Literature and Culture in Contemporary Italy
A.Y. 2021/2022
Learning objectives
The course aims to provide some basic categories for analyzing literary texts, both in their formal (linguistic and structural) aspects and in their relationships with the historical and social context.
Expected learning outcomes
At the end of the course, the student must be capable to master the basic tools of the formal analysis and of the historical interpretation, to define them in theory and to apply them in a proper and autonomous way in text-reading.
Lesson period: First 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
A-D
Responsible
Lesson period
First semester
L-FIL-LET/11 - CONTEMPORARY ITALIAN LITERATURE - University credits: 9
Lessons: 60 hours
Professor:
Turchetta Giovanni
E-N
Responsible
Lesson period
First semester
Lessons will take place in person, with live streaming on the Microsoft Teams platform, and will not be recorded. All the most important information and the access code will be provided through the Ariel website of the course.
Students can obtain the transfer to another course by submitting a written request to the teacher they intend to leave, in which the impediments will be certified or the overlapping lessons indicated (teacher, discipline, timetable). Once the permit has been obtained, the student must carefully keep it and show it to the teacher before taking the exam. The requests must be submitted no later than Friday 15 October 2021.
Written tests are not required. The examination will be held in oral form, on MS Teams platform or face-to-face, if the health situation will make it possible.
Students can obtain the transfer to another course by submitting a written request to the teacher they intend to leave, in which the impediments will be certified or the overlapping lessons indicated (teacher, discipline, timetable). Once the permit has been obtained, the student must carefully keep it and show it to the teacher before taking the exam. The requests must be submitted no later than Friday 15 October 2021.
Written tests are not required. The examination will be held in oral form, on MS Teams platform or face-to-face, if the health situation will make it possible.
Course syllabus
SICILIAN MYSTERIES
The monographic sections deal with the representation of the culture and society of modern Sicily, through a close dialogue with the works of Leonardo Sciascia and Andrea Camilleri. Unit 1 brings the analysis into a historical dimension, examining crucial issues such as the Risorgimento, emigration, fascism. Didactic Unit 3 focuses on the phenomenon of the mafia, themed in the most famous detective novels of the two authors.
Unit 2, which will be dedicated specifically to theory of literature, will depict a few fundamental issues of the relationships between literature and historical context, from a multidisciplinary point of view, studying some crucial texts of sociology, literary criticism and philosophy from 19th and 20th centuries.
The monographic sections deal with the representation of the culture and society of modern Sicily, through a close dialogue with the works of Leonardo Sciascia and Andrea Camilleri. Unit 1 brings the analysis into a historical dimension, examining crucial issues such as the Risorgimento, emigration, fascism. Didactic Unit 3 focuses on the phenomenon of the mafia, themed in the most famous detective novels of the two authors.
Unit 2, which will be dedicated specifically to theory of literature, will depict a few fundamental issues of the relationships between literature and historical context, from a multidisciplinary point of view, studying some crucial texts of sociology, literary criticism and philosophy from 19th and 20th centuries.
Prerequisites for admission
Students should have: - an essential knowledge of Italian history, culture and literature from Unity to today; - a mastery of basic tools for the analysis of the literary text and the reading of critical essays; - a good command of written and spoken Italian language.
Teaching methods
The setting of the lessons blends a careful investigation of the style and narrative techniques with a sociological approach, in order to familiarize the student with the main issues concerning contemporary Italian literature and culture.
Teaching Resources
Here you can find the bibliography for students who attend the lessons, and the supplementary bibliography developed specifically for students who do not have the opportunity to attend the course.
The Critical Bibliography (Unit 1 and 3) will be uploaded on Ariel.
Unit 1. «Departures and returns»
Attending students will study for the exam the notes taken in class and the following texts:
L. Sciascia, Gli zii di Sicilia, Adelphi, Milano; A. Camilleri, La stagione della caccia, Sellerio, Palermo.
Critical bibliography: M. Onofri, Storia di Sciascia, Laterza, Roma-Bari 1994, pp. 57-78; L. Matt, Lettura stilistica della "Stagione della caccia", «Quaderni camilleriani», 15, 2021, pp. 91-107. Please note: Camilleri glossaries are available on the sites vigata.org and camillerindex.it.
Non-attending students will study for the exam the following texts:
L. Sciascia, Gli zii di Sicilia, Adelphi, Milano; A. Camilleri, La stagione della caccia, Sellerio, Palermo
Critical bibliography: M. Onofri, Storia di Sciascia, Laterza, Roma-Bari 1994, pp. 57-78; L. Matt, Lettura stilistica della "Stagione della caccia", «Quaderni camilleriani», 15, 2021, pp. 91-107; A. Santoro, Camilleri e Sciascia, tra storia e linguaggio, in «Sinestesie», n. 2, 2002, pp. 102-125. Please note: Camillerian glossaries are available on the sites vigata.org and camillerindex.it.
Unit 2. INTRODUCTION TO THE SOCIOLOGY OF LITERATURE
Attending students will study for the exam the notes taken in class and six of the twelve essays contained in the following text: G. Turchetta, Critica, letteratura e società, Carocci.
Non-attending students will study for the exam ten of the twelve essays contained in the following text:
G. Turchetta, Critica, letteratura e società, Carocci.
Unit 3: «Sun, blood and silence»
Attending students will study for the exam the notes taken in class and the following texts:
L. Sciascia, Il giorno della civetta, Adelphi, Milano; A. Camilleri, Il campo del vasaio, Sellerio, Palermo
Critical bibliography: M. Onofri, Storia di Sciascia, Laterza, Roma-Bari 1994, pp. 97-114; M. Novelli, La gabbia di Montalbano, in Tirature 2017, a cura di V. Spinazzola, Faam-il Saggiatore, Milano 2017, pp. 39-45; G. Bonina, Tutto Camilleri, Sellerio, Palermo 2012, pp. 432-440
Non-attending students will study for the exam the following texts:
L. Sciascia, Il giorno della civetta, Adelphi, Milano; A. Camilleri, Il campo del vasaio, Sellerio, Palermo
Critical bibliography: M. Onofri, Storia di Sciascia, Laterza, Roma-Bari 1994, pp. 97-114; N. Fano, Come leggere "Il giorno della civetta", Mursia, Milano, pp. 35-61; G. Bonina, Tutto Camilleri, Sellerio, Palermo 2012, pp. 432-440; M. Novelli, La gabbia di Montalbano, in Tirature 2017, a cura di V. Spinazzola, Faam-il Saggiatore, Milano 2017, pp. 39-45; S. Kolsky, Male Homosociality, the "Femme Fatale", and Gender Relations in Andrea Camilleri's "Il campo del vasaio", «Romance Studies», 31, n. 1, january 2013, pp. 41-52
The Critical Bibliography (Unit 1 and 3) will be uploaded on Ariel.
Unit 1. «Departures and returns»
Attending students will study for the exam the notes taken in class and the following texts:
L. Sciascia, Gli zii di Sicilia, Adelphi, Milano; A. Camilleri, La stagione della caccia, Sellerio, Palermo.
Critical bibliography: M. Onofri, Storia di Sciascia, Laterza, Roma-Bari 1994, pp. 57-78; L. Matt, Lettura stilistica della "Stagione della caccia", «Quaderni camilleriani», 15, 2021, pp. 91-107. Please note: Camilleri glossaries are available on the sites vigata.org and camillerindex.it.
Non-attending students will study for the exam the following texts:
L. Sciascia, Gli zii di Sicilia, Adelphi, Milano; A. Camilleri, La stagione della caccia, Sellerio, Palermo
Critical bibliography: M. Onofri, Storia di Sciascia, Laterza, Roma-Bari 1994, pp. 57-78; L. Matt, Lettura stilistica della "Stagione della caccia", «Quaderni camilleriani», 15, 2021, pp. 91-107; A. Santoro, Camilleri e Sciascia, tra storia e linguaggio, in «Sinestesie», n. 2, 2002, pp. 102-125. Please note: Camillerian glossaries are available on the sites vigata.org and camillerindex.it.
Unit 2. INTRODUCTION TO THE SOCIOLOGY OF LITERATURE
Attending students will study for the exam the notes taken in class and six of the twelve essays contained in the following text: G. Turchetta, Critica, letteratura e società, Carocci.
Non-attending students will study for the exam ten of the twelve essays contained in the following text:
G. Turchetta, Critica, letteratura e società, Carocci.
Unit 3: «Sun, blood and silence»
Attending students will study for the exam the notes taken in class and the following texts:
L. Sciascia, Il giorno della civetta, Adelphi, Milano; A. Camilleri, Il campo del vasaio, Sellerio, Palermo
Critical bibliography: M. Onofri, Storia di Sciascia, Laterza, Roma-Bari 1994, pp. 97-114; M. Novelli, La gabbia di Montalbano, in Tirature 2017, a cura di V. Spinazzola, Faam-il Saggiatore, Milano 2017, pp. 39-45; G. Bonina, Tutto Camilleri, Sellerio, Palermo 2012, pp. 432-440
Non-attending students will study for the exam the following texts:
L. Sciascia, Il giorno della civetta, Adelphi, Milano; A. Camilleri, Il campo del vasaio, Sellerio, Palermo
Critical bibliography: M. Onofri, Storia di Sciascia, Laterza, Roma-Bari 1994, pp. 97-114; N. Fano, Come leggere "Il giorno della civetta", Mursia, Milano, pp. 35-61; G. Bonina, Tutto Camilleri, Sellerio, Palermo 2012, pp. 432-440; M. Novelli, La gabbia di Montalbano, in Tirature 2017, a cura di V. Spinazzola, Faam-il Saggiatore, Milano 2017, pp. 39-45; S. Kolsky, Male Homosociality, the "Femme Fatale", and Gender Relations in Andrea Camilleri's "Il campo del vasaio", «Romance Studies», 31, n. 1, january 2013, pp. 41-52
Assessment methods and Criteria
The exam consists of an oral interview on the topics of the syllabus, whose purpose is to ascertain the knowledge of the main issues, the acquisition of the basic methodological tools for the interpretation of literary texts and the ability to apply them appropriately and autonomous to the scheduled texts.
Attendance at lessons is strongly recommended for better exam preparation. However, the syllabus already includes additions for students who could not attend.
There are no intermediate tests, nor partial exams: students must present all the teaching units to the exam, without exception. Students must register through the appropriate links on the University website: only in this case the exams can be regularly registered.
Attendance at lessons is strongly recommended for better exam preparation. However, the syllabus already includes additions for students who could not attend.
There are no intermediate tests, nor partial exams: students must present all the teaching units to the exam, without exception. Students must register through the appropriate links on the University website: only in this case the exams can be regularly registered.
L-FIL-LET/11 - CONTEMPORARY ITALIAN LITERATURE - University credits: 9
Lessons: 60 hours
Professor:
Novelli Mauro Giacomo
O-Z
Responsible
Lesson period
First semester
More specific information on the delivery modes of training activities for academic year 2021/22 will be provided over the coming weeks, based on the evolution of public health situation.
Course syllabus
"No Country for Young People. Milan and Italy between the Fifties and Seventies of the Twentieth Century".
In its monographic part (Teaching Unit I and III), the course will study themes and forms of four literary and journalistic works published between the Fifties and Seventies of the 20th century. These works fully give us back various aspects of the youth conditions in post-war Italy.
The first Unit, "The sins of the Fathers. Pasolini Censor of Consumer Society", will focus on some political and social articles by Pier Paolo Pasolini, dating back to the Mid-Seventies and contained in "Scritti corsari" and "Lettere luterane". We will see the best-known Italian intellectual of recent decades engaged in a close confrontation with some fundamental dynamics of the Italian reality of the post-Second World War.
The third Unit (second section of the monographic part of the course), Succeeding in the World. At Any Cost?, will study Umberto Simonetta's and Ottiero Ottieri's novels "Lo sbarbato" and "Tempi stretti", characterized by a very peculiar documentary verve, both sociologically and psychologically. These books portray two opposite characters carving out a niche for themselves in the Milan of the Fifties and Sixties.
The second Unit, "Introduction to the Sociology of Literature", devoted to the Theory of Literature and to the Sociology of Literature, will show some fundamental issues of the relationships between Literature and historical context, from a multidisciplinary point of view, studying some crucial texts of Sociology, Literary Criticism and Philosophy between 19th and 20th Centuries.
In its monographic part (Teaching Unit I and III), the course will study themes and forms of four literary and journalistic works published between the Fifties and Seventies of the 20th century. These works fully give us back various aspects of the youth conditions in post-war Italy.
The first Unit, "The sins of the Fathers. Pasolini Censor of Consumer Society", will focus on some political and social articles by Pier Paolo Pasolini, dating back to the Mid-Seventies and contained in "Scritti corsari" and "Lettere luterane". We will see the best-known Italian intellectual of recent decades engaged in a close confrontation with some fundamental dynamics of the Italian reality of the post-Second World War.
The third Unit (second section of the monographic part of the course), Succeeding in the World. At Any Cost?, will study Umberto Simonetta's and Ottiero Ottieri's novels "Lo sbarbato" and "Tempi stretti", characterized by a very peculiar documentary verve, both sociologically and psychologically. These books portray two opposite characters carving out a niche for themselves in the Milan of the Fifties and Sixties.
The second Unit, "Introduction to the Sociology of Literature", devoted to the Theory of Literature and to the Sociology of Literature, will show some fundamental issues of the relationships between Literature and historical context, from a multidisciplinary point of view, studying some crucial texts of Sociology, Literary Criticism and Philosophy between 19th and 20th Centuries.
Prerequisites for admission
- The student must know the fundamental historical-social, cultural and literary dynamics in twentieth-century Italy.
- The student must have the ability to read, understand and analyze literary texts in Italian.
- The student must have the ability to read, understand and analyze literary texts in Italian.
Teaching methods
Taught class.
Teaching Resources
PART 1
- Pier Paolo Pasolini, "Scritti corsari", Garzanti, 1975 (e successive edizioni), anche in Id., Saggi sulla politica e sulla società, Mondadori, 1999, pp. 265-535;
- Id., "Lettere luterane", Einaudi, 1976 (and subsequent editions), also in Id., "Saggi sulla politica e sulla società", Mondadori, 1999, pp. 537-715.
Critical Bibliography:
- Guido Crainz, "L'Italia repubblicana", Giunti, 2000: dispensa).
- Alfonso Berardinelli, "Prefazione" a P.P. Pasolini, "Scritti corsari", Garzanti, 1990, pp. VII-XII (handout);
- Guido Crainz, "Prefazione" a P.P. Pasolini, "Lettere luterane", Garzanti, 2009, pp. 5-11 (handout);
- Bruno Pischedda, "Pasolini. «Le ragione oggettive per un impegno totale»", in Id., "Scrittori polemisti", Bollati Boringhieri, 2011, pp. 21-47 e 58-88 (handout).
PART 2
- G. Turchetta (ed.), Critica, letteratura e società, Carocci, Roma.
Attending students will study SIX of the twelve essays contained in the volume.
Non-attending students will study TEN of the twelve essays contained in the volume.
PART 3
- Umberto Simonetta, "Lo sbarbato", Baldini+Castoldi, 2021 (first originale 1961);
- Ottiero Ottieri, "Tempi stretti", Hacca, 2012 (first edition 1957).
Critical Bibliography:
- V. Spinazzola, "La trilogia della gioventù milanese", in M. Prada, G. Sergio (eds.), "Italiani di Milano. Studi in onore di Silvia Morgana", Ledizioni, 2017, pp. 27-32 (dispensa);
- Luca Daino, "Uno contro tutti. La narrativa di Umberto Simonetta", in Id. (ed.), "Un milanese 'non tanto regolare'. Studi e testimonianze su Umberto Simonetta", Unicopli, 2020, pp. 25-37 (handout);
- A. Scholz, "La mimesi del parlato e varietà substandard nei romanzi degli anni Sessanta di Umberto Simonetta", in Id., "Subcultura e lingua giovanile in Italia. Hip-hop e dintorni", Aracne, 2004, pp. 111-123 (handout)
- G. Lupo, "La fabbrica triste di Ottiero Ottieri", in O. Ottieri, "Tempi stretti", Hacca, 2012, pp. 9-18;
- S. Tomaiuolo, "Ottiero Ottieri poeta osceno", Liguori, 1998, pp. 12-24 (handout).
- Pier Paolo Pasolini, "Scritti corsari", Garzanti, 1975 (e successive edizioni), anche in Id., Saggi sulla politica e sulla società, Mondadori, 1999, pp. 265-535;
- Id., "Lettere luterane", Einaudi, 1976 (and subsequent editions), also in Id., "Saggi sulla politica e sulla società", Mondadori, 1999, pp. 537-715.
Critical Bibliography:
- Guido Crainz, "L'Italia repubblicana", Giunti, 2000: dispensa).
- Alfonso Berardinelli, "Prefazione" a P.P. Pasolini, "Scritti corsari", Garzanti, 1990, pp. VII-XII (handout);
- Guido Crainz, "Prefazione" a P.P. Pasolini, "Lettere luterane", Garzanti, 2009, pp. 5-11 (handout);
- Bruno Pischedda, "Pasolini. «Le ragione oggettive per un impegno totale»", in Id., "Scrittori polemisti", Bollati Boringhieri, 2011, pp. 21-47 e 58-88 (handout).
PART 2
- G. Turchetta (ed.), Critica, letteratura e società, Carocci, Roma.
Attending students will study SIX of the twelve essays contained in the volume.
Non-attending students will study TEN of the twelve essays contained in the volume.
PART 3
- Umberto Simonetta, "Lo sbarbato", Baldini+Castoldi, 2021 (first originale 1961);
- Ottiero Ottieri, "Tempi stretti", Hacca, 2012 (first edition 1957).
Critical Bibliography:
- V. Spinazzola, "La trilogia della gioventù milanese", in M. Prada, G. Sergio (eds.), "Italiani di Milano. Studi in onore di Silvia Morgana", Ledizioni, 2017, pp. 27-32 (dispensa);
- Luca Daino, "Uno contro tutti. La narrativa di Umberto Simonetta", in Id. (ed.), "Un milanese 'non tanto regolare'. Studi e testimonianze su Umberto Simonetta", Unicopli, 2020, pp. 25-37 (handout);
- A. Scholz, "La mimesi del parlato e varietà substandard nei romanzi degli anni Sessanta di Umberto Simonetta", in Id., "Subcultura e lingua giovanile in Italia. Hip-hop e dintorni", Aracne, 2004, pp. 111-123 (handout)
- G. Lupo, "La fabbrica triste di Ottiero Ottieri", in O. Ottieri, "Tempi stretti", Hacca, 2012, pp. 9-18;
- S. Tomaiuolo, "Ottiero Ottieri poeta osceno", Liguori, 1998, pp. 12-24 (handout).
Assessment methods and Criteria
The exam consists of an oral interview on the topics of the program. The knowledge of the main topics will be evaluated, the acquisition of the basic methodological tools for the interpretation of literary texts and the ability to apply them appropriately and autonomously to the texts in the program.
L-FIL-LET/11 - CONTEMPORARY ITALIAN LITERATURE - University credits: 9
Lessons: 60 hours
Professor:
Daino Luca
Professor(s)