Contemporary Italian Literature

Course Description:

This is a course for students who are interested in contemporary Italian literature, culture, and language. The course will cover Italy’s most important authors from the Unification of Italy to present time. Particular attention will be given to living authors whose works have been turned into film. Cinema is central in the acquisition of Italian language and culture. Therefore, the course will be structured comparing movies that are based on the literary works of those Italian writers, so that students experience a deeper understanding of language, politics, ideology, art, and life in general from the Unification to the present time. Through the visualization of places, characters, and historical as well as social and political situations, students will gain a broad picture of Italy under different profiles. Students will ready the original novels in English translation, while films will be shown in original language with English subtitles.

The study of selected works and authors will be combined with readings, movies, and discussions conducted by the instructor in English, while constantly referring to the original texts. This course will provide a basic yet exhaustive outline of the evolution of Italian history, thought, and aspects of everyday life. The course will also examine the development of Italian language and culture after the Unification of Italy. These themes and others will be discussed as we study the most important authors of this time.

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