTS
Documents:
The First play in New York, at: http://www.theatrehistory.com/american/hornblow02.html
Play and film:
Arthur Miller, Death of a Salesman (1949; qualunque edizione purché integrale e in lingua originale)
Film: Death of a Salesman (Volker Schlöndorff, 1985)
Critical Ref.:
Fielder, Oxford Literature Companions: Death of a Salesman, OUP Oxford 2017
NON ATTENDING STUDENTS
Documents:
The First play in New York, at: http://www.theatrehistory.com/american/hornblow02.html
Play and novel:
Arthur Miller, Death of a Salesman (1949; any edition)
Arthur Miller, Focus (1945, novel; any edition)
Critical Ref.:
Fielder, Oxford Literature Companions: Death of a Salesman, OUP Oxford 2017
Unità III -Broken Earth
ATTENDING STUDENTS
Documents:
President Trump and Climate Change: https://time.com/5622374/donald-trump-climate-change-hoax-event/
https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2019/07/trump-officials-deleting-mentions-climate-change-us-geological-survey-press-releases
Grassrootspeeches and movements: https://extinctionrebellion.us/
Writers on environmental issues and climate change: https://www.elementascience.org/article/10.1525/elementa.364/
Science fiction and Climate change: https://www.tor.com/2019/01/22/why-science-fiction-authors-need-to-be-writing-about-climate-change-right-now/
Novel:
N. K. Jemisin, The Fifth Season (2015; any edition, also in Italian)
NON ATTENDING STUDENTS
Documents:
President Trump and Climate Change: https://time.com/5622374/donald-trump-climate-change-hoax-event/
https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2019/07/trump-officials-deleting-mentions-climate-change-us-geological-survey-press-releases
Grassroot speeches and movements: https://extinctionrebellion.us/
Writers on environmental issues and climate change: https://www.elementascience.org/article/10.1525/elementa.364/
Science fiction and Climatechange: https://www.tor.com/2019/01/22/why-science-fiction-authors-need-to-be-writing-about-climate-change-right-now/
Novels:
O. Butler, Kindred (1979, any edition)
Nora K. Jemisin, The Fifth Season (2015, any edition)
U.K. Le Guin, The Word for World is Forest (1972, any edition)
Suggested readings:
Eleonora Federici, Quando la fantascienza è donna (Roma, Carocci, 2016)
NB: Students are required to get info on the authors, their works and their contexts.
Assessment methods and Criteria
Attending students will be given the opportunity to sit one or two mid-terms with internal evaluation ("PASS or FAIL"); final evaluation will be reckoned at the end of the oral exam.A specific syllabus will be provided for non-attending students; no mid-term is available for them and the whole syllabus will be tested during the oral interview, that will be in English.
Teaching Unit 1
L-LIN/11 - ANGLO - AMERICAN LANGUAGES AND LITERATURES - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours
Professor:
Vallorani Nicoletta
Shifts:
-
Professor:
Vallorani Nicoletta
Teaching Unit 2
L-LIN/11 - ANGLO - AMERICAN LANGUAGES AND LITERATURES - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours
Professor:
Vallorani Nicoletta
Shifts:
-
Professor:
Vallorani Nicoletta
Teaching Unit 3
L-LIN/11 - ANGLO - AMERICAN LANGUAGES AND LITERATURES - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours
Professor:
Vallorani Nicoletta
Shifts:
-
Professor:
Vallorani NicolettaProfessor(s)