C9839 - STORIA E PRATICHE DI LETTURA: CULTURE D'ÉLITE E CULTURE MARGINALI

Learning outcomes

The course offers a historical and critical overview of reading practices in the West, comparing elites and marginalized groups. The course will enable students to learn about reading as a social and cultural practice, analyzing its evolution and meanings, with a focus on digital reading and multicultural contexts.

Course contents

The course addresses reading as a historical, social and cultural practice. Attention is devoted to the ways in which texts, genres, authors and reading practices are recognized, legitimized, devalued or marginalized by institutions, schools, criticism, publishing, the market, communities of readers and digital platforms.

The course is organized around four main thematic areas:

1. Reading, social practices and interpretive communities
   Reading as a historically situated practice; the material supports of reading; male and female readers; interpretive communities; differences between individual, school-based, public, shared and digital reading.

2. Classics, canon and cultural hierarchies
   Definition of a classic; construction of the canon; the role of schools, universities, criticism, publishing and libraries; distinction between high culture, popular culture and mass culture; dominant interpretations and alternative readings.

3. Marginal genres and processes of legitimation
   Horror, comics/graphic novels and romance as case studies. The course analyzes the criteria through which some genres are considered “minor,” commercial, popular or not fully literary, as well as the conditions that may change their cultural legitimacy.

4. Platforms, social reading and new forms of authority
   BookTok, Goodreads, Wattpad, online reviews, communities of readers, recommendation algorithms, cultural influencers and the bottom-up production of literary value. Particular attention will be paid to the shift from predominantly institutional models of legitimation to hybrid models, in which readers, platforms and the market take part in defining what becomes visible and relevant.

For attending students, the course concludes with an assessment simulation in the form of a Role Playing Game, devoted to the negotiated construction of a list, library or public platform for the promotion of texts, genres and reading practices.

Readings/Bibliography

Required readings for attending students are short and designed to support classroom activities. Some texts will be provided as excerpts on Virtuale, in compliance with copyright regulations; others are available online in open access or through the University library resources.

Italo Calvino, “Italiani, vi esorto ai classici” / “Perché leggere i classici”
A short text for discussing the notion of the classic, the relationship between personal reading and tradition, and the way in which certain texts acquire cultural authority.

Marilena Maniaci and Roger Chartier, “Per una storia delle pratiche di lettura nell’età moderna (secoli XVI-XVIII),” Annali della Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa. Classe di Lettere e Filosofia, Series III, vol. 23, no. 2, 1993, pp. 385–402
Excerpt indicated on Virtuale. The text will be used to introduce reading as a historical and social practice, connected to material formats, contexts, institutions and communities.

Terry Eagleton, Introduzione alla teoria letteraria, Rome, Editori Riuniti, 1998, excerpt from the chapter “Che cos’è la letteratura?”
A supporting reading for discussing the definition of literature, the role of interpretive institutions and the construction of literary value.

Umberto Eco, Apocalittici e integrati, excerpt indicated on Virtuale
A reading devoted to the relationship between mass culture, high culture, popular culture and critical judgment.

Simona Paolantoni, “Social reading e nuova mediazione: indagine qualitativa sul rapporto tra lettura giovanile, reti sociali e biblioteche,” AIB Studi, 61(1), 2021, pp. 85–99
An open-access text used for the module on social reading, social networks, youth reading and library mediation.

J. E. Browning, “Horror Criticism,” in Matt Cardin, ed., Horror Literature through History: An Encyclopedia of the Stories that Speak to Our Deepest Fears, Santa Barbara, ABC-CLIO, 2017, short excerpt indicated on Virtuale
This text, in English, will be used as operational material for the role-play on horror and the legitimation of marginal genres. Students may use translation and language-support tools, in accordance with the course rules on the limited, declared and non-substantial use of AI.

Operational readings assigned to groups

These readings will not necessarily be required in full for all students. They will be used for group activities, guided discussions, preparation for role-plays or preparation for the final RPG.

Francesca Manca, I giovani e la lettura. Il ruolo delle biblioteche nell’epoca del BookTok
Useful material for groups working on BookTok, young readers, the publishing market and the role of libraries in reading mediation.

Claudia Cantale, Romance e social reading. Comunità in rete tra piattaforme e algoritmi
Useful material for groups working on romance, Wattpad, Goodreads, Telegram, BookTok, the stigmatization of female readers and the assertion of the value of popular reading.

“Le parole e le immagini. I Comics Studies, la transmedialità e la sociologia della letteratura”
Useful material for groups working on comics, graphic novels, transmediality and cultural legitimation.

Materials on Stephen King and the legitimation of contemporary horror
Critical sheets, reviews, interviews and presentation materials will be used as objects of analysis: how is a popular author presented? What arguments are used to legitimize or devalue him?

Reviews, rankings, publishing fact sheets and platform content
During the course, students will also analyze non-academic materials: reviews on Goodreads or publishing stores, BookTok content, back-cover blurbs, series descriptions, rankings, journalistic articles and promotional pages. These materials will be treated as sources for understanding the contemporary production of cultural value.

Additional compulsory bibliography for non-attending students

Non-attending students prepare the common dossier and choose one additional volume.

Required readings

Italo Calvino, “Italiani, vi esorto ai classici” / “Perché leggere i classici”;

Marilena Maniaci and Roger Chartier, “Per una storia delle pratiche di lettura nell’età moderna (secoli XVI-XVIII)”;

Terry Eagleton, Introduzione alla teoria letteraria, chapter “Che cos’è la letteratura” or excerpt indicated on Virtuale;

Umberto Eco, Apocalittici e integrati, excerpt indicated on Virtuale;

Simona Paolantoni, “Social reading e nuova mediazione”;

J. E. Browning, “Horror Criticism,” excerpt indicated on Virtuale;

“Le parole e le immagini. I Comics Studies, la transmedialità e la sociologia della letteratura,” indicated on Virtuale;

Claudia Cantale, Romance e social reading. Comunità in rete tra piattaforme e algoritmi, indicated on Virtuale.

Optional volume

Each non-attending student will also choose one volume from among the following:

Francesca Manca, I giovani e la lettura. Il ruolo delle biblioteche nell’epoca del BookTok;

Claudia Cantale, Romance e social reading. Comunità in rete tra piattaforme e algoritmi;

Guglielmo Cavallo, Roger Chartier, eds., Storia della lettura nel mondo occidentale;

Chiara Faggiolani, Libri insieme. Viaggio nelle nuove comunità della conoscenza;

Giovanni Solimine, Cervelli anfibi, orecchie e digitale. Esercizi di lettura futura;

another volume agreed upon with the instructor on reading practices, social reading, popular culture, comics, horror, romance or digital platforms.

Recommended further readings

Further recommended texts will be indicated on Virtuale during the course. They may concern the sociology of culture, the history of reading, cultural studies, mass culture, popular culture, fan culture, BookTok, Wattpad, Goodreads, comics, romance, horror and digital platforms.

Further readings do not replace the required readings, but may be used in the preparation of group work, role-plays, the case-study sheet and the final RPG.

Teaching methods

The course privileges a participatory and student-centered teaching approach. Lectures will serve an introductory function and will be complemented by guided discussions, case analyses, cooperative exercises, concept maps, peer discussion, short reflective writing tasks, role-play and simulations.

The first lesson will be devoted to presenting the course, its activities, assessment criteria, the use of materials on Virtuale, and the distinction between the pathway for attending students and the pathway for non-attending students.

The following 14 operational lessons will be built around applied and progressive activities.

As a rule, each operational meeting will follow this structure:

brief review of the previous lesson;

introduction of key concepts;

individual or group activity;

collective feedback and discussion;

connection with the assessment portfolio.

The activities are designed to enable attending students to build their assessment progressively during the course, without having to take an additional oral examination if the pathway is completed successfully.

Assessment methods

Assessment methods and learning evaluationAttending students

For attending students, assessment takes place through ongoing assignments, classroom activities and a final activity in the form of a Role Playing Game. Students who complete the pathway and achieve at least 18/30 may register their grade without taking an additional oral examination, by formally enrolling for the exam session.

Students are considered attending students if they actively participate in at least 10 of the 14 operational lessons and submit the required activities.

Assessment componentsActivity Weight Active participation, preparation for discussions and classroom work 3/30 Individual evolving concept map 6/30 Case-analysis sheet on a reading practice or cultural legitimation process 6/30 Policy brief / position paper in preparation for the final RPG 6/30 Final RPG “Who decides what is worth reading?” and individual debriefing 9/30Total30/30Brief description of the assignmentsIndividual evolving concept map

Students build and update, throughout the course, a map of the main concepts: reading, social practice, classic, canon, legitimacy, high culture, popular culture, mass culture, marginal genre, interpretive community, platform, algorithm, social reading and authority.

The map is not assessed as a graphic product, but as a tool for organizing and connecting concepts.

Case-analysis sheet

Students analyze a concrete case, for example:

• a classic and one of its dominant interpretations;
• a marginalized genre, such as horror, comics or romance;
• an online review or discussion;
• a community of readers;
• a social reading platform;
• a publishing ranking;
• a BookTok item;
• a publishing series;
• a library or reading-promotion initiative.

The sheet must show how the case contributes to constructing, contesting or transforming the cultural value of a text, genre or reading practice.

Preparatory policy brief / position paper

In view of the final RPG, students prepare a short intervention proposal based on the role previously assigned to them. The text must address at least four aspects:

• which texts, genres or practices deserve visibility;
• which criteria are used to establish their value;
• which actors have authority in the decision-making process;
• which exclusions, conflicts or forms of marginalization may arise.

The text will be short and geared toward use in the final simulation.

Final RPG and individual debriefing

In the final lesson, students take part in a simulation in which different actors must decide which texts, genres and reading practices should be promoted within a public cultural project: a library, a platform, a reading list, a festival or review series, or a programme for Cultural Heritage students. All instructions are available on Virtuale.

Assessment does not concern theatrical performance, but the ability to use the concepts of the course to interpret conflicts, hierarchies, mediation processes and processes of legitimation. At the end of the simulation, each student submits a short individual debriefing note.

Assessment criteriaAttending students

The following will be assessed:

• understanding of the fundamental concepts of the course;
• ability to connect texts, genres, reading practices and cultural institutions;
• ability to critically analyze processes of canonization, marginalization and legitimation;
• appropriate use of disciplinary vocabulary;
• quality of argumentation;
• ability to work in groups while maintaining individual responsibility;
• capacity for critical reflection in the final debriefing.

The grading scale will be as follows:

18–19
Essential and mainly descriptive knowledge of the topics; limited connections; ability to apply concepts to cases only with guidance.

20–24
Correct knowledge of the main concepts; ability to apply them to simple cases; orderly argumentation, though not always autonomous.

25–29
Good command of the syllabus; autonomous connections between concepts, materials and cases; critical analysis and appropriate use of terminology.

30–30L
Broad and integrated command of the topics; ability to connect reading practices, canon, popular culture, marginal genres, platforms and interpretive communities; critical autonomy, originality of argumentation and strong capacity for self-reflection.

Use of artificial intelligence

For assessed activities carried out outside the classroom, limited, declared and non-substantial use of AI is permitted, for example for language support, preliminary translation, preliminary summarization, reorganization of notes or self-assessment. Students may not present an AI-generated text as their own.

In the case of English-language texts assigned as excerpts, students may use machine translation or generative AI tools to support linguistic comprehension. However, analysis, interpretation and argumentation must be carried out independently by the student.

Where AI is explicitly the object of the exercise, students must also submit prompts, outputs and a short critical comment. In these cases, the aim is not to delegate the work to the machine, but to analyze the mediation produced by the system.

During the final RPG, the use of AI is not permitted, unless otherwise indicated by the instructor.

Non-attending students

Non-attending students prepare for the exam through the concept sheets available on Virtuale, the common reading dossier and one volume chosen from among those listed.

They must also submit, at least 7 days before the exam session, an individual case-analysis sheet on a reading practice, a process of cultural legitimation or the marginalization of a genre, approximately 6,000–8,000 characters in length. Details regarding the individual sheet will be available on Virtuale.

Assessment consists of an individual case-analysis sheet, worth 9/30, and an oral examination, worth 21/30. The oral examination will focus on the case-analysis sheet, the common readings and the chosen volume.

Assignment Weight Individual case-analysis sheet 9/30 Oral examination on the bibliography and course concepts 21/30Total30/30

The exam is considered passed with a minimum grade of 18/30.

Oral examination for non-attending students

The oral examination lasts approximately 20–25 minutes and is divided into three parts.

1. Discussion of the case-analysis sheet

The student briefly presents the case analyzed and discusses its main aspects.

2. Questions on the common materials

The instructor verifies knowledge of the fundamental concepts: reading as a social practice, classic, canon, legitimacy, high culture, popular culture, mass culture, marginal genre, social reading, platforms, interpretive communities, authority and visibility.

3. Discussion of the chosen volume

The student must show that they are able to connect the chosen volume to the general themes of the course and to the case analyzed in the sheet.

During the oral examination, the use of books, notes, digital devices or AI tools is not permitted, except in cases previously agreed upon, including through the relevant offices for students with specific learning disabilities or disabilities.

Use of artificial intelligence for non-attending students

For the preparation of the case-analysis sheet, limited, declared and non-substantial use of AI is permitted, for example for language support, preliminary translation, reorganization of notes or self-assessment. AI may not be used to produce substantial parts of the written assignment.

The sheet must include, at the end, a short declaration regarding any use of AI tools. In the event of undeclared or substantial use, the assignment may be considered invalid.

The oral examination will also serve to verify the student’s actual individual command of the submitted sheet.

Teaching tools

Virtuale, slides, concept sheets, short articles, case studies, analysis grids, collaborative concept maps, textual excerpts, online reviews, materials from social reading platforms and digital tools for comparison and self-assessment activities will be used.

Virtuale will contain working materials, assignments, bibliographical excerpts, activity sheets, portfolio guidelines and preparatory materials for the final RPG.

Generative AI may be used as an object of analysis and, in some guided activities, as a tool to be questioned critically. It will not be treated as a neutral source, but as a sociotechnical device of mediation.

Students with specific learning disabilities, temporary disabilities or permanent disabilities are invited to contact the relevant University office in good time.

Any adjustments will be proposed by the competent office and must be submitted to the instructor for approval at least 15 days in advance, in relation to the learning outcomes of the course.

Office hours

See the website of Giulia Crippa