English Literature 3
A.Y. 2023/2024
Learning objectives
This teaching brings to conclusion the three-year course in English literature and is addressed to third-year undergraduate students. The period taken into consideration ranges from 1870 to 1970; accordingly, the course covers late-Victorian and Modernist literature, and hints to Postmodernist literary issues. The syllabus is divided into three didactic units, which deal with poetry, prose and drama: students will be taught to read in context and to analyse critically a selection of complex literary works, investigated in their historical and literary context.
Expected learning outcomes
Knowledge: by the end of the course, students should be able to contextualise (historical, cultural, and literary context) both the literary texts and the writers listed in the syllabus. They should also have a very good knowledge of the literary works proposed.
Linguistic competence: to be able to read and translate the literary texts in the reading list; non-Italian students will be asked to paraphrase the same in English. In addition, to be able to discuss in English the contents of the course.
Literary competence: to be able to analyse critically a selection of complex literary works, and to connect different authors, texts and literary trends.
Linguistic competence: to be able to read and translate the literary texts in the reading list; non-Italian students will be asked to paraphrase the same in English. In addition, to be able to discuss in English the contents of the course.
Literary competence: to be able to analyse critically a selection of complex literary works, and to connect different authors, texts and literary trends.
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
Single session
Responsible
Lesson period
First semester
Course syllabus
The course is addressed to all students of Lingue e Letterature Straniere.
The course bears 9 credits. It is not possible to take the exam only for 6 credits.
The course syllabus is valid until February 2025.
The course is entitled "Literature and the 'Modern' Representation of the World".
Towards the end of the nineteenth century, a good number of literary works start rethinking the value and the role of literature in a fast-changing world. Pivotal questions are at stake: is there a 'proper' object of literature? Is there an effective mode of representation? Can the world be represented in the first place? And, finally, what is the purpose of literature? We will explore these questions and the way in which they are investigated at the turn of the century and beyond, taking into consideration, together with some representative literary works, also the cultural issues involved in the twentieth-century redefinition of what it means to write 'literature'.
The course bears 9 credits. It is not possible to take the exam only for 6 credits.
The course syllabus is valid until February 2025.
The course is entitled "Literature and the 'Modern' Representation of the World".
Towards the end of the nineteenth century, a good number of literary works start rethinking the value and the role of literature in a fast-changing world. Pivotal questions are at stake: is there a 'proper' object of literature? Is there an effective mode of representation? Can the world be represented in the first place? And, finally, what is the purpose of literature? We will explore these questions and the way in which they are investigated at the turn of the century and beyond, taking into consideration, together with some representative literary works, also the cultural issues involved in the twentieth-century redefinition of what it means to write 'literature'.
Prerequisites for admission
The course is taught in English. To attend the course successfully, a good knowledge of the previous literary periods and good critical skills are required (both should have been acquired during the first and second year literature courses). To sit the third-year exam, students must have passed the first and second year English language and the first and second year English literature exams.
Teaching methods
The course adopts the following teaching methods: lectures with close reading, analysis and contextualisation of the works in the reading list; whenever possible, both videos and poetry reading/singing will be used in class. Students will be constantly involved in the analytical and critical process of learning, also by giving voluntary presentations on some of the texts present in the syllabus.
Teaching Resources
General introductions to periods and writers, and specific introductions to the authors present in the reading list, are to be studied on:
- "The Norton Anthology of English Literature", (introduction to 'The Victorian Age' and introduction to 'The Twentieth Century').
The writers' biographies can be found both in the Norton Anthology and on the Unimi database LION (Literature Online): https://www.sba.unimi.it/ > Literature Online > Reference > name of author > ProQuest Biography.
In addition to the reading list, students will study all materials uploaded on Teams before or during the course.
REFERENCES
1) During the course, we will make use of narratological categories. Suggested textbooks:
- Hermann Grosser, "Narrativa", Milano, Principato, 1985 (and reprints) [Anglistica Library].
- Manfred Jahn, Narratology 2.2: A Guide to the Theory of Narrative, 2021 [Free online].
2) During the course, we will study poetry. Students must be able to recognise and analyse the poetical techniques used in the poems (structure, metre, foot, rhyme pattern, figures of speech). Refer to the Norton Anthology or to previous textbooks.
3) D. Bradshaw and K. J. H. Dettmar, "A Companion to Modernist Literature and Culture", 2006 [Unimi database].
3) Margaret Rose, "Storia del teatro inglese. L'Ottocento e il Novecento", Carocci, 2002 [Anglistica library].
4) Lawrence Graver, "Samuel Beckett. Waiting for Godot", Cambridge Univ. Press, 1989, 2004 [Unimi database].
Part A: When poetry reads the 'modern' world
- W. B. Yeats, "The Lake Isle of Innisfree" (1890), "An Irish Airman Foresees his Death" (1919), "The Second Coming" (1919), "Leda and the Swan" (1924), "Sailing to Byzantium" (1928).
- T. S. Eliot, "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" (1915).
- W. H. Auden, "Musée des Beaux Arts" (1938), "In Memory of W. B. Yeats" (1939).
- C.P.S Denholm-Young, "Dead German Youth" (1944); Gavin Ewart, "War Dead" (1945); Edward Lowbury, "August 10th, 1945 - The Day After" (1945).
Part B: Superb short-story skills
- Edgar Allan Poe, "Twice-Told Tales. A Review", Graham's Magazine (1842) [Free online].
- Short stories by H. James, J. Conrad, H.G. Wells, V. Woolf, D.H. Lawrence, K. Mansfield. The titles of the stories will be listed on the final syllabus uploaded on Teams.
- Virginia Woolf, "Mr. Bennet and Mrs. Brown" (1924) [Free online].
Part C: Political? Apolitical? British drama after WW2
- Samuel Beckett, "Waiting for Godot" (1953). Any edition with introduction and notes.
- McDonald, Ronan. The Cambridge Introduction to Samuel Beckett. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007: the chapter on "Waiting for Godot", pp. 29-43. [Unimi database].
- William Shakespeare, "Hamlet" (1601).
- Tom Stoppard, "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead" (1966).
- Benjamin Vonwiller, "The Spectre of Shakespeare in Tom Stoppard's Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead", Sydney Studies in English, vol. 24, 1998, pp. 63-82 [Free online].
STUDENTS WHO DO NOT ATTEND CLASSES
In addition to the above-listed materials, the texts listed under REFERENCES are compulsory.
- "The Norton Anthology of English Literature", (introduction to 'The Victorian Age' and introduction to 'The Twentieth Century').
The writers' biographies can be found both in the Norton Anthology and on the Unimi database LION (Literature Online): https://www.sba.unimi.it/ > Literature Online > Reference > name of author > ProQuest Biography.
In addition to the reading list, students will study all materials uploaded on Teams before or during the course.
REFERENCES
1) During the course, we will make use of narratological categories. Suggested textbooks:
- Hermann Grosser, "Narrativa", Milano, Principato, 1985 (and reprints) [Anglistica Library].
- Manfred Jahn, Narratology 2.2: A Guide to the Theory of Narrative, 2021 [Free online].
2) During the course, we will study poetry. Students must be able to recognise and analyse the poetical techniques used in the poems (structure, metre, foot, rhyme pattern, figures of speech). Refer to the Norton Anthology or to previous textbooks.
3) D. Bradshaw and K. J. H. Dettmar, "A Companion to Modernist Literature and Culture", 2006 [Unimi database].
3) Margaret Rose, "Storia del teatro inglese. L'Ottocento e il Novecento", Carocci, 2002 [Anglistica library].
4) Lawrence Graver, "Samuel Beckett. Waiting for Godot", Cambridge Univ. Press, 1989, 2004 [Unimi database].
Part A: When poetry reads the 'modern' world
- W. B. Yeats, "The Lake Isle of Innisfree" (1890), "An Irish Airman Foresees his Death" (1919), "The Second Coming" (1919), "Leda and the Swan" (1924), "Sailing to Byzantium" (1928).
- T. S. Eliot, "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" (1915).
- W. H. Auden, "Musée des Beaux Arts" (1938), "In Memory of W. B. Yeats" (1939).
- C.P.S Denholm-Young, "Dead German Youth" (1944); Gavin Ewart, "War Dead" (1945); Edward Lowbury, "August 10th, 1945 - The Day After" (1945).
Part B: Superb short-story skills
- Edgar Allan Poe, "Twice-Told Tales. A Review", Graham's Magazine (1842) [Free online].
- Short stories by H. James, J. Conrad, H.G. Wells, V. Woolf, D.H. Lawrence, K. Mansfield. The titles of the stories will be listed on the final syllabus uploaded on Teams.
- Virginia Woolf, "Mr. Bennet and Mrs. Brown" (1924) [Free online].
Part C: Political? Apolitical? British drama after WW2
- Samuel Beckett, "Waiting for Godot" (1953). Any edition with introduction and notes.
- McDonald, Ronan. The Cambridge Introduction to Samuel Beckett. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007: the chapter on "Waiting for Godot", pp. 29-43. [Unimi database].
- William Shakespeare, "Hamlet" (1601).
- Tom Stoppard, "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead" (1966).
- Benjamin Vonwiller, "The Spectre of Shakespeare in Tom Stoppard's Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead", Sydney Studies in English, vol. 24, 1998, pp. 63-82 [Free online].
STUDENTS WHO DO NOT ATTEND CLASSES
In addition to the above-listed materials, the texts listed under REFERENCES are compulsory.
Assessment methods and Criteria
Oral exam: It consists of an oral interview assessed in thirtieths; 18/30 is the passing score.
The interview will ascertain: the capacity of students to read and translate the literary texts in the course syllabus (non-Italian students will be asked to paraphrase the same in English); their knowledge of the historical, cultural, and literary context of both texts and writers proposed; their knowledge of the literary works proposed; their critical abilities (their capacity to analyse the literary works, and to connect different authors, texts and literary trends). To take the exam, it is mandatory to bring along all literary texts listed in this syllabus.
It is possible to take the exam both in English and in Italian (in the latter case, at least one or two answers will have to be given in English).
The final score is expressed in thirtieths; students may accept or reject the mark (in that case the record will be "ritirato", and they will have to take the whole exam again in a future session).
International or Erasmus incoming students are kindly requested to contact the teacher. Also students with any disabilities should contact the teacher in order to agree on alternative examination methods, in agreement with the competent office.
The interview will ascertain: the capacity of students to read and translate the literary texts in the course syllabus (non-Italian students will be asked to paraphrase the same in English); their knowledge of the historical, cultural, and literary context of both texts and writers proposed; their knowledge of the literary works proposed; their critical abilities (their capacity to analyse the literary works, and to connect different authors, texts and literary trends). To take the exam, it is mandatory to bring along all literary texts listed in this syllabus.
It is possible to take the exam both in English and in Italian (in the latter case, at least one or two answers will have to be given in English).
The final score is expressed in thirtieths; students may accept or reject the mark (in that case the record will be "ritirato", and they will have to take the whole exam again in a future session).
International or Erasmus incoming students are kindly requested to contact the teacher. Also students with any disabilities should contact the teacher in order to agree on alternative examination methods, in agreement with the competent office.
L-LIN/10 - ENGLISH LITERATURE - University credits: 9
Lessons: 60 hours
Professor:
Iannaccaro Giuliana
Educational website(s)
Professor(s)
Reception:
Tuesday, 16:30-19:30, either in person or on Teams. Please send me a mail in advance to make an appointment.
Piazza S. Alessandro 1, Anglistica; or Microsoft Teams Platform