67998 - Italian Language and Literature

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course the student: - knows the methodological foundations of the study applied to literature; - possess the use of the main technical tools (philological, linguistic, critical) useful for the evaluation of a literary text; - will know how to approach the literary document, understand its messages, relate them to the historical and linguistic context in which it was produced, in an interdisciplinary perspective; - will be able to propose a personal hypothesis on the teaching of literary material, to clearly communicate information and ideas to non-specialist interlocutors, such as the recipients of the teaching, pupils aged 3 to 10.

Course contents

The course will deal with some of the main authors of the Italian literary tradition (Dante, Boccaccio, Ariosto, Tasso, Goldoni, Leopardi, Manzoni, Pirandello, Svevo), pointing out the points of interest of each author's poetics in relation to the essential texts of their production. The main rewrites for children will be indicated for each proposed work: these are generally works of great value, which are able to bring little girls closer to our most famous books, but also more distant in content or linguistic guise from childhood tastes.

The last part of the course will illustrate some narrative texts which, during the twentieth century and the early 2000s, investigated childhood and early adolescence, offering an image that is not sweetened or taken for granted. As part of this part, the student will have to read one of the works of their choice presented during the lessons, the list of which can be found below, in the Texts/Bibliography section

 

Readings/Bibliography

The aim of the course is to enable students to critically review scholastic knowledge, reflecting on the concept of canon and the relationship between language and literature (exploring the forms through which the literary text recreates the meanings of human experience), and to form the basic skills useful for analyzing a literary text (recognizing its otherness and distance).

 

PROGRAM FOR STUDENTS

Volumes scheduled for the general part:

G. M. Anselmi, L. Chines (edited by), Leggere i classici italiani. Un'antologia, Bologna, Pàtron, 2019 (only the chapters on Dante, Boccaccio, Ariosto, Tasso, Goldoni, Manzoni, Leopardi, Svevo, Pirandello)

The authors present in the anthology will have to be studied in depth through a manual of Italian literature. We recommend:

N. Bonazzi, A. Campana, F. Giunta, N. Maldina, Itinerari nella letteratura italiana. Da Dante al web, Rome, Carocci, 2013 (and subsequent editions)

Lecture notes made available with illustrative cards and power points on the platform virtual.unibo.it

On linguistic registers and the differences between written and oral Italian:

E. Lombardi Vallauri, Parlare l'Italiano, Bologna, Il Mulino, 1999 and subsequent editions (only the chapters Problemi di stile: pp.93-113; Gradi di formalità. Sapersi cambiare d'abito: pp. 117-152; Problemi del mezzo scritto e parlato: pp. 191-229)

It will also be worth reading, as an in-depth look at the institutional part:

D. Canfora, Invitation to literature, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2017.

Finally, one of the following texts must be read in its entirety:

Italo Calvino, Il sentiero dei nidi di ragno, Mondadori (or previous editions)

Elsa Morante, L’isola di Arturo, Einaudi

Gianni Celati, La banda dei sospiri, Quodlibet (or previous editions)

Bianca Pitzorno, Ascolta il mio cuore, Mondadori

Niccolò Ammanniti, Io non ho paura, Einaudi

Stefano Benni, Margherita dolce vita, Feltrinelli

Paolo Zanotti, Bambini bonsai, Ponte alle Grazie

 

PROGRAM FOR NON-ATTENDANTS

Non-attending students are required to prepare the following entire volume in addition to the texts in the program:

E. Lombardi Vallauri, Parlare l'italiano, Bologna, Il Mulino, 1999 (or subsequent editions)

 

3 CREDITS PROGRAM

For those who must obtain 3 credits as coming from other Faculties or Degree Courses where they have already taken the Italian Literature exam, the (single) volume to prepare is:

E. Lombardi Vallauri, Parlare l'italiano, Il Mulino (or subsequent editions)

 

PROGRAM FOR ERASMUS STUDENTS

At least 15 days before the exam session in which they intend to participate, Erasmus students are required to agree on the title of a written research on one of the topics of the course with the teacher. The research, in Italian, must be at least 8-10 pages long and will be corrected and discussed with the teacher by the end of the exam session for which the student is registered.

Teaching methods

Frontal lessons.

Screening and discussion of videos

Power Point

The lessons are not conceived as a mere explanation of the volumes in the program, nor as an exposition of teaching methodologies applied to literature, but as examples of reflection on the texts (based on the knowledge and examples of analysis outlined in the volumes in the program) and of co-construction of interpretative hypotheses based on the fine observation of the literary text.

The goal is not to train literary critics, but critical and aware readers, capable of stimulating, as future teachers, the pleasure of reading.

Assessment methods

The test is oral

Criteria used for the assignment of the vote

The marks, expressed out of thirty, will consider the clarity of the oral presentation as well as the quality of the study and the reasoning skills behind the arguments provided: alongside the evaluation of the quantity / quality of the information offered, the ability to explain will also be evaluated deepening, motivating, connecting knowledge spanning the different books.

Rejected: lack of answers, wrong or insufficient answers, overall superficiality

18-19: basic knowledge, sometimes a little confused

20-22: diffuse knowledge not in-depth

23-24: fair overall knowledge and / or discrepancy in the quality of the answers

25-26: good overall knowledge with some imperfections (lack of data, inaccuracies ...)

27-28: uniform panorama of well-assimilated knowledge

29-30: breadth and precision of the knowledge offered, ability to re-elaborate

30 cum laude: completeness, ability to re-elaborate, original observations.

It will be possible to take the exam only after the conclusion of the lessons to take the exam it is necessary to register through Almaesami, in compliance with the established deadlines. Anyone unable to do so due to technical problems is requested to report the problem immediately to the didactic secretariat. The teacher reserves the right (not) to admit non-listed students to the test.

Important notice for those who have obtained the OFA debt.

The OFA Italian support laboratory is integrated with the teaching of Italian literature and language. The examination of this discipline can be carried out only after successfully passing the OFA verification test, which certifies the achievement of specific skills in Italian. Those who decide to attend the workshops must:

- enrol in the workshop on Almaesami starting from December 2023;

- go to the first lesson by declaring to the teacher their intention to attend;

- guarantee a frequency of at least 70% of the laboratory hours.

Participation in the OFA support workshops is highly recommended to all those who have received one or two debts. The first useful appeals for passing the OFA will be held immediately after the end of the support laboratory.

 

Teaching tools

Bibliography materials and lessons acetate will be available on the platform Virtuale Learning Environment (https://virtuale.unibo.it)

Office hours

See the website of Nicola Bonazzi

Office hours

See the website of Nicola Bonazzi