30079 - Anglo-American Literature 1 (LM)

Learning outcomes

Students will master a variety of North American literary productions in relation to their cultural, social and technological realities. Students will learn to appreciate literary productions as part of  complex, trans-media and inclusive contexts.

Course contents

“You might as well live: Dorothy Parker’s private and public body”

Dorothy Parker (1893-1967) was a public figure par excellence. She embodied a "lighter" version of the New Woman of American modernism, moving between literature and new forms of arts proposed by the fashionable magazines that flourished in the Twenties, from Vanity Fair to Ainslee's Magazine, up to the more sophisticated The New Yorker, founded by Harold Ross in 1925. She rode the change; indeed, she forged it, as a woman and as an author: independent, an influencer ante litteram, she fully embraced the (cultural and social) opportunities offered by the mass society as it emerged in the post-war period. A woman in a man's world, she led the new knights of the eccentric round table at the Algonquin Hotel. In that context, Dorothy was a biting pen, a shameless critic, a sort of rebellious girl at the center of salacious gossip columns. She become an icon which, unavoidably, turned into an interpretive cliché framing her as both a feminist and a socialite, a master of gossip determining the artistic future of old and new glories. An icon who, however, ended up overshadowing both her skills as a modernist writer and her political commitment which saw her, over time, march against the condemnation of Sacco and Vanzetti, go to Spain as correspondent for The New Masses, engage in the defense of Hollywood workers and employees, take a stand against racial discrimination and in favor of the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People), to which Parker left her assets.

The course intends to retrace the stages of the artistic life of Dorothy Parker, who died just as the countercultures of the Sixties exploded, to recover her complexity and works; by so doing, we will have the opportunity to investigate some sensitive issues that are now more than ever at the center of the North American cultural debate.

Among the themes discussed are:

• Dorothy Parker and North American Modernism
• “New Media”: between journalism, propaganda, “influencers”.
• Dorothy, America and (overseas) wars
• Dorothy, America and equality
• Dorothy, America and free will
• Dorothy: an eccentric “new woman”
• After Dorothy: the America of the countercultures

Please Note: This course is organized as part of the sustainability phase of the European Project “PERFORMIGRATIONS: People Are the Territory” (www.performigratios.eu ), in the frame of the spin-off research project “WeTell: Storytelling and Civic Awareness” (https://site.unibo.it/wetell/en ) and in collaboration with the literary portal https://site.unibo.it/canadausa . The main goal is to encourage a new global mentality, deeply rooted in the humanities, so to reorient today geopolitics and create a happier and more just world. No knowledge is useful if it leads to satisfy only a few people’s urgent needs, be that material or emotional; knowledge is useful if it induces us to question our communal existence, helping us to learn how to act upon our community in responsible ways, in turn leading to a truly shared happiness.

Important: EVERYBODY IS WELCOME AND DIVERSITY (IN ALL ITS FORMS) IS WELCOME TOO.

Readings/Bibliography

The list of primary and secondary sources will be given at the beginning of the course and will be implemented every week, posted on the Virtuale Platform.

 

Teaching methods

Students’ active participations is strongly encouraged. 

Assessment methods

The final exam consists of two parts:

a) Oral Exam.

Students can choose between:

• Class presentation (single or in-group, max 4 people), with/without multimedia support, max 15 minutes + 5 minute discussion. Class presentations will run in December.
• One to one conversation with the instructor aiming at assessing the student’s knowledge of the course themes (exam dates on AlmaEsami).

b) Written Exam

Essay (in English, 3500-4000 words). Students must choose their focus and create a customized reading list, to be assessed by the course director and including at least three primary sources and four secondary sources (max two non-literary ones, such as: movies, tv series, videogames, music scores, etc.). Essays will be evaluated based on methodology, consistent critical thinking, and a working hypothesis in line with the course themes. Particularly appreciated are: Student’s ability to reorganize course materials into an original critical discourse/perspective; sound reference to American literature, history and culture; Quality and property of the written language (English).

 

Teaching tools

Traditional and Multimedia tools

Links to further information

https://site.unibo.it/wetell/en

Office hours

See the website of Elena Lamberti