B5454 - Forms of Poetic Text (1) (LM)

Learning outcomes

Throughout this class, students are introduced to the fundamentals of an analytical approach to the poetic text - metre, rhythm, intonation, and the history of poetic forms - in a comparative perspective, and they become able to apply them as they read authors and poems belonging to various languages and traditions.

Course contents

Modern Nymph. Figures and Metamorphoses of Myth in European Poetry from the Nineteenth to the Twentieth Century

The course explores the return of classical antiquity and its metamorphoses in European poetry from the nineteenth to the twentieth century. At the centre of the investigation stands the figure of the nymph, understood not simply as a character from the classical mythological tradition, but as an emblem of the enduring return of antiquity, continually re-emerging in ever new forms within the poetic imagination of modernity.

Through the reading of works by Stéphane Mallarmé, Giosue Carducci, Gabriele d’Annunzio, Giovanni Pascoli, Paul Valéry, Giuseppe Ungaretti and Giorgio Caproni, the course traces the transformations of a symbolic and figurative heritage that runs throughout European culture, focusing on the persistent vitality of mythological figures, landscapes and images inherited from the classical tradition. Nymphs, fauns, woods, waters, gardens, deities of nature and ancient fables will be examined not as mere erudite reminiscences, but as symbolic forms through which modern poetry continues to explore the relationship between memory and the present, nature and culture, myth and history, body and language.

Particular attention will be devoted to the processes through which the classical tradition is transformed in modern poetry, examining how myth gradually evolves from an originating narrative into an image of memory, desire, absence and the search for meaning. From this perspective, the course aims to highlight poetry's capacity to renew the symbolic heritage of the classical tradition, continually reshaping ancient images into privileged instruments for interpreting the anxieties and forms of modernity.

Close readings of the poetic texts will be accompanied by discussions of major theoretical approaches to the survival of antiquity and the persistence of images within modern European culture and the literary imagination, with particular reference to the works of Roberto Calasso and Georges Didi-Huberman. Additional poetic texts, critical readings and works of visual art will be introduced throughout the course in order to foster an interdisciplinary dialogue between literature, the visual arts and the history of the imagination.

Readings/Bibliography

Primary Bibliography

Primary Texts

Poetry

• S. Mallarmé, L’Après-midi d’un faune
• G. Carducci, Odi barbare
• G. d’Annunzio, Alcyone
• G. Pascoli, Poemi conviviali
• P. Valéry, La Jeune Parque
• G. Ungaretti, Sentimento del tempo
• G. Caproni, Il franco cacciatore

Critical and Theoretical Readings

• Roberto Calasso, La follia che viene dalle ninfe, Milan, Adelphi, 2021.
• Georges Didi-Huberman, Ninfa moderna, Milan, Abscondita, 2023.

Additional poetic texts and critical materials by Italian and European authors will be introduced and discussed throughout the course in connection with its principal thematic areas. All supplementary materials will be progressively made available on the University's Virtuale e-learning platform.

Supplementary Readings (Optional)

Throughout the course, supplementary materials—including critical essays, scholarly articles and other academic resources—will be made available on the Virtuale e-learning platform. These materials will be selected in relation to the principal themes addressed during the course and will also include a selection of the instructor's own scholarly publications concerning the authors and topics examined in the syllabus. These readings are intended as supplementary resources and do not form part of the required examination bibliography.

Teaching methods

The course will be taught primarily through lectures devoted to the close reading and critical interpretation of the prescribed texts, with particular attention to their historical and literary context, the major trends in literary criticism, and the methodological approaches explored throughout the course.

Alongside the lectures, the course encourages the active participation of attending students through discussions and in-depth exploration of the topics addressed. Students will also have the opportunity, on a voluntary basis and by prior agreement with the instructor, to give brief individual or group presentations devoted to the analysis of poetic texts, critical essays or visual materials related to the course themes. These activities are intended to foster discussion, strengthen students’ interpretative skills, and promote the development of an independent critical methodology.

Throughout the course, supplementary teaching materials—including critical readings, images, works of art and other relevant documents—will be used to deepen the dialogue between poetry, myth, art history and European culture. All teaching materials will be progressively made available on the University's Virtuale e-learning platform.

Although attendance is not compulsory, it is strongly recommended, as the lectures provide an essential opportunity for critical discussion, interdisciplinary dialogue and in-depth analysis through the examination of additional poetic texts, visual materials and scholarly contributions that complement the course bibliography.

Assessment methods

The assessment consists of an oral examination designed to evaluate students' thorough knowledge of the prescribed poetic texts and theoretical readings, as well as their ability to interpret them critically within their historical, literary and cultural contexts.

During the examination, students are expected to demonstrate a well-developed understanding of the authors, works and principal themes addressed throughout the course, together with the ability to analyse the texts from metrical, stylistic, rhetorical and thematic perspectives. They will also be assessed on their ability to establish connections between works belonging to different literary traditions, recognising the persistence and metamorphoses of classical forms and imagery in European poetry from the nineteenth to the twentieth century, and developing an independent and critically informed interpretation of the texts.

Assessment will further take into account students' command of critical terminology, independence of judgement, originality of interpretation, ability to establish interdisciplinary connections, and capacity to apply the methodological and interpretative approaches introduced during the course.

For attending students, active participation in class discussions and any individual or group presentations delivered during the course, subject to prior agreement with the instructor, will be regarded as a positive element in the overall assessment and may contribute to the final evaluation, while the oral examination remains the principal and decisive means of assessing learning outcomes.

Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Examinations

The use of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) during examinations and other forms of summative assessment is strictly prohibited. Any such use constitutes a breach of academic integrity.

Note for Students with Specific Learning Disorders (SLD) or Temporary or Permanent Disabilities

Students with Specific Learning Disorders (SLD) or temporary or permanent disabilities are strongly encouraged to contact the University's dedicated support service in good time (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/it ). The service will propose any appropriate accommodations, which must be submitted to the instructor for approval at least fifteen days in advance. Approval will be granted in light of the learning objectives of the course.

Teaching tools

The analysis of the poetic texts will be complemented by a range of teaching materials designed to deepen students' understanding of the course's principal thematic and methodological issues. In particular, iconographic and documentary materials—including paintings, sculptures, photographs, manuscripts, historical documents and other visual resources—will be used in relation to the themes of classical myth, its survival in modernity, and the dialogue between literature and the visual arts.

Students will also be provided with critical readings, scholarly essays and additional supplementary materials, which will be progressively made available on the University's Virtuale e-learning platform. These resources are intended to promote an interdisciplinary approach to the study of European poetry from the nineteenth to the twentieth century.

Office hours

See the website of Daniela Baroncini