49059 - History of Spanish Culture

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course the student knows the issues and historical contexts, social aspects of Spanish culture. He can explain socio-cultural issues related to the culture studied and knows the critical tools most appropriate to contextualize, analyze and comment on texts and documents of various kinds, and to relate them with the most significant transformations related to the areas of language reference.

Course contents

PART 1 (Luigi Contadini)

FRANCOISM AND POSTFRANCOISM: FROM THE TRAUMA OF DICTATORSHIP TO THE CRISIS OF DEMOCRACY

Literary, visual and conceptual reworkings of the traumas of Francoism and the emergencies of our times will be considered, as well as the ways in which violence is represented and the relationship between victim and perpetrator. On the fiftieth anniversary of the birth of Spanish democracy, examples will be presented of the public debate on historical memory and issues relating to the democratic period in all their complexity and contradictions.

In particular, debates on ethical issues will be addressed: oblivion and recognition, reparation and postmemory, individual rights and mass education, and the crisis of democracy.

Images, sound documents, excerpts from historical and philosophical essays, newspapers and documentaries will also be considered.

Since 2025 marks the 50th anniversary of the beginning of democracy in Spain, following a series of institutional changes that began with the death of Francisco Franco (on 20 November 1975), we have organised various initiatives, which will be announced at the beginning of the course, to celebrate the anniversary of the democratic period, but also to try to understand its current state, characteristics, contradictions and the crisis of recent years.

PART 2 (Ivan Lo Giudice)

PLURILINGUALISM AND MULTICULTURALITYIn module 2, special attention will be given to the plurilingualism and multiculturalism of the Spanish State, starting from the 1978 Constitution and the subsequent Statutes of Autonomy. Literature, journalism and cinema of the 20th and 21st centuries will be the tools through which to observe recent Spanish history, without filters, directly from the words and works of some of its main intellectuals and artists. Special attention will be given to the analysis of two Autonomous Communities - Catalonia and the Balearic Islands - to their cultural and historical features, and their main artistic movements, without forgetting today's global phenomena, such as the climate crisis and the massification of tourism.

Readings/Bibliography

PART 1 (Luigi Contadini)

- Dulce Chacón, La voz dormida, Madrid, 2002

- Erika Martínez (selection of poems that will be indicated during the course and published on Virtuale).

- Juan José Millás, Hay algo que no es come me dicen: El caso de Nevenka Fernández contra la realidad (2004)

Filmography:

Raza, dir. José Luis Sáenz de Heredia (1941)

La voz dormida, dir. Benito Zambrano (2011)

Yo soy Nevenka, dir. Icíar Bollaín (2023)

For NOT-ATTENDING students, the program must be supplemented by:

- Luigi Contadini, La causa di Soledad Luque Delgado. Il furto dei bambini nella Spagna franchista, Roma, Castelvecchi, 2021

PART 2 (Ivan Lo Giudice)

- Juan Pablo Fusi, Francisco Calvo Serraller (2009) El espejo del tiempo. La historia y el arte de España

Filmography: 

- L'auberge espagnole, dir. Cédric Klapisch (2002)

- Ocho apellidos vascos, dir. Emilio Martínez-Lázaro (2014)

- Ocho apellidos catalanes, dir. Emilio Martínez-Lázaro (2015)

For NOT-ATTENDING students, the program must be supplemented by:

- Ivan Lo Giudice, Joan Estelrich entre la vida y los libros, Alessandria, Edizioni dell'Orso, 2024

 

Teaching methods

Lectures and seminars.

Assessment methods

The examination consists of an oral interview in Spanish. The critical and methodological skills developed by the student will be tested, and the student will be invited to engage with the themes, texts and documents addressed during the course.
Particularly assessed will be the student's ability to move cross-culturally and interdisciplinarily through historical periods, conceptual elaborations and methodological tools.
Primarily four types of questions will be formulated around which the student will be invited to respond by arranging in-depth studies and connections: historical type question; literary type question; hermeneutical type question; methodological type question.
The student's attainment of an organic view of the topics addressed in class jointly with their critical use, the demonstration of possession of a mastery of expression and specific language will be evaluated with marks of excellence. Mostly mechanical and/or mnemonic knowledge of the subject matter, unarticulated synthesis and analytical skills and/or correct but not always appropriate language will lead to fair grades; formative gaps and/or inappropriate language - albeit in the context of minimal knowledge of the examination material - will lead to grades that do not exceed sufficiency. Formative gaps, inappropriate language, lack of orientation within the materials offered during the course will be negatively graded.

Teaching tools

Will be projected images and video.

Will be made available on-line (Virtuale) teaching materials, the study of which is obligatory, some of the main themes of the program.

Students with SLD or temporary or permanent disabilities. It is suggested that they get in touch as soon as possible with the relevant University office (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en) and with the lecturer in order to seek together the most effective strategies for following the lessons and/or preparing for the examination.

Any requests for accommodations must be made at least 15 days before the date of the exam, by sending an email to the lecturer and copying (Cc) the email address [disabilita@unibo.it](mailto:disabilita@unibo.it) (in case of disability) or [dsa@unibo.it](mailto:dsa@unibo.it) (for students with Specific Learning Difficulties).

Office hours

See the website of Luigi Contadini

See the website of Ivan Lo Giudice