- Docente: Luca Vantaggiato
- Credits: 6
- SSD: L-OR/21
- Language: Italian
- Teaching Mode: Traditional lectures
- Campus: Bologna
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Corso:
Second cycle degree programme (LM) in
History and Oriental Studies (cod. 6813)
Also valid for Second cycle degree programme (LM) in History and Oriental Studies (cod. 8845)
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from Apr 08, 2026 to May 22, 2026
Learning outcomes
By the end of the course students will have acquired an advanced level of knowledge of contemporary Chinese culture and literature with reference to the original sources. They will be able independently to conduct documentary and bibliographic research, so as to apply their skills in the editorial and publishing field and in the promotion of the cultural heritage.
Course contents
The course will provide a basic framework of the develpment of contemporary Chinese literature. The main topics are:
- Lu Xun and the birth of contemporary Chinese literature;
- Literary association: the Creation Society, the League of Left Wing Writers,
the Crescent Moon Society and the Literary Research Association;
- Criticism of chinese traditional values with special emphasis on Confucianism, hierarchical social structure,
and ritualism; development of individualism, expression of emotions, and interactions with Western literature;
- Contemporary Chinese romanticism: Yu Dafu;
- Shen Congwen and the use of folklore;
- Rebirth of the novel: Laoshe's Camel Xiangzi and Mao Dun's Midnight;
- Mao Zedong's thought on the functions of literature: the Yan'an discourses;
- The Xungen movement and the Avant-guarde literature
- From the end of the Twentieth Century to the new millenium: Mo Yan, Yu Hua, and Wang Shuo novels.
Readings/Bibliography
- Pesaro, Nicoletta; Pirazzoli, Melinda, “La Narrativa Cinese del Novecento”, Roma: Carocci, 2019 (chapters 1, 3, 5, 7 e 8)
Excerpts from the main Chinese contemporary writers (Lu Xun, Lao She, Shen Congwen, Mao Dun, Yu Hua) will be supplied by the lecturer.
Teaching methods
Traditional lectures will be offered in order for the students to grasp the basic concepts of the devolpment of the Chinese literary and philosophical tradition.
Reading of the ancient texts will be followed by a discussion among the lecturer and the students.
Assessment methods
The final exam will be an oral examination in which the students will deal with the arguments covered during the classes, especially the content of the texts and all the literary and philosofical topics covers by the texts.
Class attendance is not mandatory.
Office hours
See the website of Luca Vantaggiato