B2735 - COMPARATIVE LITERATURE I

Learning outcomes

The study of comparative literature places literature in a global context, explores the connections between different cultures through literary history, literary criticism, critical theory, aesthetics, and poetics, and strives to develop a nuanced understanding of the socio-cultural roles that literature plays. The course enables students to pursue critical inquiry in a wide range of topics. By the end of the course, students will be capable to explore and investigate literary forms and themes in a comparative perspective, with a special focus on the relationships between different national tradition and different cultural/historical contexts, as well as the relationships between literary texts and other semiotic systems of expression (music, cinema, arts, theatre, etc.).

Course contents

BAES Students are reminded that:
- the course “Comparative Literature I" is offered only at the Forlì campus;
- the BAES study plan awards 6 ETCS for the “Comparative Liuterature I" course.
In order to reach 6 ECTS, BAES students should:
- attend all lectures and carry out the assessments, plus the final written and oral exam, as every other student enrolled in the course.
Further information will be provided in class at the beginning of the course.

The course will focus on the relationships between literature and cinema.

During the lessons the following literary texts will be presented and subsequently some cinematographic works taken from them.

LIST OF LITERARY TEXTS

For the exam each student is required to read in full at least two of the works listed below (also in translation):

- William Shakespeare, Hamlet;

- Mary Shelley, Frankenstein;

- Emily Brontë, Wuthering Heights;

- Francis Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby;

- William Golding, The Lord of the Flies.

LIST OF FILMS that must be seen for the exam:

- Laurence Olivier, Hamlet;

- Kenneth Branagh, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein;

- William Wyler, Wuthering Heights;

- Jack Clayton, The Great Gatsby;

- Peter Brook, The Lord of the Flies.

Readings/Bibliography

1) Giacomo Manzoli, Cinema e letteratura, Carocci 2003 [IN ITALIAN]

or

Silvia Vacirca, L'adattamento cinematografico non esiste, Mimesis 2025 [IN ITALIAN]

or

Timothy Corrigan (edited by), Film and Literature: An Introduction and Reader, 2nd edition, Taylor & Francis Ltd 2011 [IN ENGLISH]

or

Deborah Cartmell (edited by), A Companion to Literature, Film, and Adaptation, John Wiley & Sons Inc 2014 [IN ENGLISH]

2) At least two of the literary works listed in the "Course Contents" (even in translation).

FURTHER REQUESTS FOR NON-ATTENDING STUDENTS:

Non-attending students will have to privately secure the full viewing of the films that will be screened (in whole or in part) and analyzed in class.

No further readings are requested.

Teaching methods

Lectures, text analysis and commentary, use of multimedia products.

Assessment methods

The final exam will consist of a written test. The objectives of the test will be related to the measurement of the learning outcomes expected from the students; the contents of the test will concern the topics covered in the course; the assessment method will consist of an essay about a particular topic covered by the course, to be processed in 90 minutes; evaluation method: overall grade out of thirty. There are no intermediate or partial tests.

Evaluation grid

30-28: in-depth knowledge of the course contents; language that is always exact and precise and of excellent argumentative clarity (the attribution of distinction presupposes, in addition to the previous requirements, a strong and original personal reworking);

27-26: in-depth knowledge of the contents; language mostly exact and congruous and of good argumentative clarity;

25-24: discrete knowledge of the contents; overall correct language, even if characterized by some inaccuracies;

23-21: sufficient knowledge of the course topics; language not always correct; presence of excessive simplifications of concepts;

20-18: overall sufficient knowledge, even if sometimes incomplete, of the contents; incorrect language, characterized by generalizations, inconsistencies and trivializations of concepts;

test not passed: serious gaps in the preparation that testify an overall insufficient knowledge of the course contents and/or incorrect and inadequate critical language with frequent misunderstandings.

 

Students with specific learning difficulties (SpLD) or with disabilities that can affect their ability to attend courses are invited to contact the University service for students with disabilities and SLD at the earliest opportunity, ideally before the start of the course: https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en/for-students. The University service will suggest possible adjustments to the course work and/or exam, which must then be submitted to the course leader so they can assess their feasibility, in line with the learning objectives of the course. Please note that adjustments to the exam must be requested at least two weeks in advance.

Office hours

See the website of Roberto Carnero