00562 - Italian Literature (A-C)

Readings/Bibliography

1. Course of lessons

 The course is divided into an introductory section, which consists of the study of the textbook and the works listed below (A), and a specialization section (B), which is the one specifically covered during the lectures and which, this year, is dedicated to the topic: Literature and Politics: A Journey from Dante to Guicciardini.

The texts discussed during the specialization course (B) fall within the chronological range of the introductory section (A) and therefore provide an initial in-depth look at works that, as a whole, will need to be studied in depth for the exam.

1-bis. Exam Structure.

The written exam is part of the core curriculum, and is held in specific sessions, separate from the oral exam. The written exam, regardless of its outcome, does not preclude access to the oral exam (A plus B), but it will be evaluated and will impact the final grade.

The oral exam may include both parts of the curriculum (A plus B) or just one of the two, at the student's discretion.

The exam is concluded only when each part has been passed: the written exam and the oral exam (the latter including the core curriculum and the specialization).

Attending students are required to study three of the authors covered during the specialization course; non-attending students must study all five authors covered in class (Dante, Petrarch, Boccaccio, Machiavelli, Guicciardini).

To facilitate exam preparation and facilitate participation in the course lectures, students are advised to study the overall profile of the authors covered in the textbook and recommended editions before the start of the course or in conjunction with lectures.

When the texts discussed in class coincide with those in the syllabus, students are also advised to bring their works with them to better follow the critical discussion provided in the specialization course.

2. Individual Study

Students, using the textbooks and texts listed in point 2 of the "Textbooks/Bibliography" section, will study the history of Italian literature from its origins to the Renaissance.

2. Manuals and texts for the institutional part (A): 2.a) Textbooks: Alfano-Italia-Russo-Tomasi,Profilo di Letteratura italiana. Dalle origini a fine Ottocento, Milano, Mondadori, 2021 (single volume: the part to be studied reaches as far as Tasso, p. 385); L. Chines, Glossario dei termini metrici e retorici (available on Virtuale) and the anthology edited by Anselmi-Chines-Bernardi-Di Franco-Severi, Leggere i classici italiani. Un'antologia, Bologna, Pàtron, 2019, up to Torquato Tasso, p. 99; optional reading, however very educational, by M. Motolese, Scritti a mano. Otto storie di capolavori italiani da Boccaccio a Eco, Milano, Garzanti, 2017 (two chapters chosen by the student).

2.b) Texts (the "recommended critical readings" next to each text are not mandatory): Dante Alighieri, Vita Nova (complete reading, recommended edition: Carrai, Rizzoli, 2009); Inferno (complete reading, or, alternatively, 33 cantos of the Comedy, equally divided between Inferno, Purgatorio and Paradiso: in this case, the list will be provided by the teacher at the beginning of the lessons); recommended editions with commentary: Pasquini-Quaglio, Garzanti, 1982-86; G. Inglese, Carocci, 2007; Chiavacci Leonardi, Mondadori, 2005. Recommended critical readings: E. Auerbach, Studies on Dante, Milan, Feltrinelli, 2005; E. Pasquini, Life of Dante. The days and the works, Milan, Rizzoli, 2006; G. Ledda, Dante, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2008.

F. Petrarca, Canzoniere, liriche I, III, V, XI, XVI, XXXV, LII, LXI, XC, CXXVI, CXXVIII, CXXIX, CXXXIV, CXXXVII, CCLXXII, CCCII, CCCXXXIII, CCCXXXVI, CCCLXVI; recommended editions:: Vecchi, Bur, 2012; Santagata, Mondadori, 1996 (2004 2^a ed.); recommended reading: L. Chines, Petrarca, Bologna, Pàtron, 2017;

G. Boccaccio, Decameron, trenta novelle (l'elenco verrà fornito dal docente al principio delle lezioni); recommended editions: Veglia, Feltrinelli, 2020; Quondam – Fiorilla – Alfano, Bur, 2013; recommended reading: F. Bausi, Leggere il Decameron, Bologna, il Mulino, 2017;reading Corbaccio is optional, but recommended.

Matteo Maria Boiardo, Orlando innamorato (L'inamoramento de Orlando), Libro I, canti I e II, ; recommended edition: a cura di A. Canova, Milano, BUR, 2011; recommended reading: Tiziano Zanato, Boiardo, Roma, Salerno, 2015.

N. Machiavelli, Il principe (lettura integrale); recommended editions: Anselmi-Varotti, Bollati Boringhieri, 1992; G. Inglese, Einaudi, 2005; R. Ruggiero, Bur, 2008; recommended reading: R. Bruscagli, Machiavelli, Il Mulino, 2008; G.M. Anselmi, N. Bonazzi, Niccolò Machiavelli, Le Monnier, 2011;reading N. Machiavelli, Mandragola and F. Guicciardini, Riccordi, is optional, but recommended (see: N. Machiavelli, Mandragola, a cura di P. Stoppelli, Milano, Mondadori, 2016; F. Guicciardini, Ricordi, a cura di E. Pasquini, Milano, Garzanti, 2003, oppure a cura di C. Varotti, Roma, Carocci, 2013; disponibile anche sul sito della Biblioteca Italiana, secondo il testo dell'edizione critica di Raffaele Spongano del 1951).

L. Ariosto, Orlando furioso, canti I, XII, XXIII, XXXIV; edizione commentata consigliata: Bigi - Zampese, Milano, Bur, 2015; recommended reading: S. Zatti, Leggere l’Orlando furioso, Bologna, il Mulino, 2016; C. Dini, Ariosto. Guida all’Orlando furioso, Roma, Carocci, 2001;

T. Tasso, Gerusalemme liberata, canti I, XII, XVI; recommended editiona: a cura di F. Tomasi, Milano, Bur, 2009; recommended reading: M. Residori, Tasso, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2009; G. Alfano, Torquato Tasso, Firenze, Le Monnier, 2010.

3. Texts for the monographic part (B):

During the 60-hour monographic course, lessons will explore the following texts:

Dante, Vita Nova, chap. 19 (ed. Gorni: online text on Dante online, website of the Italian Dante Society).

Dante, Le dolci rime (online text: ibid., in the De Robertis edition)

Dante and the Empire. The fourth book of the Convivio (IV). The chapters or parts of chapters of Book IV will be indicated in class.

Dante, Inf. VI, X, XV-XVI

Purg. XVI-XVII-XVIII-XXXII-XXXIII

Par. VI, XVII, XIX-XX, XXX

Monarchia, Book I

Petrarch, Italia mia (RVF CXXVIII). Reading and commentary.

Petrarch, Anti-Avignon Sonnets (against the corruption of the Church): RVF CXXXVI, CXXXVII, CXXXVIII

Boccaccio, Decameron: Introduction, I 2, I 3, I 9, IV 1, VI 2, VI 7, X 6, X 7.

Machiavelli, The Prince: Dedication and Chapters XVII-XXVI

Machiavelli, Discourses on the First Deca of Titus Livius, Book II, Chapter XX (the text is available online on the "Biblioteca Italiana" website)

Guicciardini, Ricordi (the "ricordi" read in class will be pointed out to students)

Teaching methods

Frontal lessons. Due to the characteristics of the course, which is based on dialogue with texts, widespread student participation is desirable.
Before tackling a text, one or more lessons will be dedicated to the presentation of the author and the work.
Before each lesson, therefore at the end of the previous lesson, students are invited to ask which text the following lesson will focus on. It is advisable for students to have the text they are discussing with them in class.

Assessment methods

The course includes a written exam and an oral exam.

The written exam takes place in two hours and requires the analysis of texts included in the program from a thematic, formal, and historical-literary perspective. The texts will be accompanied by questions designed to assess knowledge of fundamental notions of literary history, metrics, rhetoric, and philology. The written exam should preferably be taken before the oral exam, but students are free to choose whether to take the written exam before or after the oral exam (obviously, the exam can be closed, and the final grade determined, only after all parts of the exam have been taken).

A failing grade on the written exam, as mentioned above, does not preclude the student from taking the oral exam, but it does affect the overall judgment.

The written exam will evaluate: the accuracy of the answers, the appropriateness of the linguistic register, the structure and effectiveness of the argument, the quality of the critical analysis, knowledge of the content covered by the syllabus and the methods of literary criticism.

To prepare for the written exam and, more generally, for the oral exam, students with any doubts or uncertainties may contact the professor during office hours.

In special cases (e.g., international students): the written exam may be replaced with a short essay of approximately 3,000 words, the topic of which must be agreed upon with the professor.

The oral exam consists of an interview focusing on the syllabus. The following will be assessed: the quality of oral expression, critical analysis skills, knowledge of the syllabus content, and the methods of literary criticism. The lecture-related portion (item 1) and the general portion (item 2) may be covered in a single oral exam, or, if the student prefers, in two separate sessions.

Evaluation Criteria: To obtain an overall grade between 27 and 30 with honors, students must: be able to thoroughly analyze the literary text following the methodological guidelines learned in class (or, for non-attending students, by reading manuals and critical texts); possess and be able to communicate a comprehensive understanding of the topics covered in class and/or studied in manuals and critical texts in the bibliography (especially for non-attending students); demonstrate excellent oral and written expression and argumentation skills; and competently use the technical language of philology and literary criticism. An overall grade between 23 and 26 will be awarded to those who demonstrate (orally and in writing): a good knowledge of the syllabus; the ability to perform a generally correct analysis of the texts, albeit marked by some imperfections in method and content; good command of the language with some uncertainty in exposition and/or imprecision in the use of technical language. An acceptable but superficial knowledge of the syllabus, a superficial understanding of the texts, limited analytical skills, and inappropriate expression will result in barely satisfactory grades (between 18 and 22). Poor knowledge of critical and literary texts, inadequate analytical skills, and incorrect or inappropriate written and oral expression will result in a failing grade.

Teaching tools

 Seminars

Presentations, where deemed necessary, PowerPoint

'Virtual' e-learning platform (for in-depth texts and essays).

Office hours

See the website of Marco Veglia