Contemporary Scandinavian Literature
A.Y. 2020/2021
Learning objectives
This course aims to present and discuss authors and themes of contemporary Scandinavian literature within their historical and cultural context. Relevant methodological approaches to literary analysis will be used.
Expected learning outcomes
Students will be able to analyze contemporary Scandinavian literature in the original language (partially in Italian translation for BA students) by applying appropriate critical approaches and contextualizing the works in history and culture. They will also be able to identify and discuss problems and issues specific to the topic of the 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
Lesson period
Second semester
If it is not possible to use classrooms, synchronous lessons will take place on MicrososftTeams. Lessons will be recorded. Please check the Ariel webpage of the course for updated information, the access code, and the recordings.
Course syllabus
The course provides an overview of the main Nordic literary tendencies from the 1950s to the present, and focuses on the autobiographical genre.
It consists of three subsequent parts:
A: a survey of authors and works of contemporary Nordic literature;
B: autobiography as narration of the self;
C: autobiography as invention of the self.
Students will attend parts A + either B or C for 6 ECTS. They will attend all three parts for 9 ECTS.
This course programme is valid until February 2022.
It consists of three subsequent parts:
A: a survey of authors and works of contemporary Nordic literature;
B: autobiography as narration of the self;
C: autobiography as invention of the self.
Students will attend parts A + either B or C for 6 ECTS. They will attend all three parts for 9 ECTS.
This course programme is valid until February 2022.
Prerequisites for admission
Students are required to read some of the books and studies on the reading list in Scandinavian languages.
Teaching methods
Teaching methodologies: frontal lessons; reading and analysis of literary works both during classes and individually; individual study of critical contributions.
Teaching Resources
PART A
1) Storia delle Letterature Scandinave, Iperborea 2019: pp. 621-674; 744-795; 818-884 (solo quadro di riferimento)
2) TWO TEXTS CHOSEN among the following (NB: the texts must belong to different groups). For each chosen text, students will have to read also a short critical study indicated below, which will be available on Ariel.
group a) Swedish literature:
a1) PO Enquist, Boken om Blanche och Marie, Norstedt, 2004 (trad. it. Il libro Blanche e Marie, Iperborea 2006) + critical study: Andrea Berardini, "Il radio, la morte, l'arte e l'amore":
Il mito di Orfeo nella narrativa di Per Olov Enquist, in "Quaderni di Palazzo Serra" n. 23, 2013, pp. 333-345.
a2) Göran Tunström, Juloratoriet, Bonnier 1983 (trad. it. Oratorio di Natale, Iperborea 1996) + critical study: Fulvio Ferrari, Postfazione a Oratorio di Natale, Iperborea 1996.
a3) Jonas Hassen Khemiri, Montecore: en unik tiger, Norstedt 2006 (trad. it. Una tigre molto speciale. Montecore, Guanda 2009) + critical study: Alessandro Bassini, "Chiamalo come diavolo vuoi" - l'affermazione della lingua degli immigrati nella letteratura svedese contemporanea, in "Linguistica e Filologia", Università degli Studi di Bergamo, 2009; pp.1-30.
A4) Lena Andersson, Egenmäktigt förfarande, Natur & Kultur, 2013 (trad. it. Sottomissione volontaria, e/o 2016) + critical study: Alexandra Schwartz, Reason gets lovesick in Lena Andersson's fiction, in New Yorker 29/4/2019
group b) Danish and Norwegian literature:
b1) Thorkild Hansen, Det lykkelige Arabien, Gyldendal, 1962 (trad. It. Arabia Felix, Iperborea 1992) + critical study: Maria Valeria D'Avino, Postfazione a Thorkild Hansen, La costa degli schiavi, Iperborea 2005.
b2) Peter Høeg, Forestilling om det tyvende århundrede, Rosinante 1988 (trad. it. La storia dei sogni danesi, Mondadori 1998) + critical study: Matthias Stephan, Constructing Danish Identity: Transcultural Adaptation in Peter Høeg's The History of Danish Dreams, in Scandinavian Studies 88 (2016), pp. 182-202.
b3) Dag Solstad, Professor Andersens natt, Oktober 1996 (trad.it. La notte del professor Andersen, Iperborea 2006) + critical study: Massimo Ciaravolo, Postfazione a Dag Solstad, Tentativo di descrivere l'impenetrabile, Iperborea 2007.
b4) Erlend Loe, Naiv.Super, Cappelens 1996 (trad. It. Naif. Super, Iperborea 2002) + critical study: Giovanna Paterniti, Postfazione a Naif Super, Iperborea 2002.
group c) Crime novels:
c1) Sjöwall & Wahlöö, Den skrattande polisen, Norstedt, Stockholm 1968 (trad. It. Il poliziotto che ride, Sellerio 2007).
c2) Dan Turell, Mord ved Runddelen, Gyldendal 1983 (trad. it. Assassinio di lunedì, Iperborea 2010).
c3) Jo Nesbø, Rødstrupe, Aschehoug & Co 2000 (trad. it. Il pettirosso, Einaudi 2015)
c4) Åsa Larsson, Solstorm, Bonniers 2003 (trad. it Tempesta solare, Marsilio 2005)
+ critical study (for all texts in group C): Catia De Marco, Da villain a self-made man: L'evoluzione della figura del criminale nei gialli svedesi, in «Altre Modernità», n. 15, 2016, p. 214-227
PART B
1) Massimo Ciaravolo, Introduzione a Forme di narrazione autobiografica nelle letterature scandinave, Firenze University Press 2015, pp. 10-61 (NB solo pagg. pari).
2) ONE CRITICAL STUDIES chosen among the following:
- Georges Gusdorf, Conditions and Limits of Autobiography, in James Olney, Autobiography: Essays Theoretical and Critical, Princeton University Press 1980, pp. 28-48
- Philippe Lejeune, Le Pacte autobiographique in Le Pacte autobiographique, Seuil, 1975, pp. 13-46.
- Arne Melberg, Självskrivet. Om självframställning i litteraturen, Atlantis 2008, cap. 1, pp. 7-24.*
3) ONE TEXT chosen among the following, together with the associated short critical study:
- PO Enquist, Ett annat liv, Norstedt 2008 (trad. it. Un'altra vita, Iperborea 2010)
+ Massimiliano Bampi, «Visserligen sant men knappast sanning»: the construction of autobiographical discourse in P.O. Enquist's Ett annat liv, in Introduzione a Forme di narrazione autobiografica nelle letterature scandinave, Firenze University Press 2015, pp. 265-276
- Karl Ove Knausgård, Min kamp. Første bok, Oktober 2009 (trad. It. La morte del padre. La mia battaglia 1, Feltrinelli 2015) + Poul Behrendt, Knausgårds kamp med døden in Politiken, 1/12/2011
PARTE C
1) Massimo Ciaravolo, Introduzione a Forme di narrazione autobiografica nelle letterature scandinave, Firenze University Press 2015, pp. 10-61 (NB solo pagg. pari).
2) ONE CRITICAL STUDIES chosen among the following:
- Poul Behrendt, Dobbeltkontrakten, Gyldendal, 2006, capp. 2 and 4, pp. 19-32, 47-63.
- Eva Ahlstedt, Den franska autofiktionsdebatten: en pågående debatt om en mångtydig term, in Eva Ahlstedt e Britt-Marie Karlsson (eds), Den Tvetydiga pakten: skönlitterära texter i gränslandet mellan självbiografi och fiktion, Gupea, Göteborg, 2011, pp. 15-44.
- Arne Melberg, Självskrivet. Om självframställning i litteraturen, Atlantis 2008, cap. 1, pp. 7-24.*
3) ONE TEXT chosen among the following, together with the associated short critical study:
- Peter Høeg, De måske egnede, Gyldendal 1992 (trad. it. I quasi adatti, Mondadori 1997) + Poul Behrendt, Dobbeltkontrakten, Gyldendal, 2006, capitolo 1, pp. 9-18.
- PO Enquist, Kapten Nemos bibliotek, Norstedt 1991 (trad. it. La biblioteca del capitano Nemo, Giano 2004) + Crister Enander, Men jag har skrivit min sista bok!, Tidningen Boken 3 (1991), pp. 18-23.
* For those students who attend both part B and C, Melberg's study can be chosen only for one of the two parts. For the other, another study will have to be chosen.
The course syllabus includes the contents of the lessons and the critical studies available on the Ariel platform.
1) Storia delle Letterature Scandinave, Iperborea 2019: pp. 621-674; 744-795; 818-884 (solo quadro di riferimento)
2) TWO TEXTS CHOSEN among the following (NB: the texts must belong to different groups). For each chosen text, students will have to read also a short critical study indicated below, which will be available on Ariel.
group a) Swedish literature:
a1) PO Enquist, Boken om Blanche och Marie, Norstedt, 2004 (trad. it. Il libro Blanche e Marie, Iperborea 2006) + critical study: Andrea Berardini, "Il radio, la morte, l'arte e l'amore":
Il mito di Orfeo nella narrativa di Per Olov Enquist, in "Quaderni di Palazzo Serra" n. 23, 2013, pp. 333-345.
a2) Göran Tunström, Juloratoriet, Bonnier 1983 (trad. it. Oratorio di Natale, Iperborea 1996) + critical study: Fulvio Ferrari, Postfazione a Oratorio di Natale, Iperborea 1996.
a3) Jonas Hassen Khemiri, Montecore: en unik tiger, Norstedt 2006 (trad. it. Una tigre molto speciale. Montecore, Guanda 2009) + critical study: Alessandro Bassini, "Chiamalo come diavolo vuoi" - l'affermazione della lingua degli immigrati nella letteratura svedese contemporanea, in "Linguistica e Filologia", Università degli Studi di Bergamo, 2009; pp.1-30.
A4) Lena Andersson, Egenmäktigt förfarande, Natur & Kultur, 2013 (trad. it. Sottomissione volontaria, e/o 2016) + critical study: Alexandra Schwartz, Reason gets lovesick in Lena Andersson's fiction, in New Yorker 29/4/2019
group b) Danish and Norwegian literature:
b1) Thorkild Hansen, Det lykkelige Arabien, Gyldendal, 1962 (trad. It. Arabia Felix, Iperborea 1992) + critical study: Maria Valeria D'Avino, Postfazione a Thorkild Hansen, La costa degli schiavi, Iperborea 2005.
b2) Peter Høeg, Forestilling om det tyvende århundrede, Rosinante 1988 (trad. it. La storia dei sogni danesi, Mondadori 1998) + critical study: Matthias Stephan, Constructing Danish Identity: Transcultural Adaptation in Peter Høeg's The History of Danish Dreams, in Scandinavian Studies 88 (2016), pp. 182-202.
b3) Dag Solstad, Professor Andersens natt, Oktober 1996 (trad.it. La notte del professor Andersen, Iperborea 2006) + critical study: Massimo Ciaravolo, Postfazione a Dag Solstad, Tentativo di descrivere l'impenetrabile, Iperborea 2007.
b4) Erlend Loe, Naiv.Super, Cappelens 1996 (trad. It. Naif. Super, Iperborea 2002) + critical study: Giovanna Paterniti, Postfazione a Naif Super, Iperborea 2002.
group c) Crime novels:
c1) Sjöwall & Wahlöö, Den skrattande polisen, Norstedt, Stockholm 1968 (trad. It. Il poliziotto che ride, Sellerio 2007).
c2) Dan Turell, Mord ved Runddelen, Gyldendal 1983 (trad. it. Assassinio di lunedì, Iperborea 2010).
c3) Jo Nesbø, Rødstrupe, Aschehoug & Co 2000 (trad. it. Il pettirosso, Einaudi 2015)
c4) Åsa Larsson, Solstorm, Bonniers 2003 (trad. it Tempesta solare, Marsilio 2005)
+ critical study (for all texts in group C): Catia De Marco, Da villain a self-made man: L'evoluzione della figura del criminale nei gialli svedesi, in «Altre Modernità», n. 15, 2016, p. 214-227
PART B
1) Massimo Ciaravolo, Introduzione a Forme di narrazione autobiografica nelle letterature scandinave, Firenze University Press 2015, pp. 10-61 (NB solo pagg. pari).
2) ONE CRITICAL STUDIES chosen among the following:
- Georges Gusdorf, Conditions and Limits of Autobiography, in James Olney, Autobiography: Essays Theoretical and Critical, Princeton University Press 1980, pp. 28-48
- Philippe Lejeune, Le Pacte autobiographique in Le Pacte autobiographique, Seuil, 1975, pp. 13-46.
- Arne Melberg, Självskrivet. Om självframställning i litteraturen, Atlantis 2008, cap. 1, pp. 7-24.*
3) ONE TEXT chosen among the following, together with the associated short critical study:
- PO Enquist, Ett annat liv, Norstedt 2008 (trad. it. Un'altra vita, Iperborea 2010)
+ Massimiliano Bampi, «Visserligen sant men knappast sanning»: the construction of autobiographical discourse in P.O. Enquist's Ett annat liv, in Introduzione a Forme di narrazione autobiografica nelle letterature scandinave, Firenze University Press 2015, pp. 265-276
- Karl Ove Knausgård, Min kamp. Første bok, Oktober 2009 (trad. It. La morte del padre. La mia battaglia 1, Feltrinelli 2015) + Poul Behrendt, Knausgårds kamp med døden in Politiken, 1/12/2011
PARTE C
1) Massimo Ciaravolo, Introduzione a Forme di narrazione autobiografica nelle letterature scandinave, Firenze University Press 2015, pp. 10-61 (NB solo pagg. pari).
2) ONE CRITICAL STUDIES chosen among the following:
- Poul Behrendt, Dobbeltkontrakten, Gyldendal, 2006, capp. 2 and 4, pp. 19-32, 47-63.
- Eva Ahlstedt, Den franska autofiktionsdebatten: en pågående debatt om en mångtydig term, in Eva Ahlstedt e Britt-Marie Karlsson (eds), Den Tvetydiga pakten: skönlitterära texter i gränslandet mellan självbiografi och fiktion, Gupea, Göteborg, 2011, pp. 15-44.
- Arne Melberg, Självskrivet. Om självframställning i litteraturen, Atlantis 2008, cap. 1, pp. 7-24.*
3) ONE TEXT chosen among the following, together with the associated short critical study:
- Peter Høeg, De måske egnede, Gyldendal 1992 (trad. it. I quasi adatti, Mondadori 1997) + Poul Behrendt, Dobbeltkontrakten, Gyldendal, 2006, capitolo 1, pp. 9-18.
- PO Enquist, Kapten Nemos bibliotek, Norstedt 1991 (trad. it. La biblioteca del capitano Nemo, Giano 2004) + Crister Enander, Men jag har skrivit min sista bok!, Tidningen Boken 3 (1991), pp. 18-23.
* For those students who attend both part B and C, Melberg's study can be chosen only for one of the two parts. For the other, another study will have to be chosen.
The course syllabus includes the contents of the lessons and the critical studies available on the Ariel platform.
Assessment methods and Criteria
The exam consists in an individual interview with questions by the teacher, student/teacher interaction, and comment and analysis of one or more texts included in the reading list and materials. The interview is in Italian and its length varies according to the number of didactic units. The aim is to ascertain the student's knowledge of the course contents and texts, the ability to discuss authors and works in their contexts, the presentation and discussion skills, the use of technical terminology, the ability to discuss themes critically and in a personal way. The final mark follows the 30-point system. The student can reject the result (which will be registered as "ritirato" in this case).
International or Erasmus incoming students are required to contact the teacher as soon as possible. Students with SLD are required to contact the teacher to plan specific exam activities according to the instructions of the office in charge.
International or Erasmus incoming students are required to contact the teacher as soon as possible. Students with SLD are required to contact the teacher to plan specific exam activities according to the instructions of the office in charge.
Unita' didattica A
L-LIN/15 - NORDIC LANGUAGES AND LITERATURES - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours
Unita' didattica B
L-LIN/15 - NORDIC LANGUAGES AND LITERATURES - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours
Unita' didattica C
L-LIN/15 - NORDIC LANGUAGES AND LITERATURES - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours