66782 - History of Medieval Europe (LM)

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course, the student has an in-depth knowledge of themes, phenomena, moments and problems relating to the history of Europe in the Middle Ages and, with the help of evidence of various kinds, acquires knowledge, methodological skills and the ability to carry out research independently.

Course contents

Women's Writing in the Middle Ages. Investigation of a current historiographical topic.

The course draws on the most recent historiography on the topic of women's literacy during the medieval period, starting with a research project recently completed by the teacher. ‘Writing’ is considered here in a broad sense, from writing understood as the composition of a literary text (authorship) to the material act of writing (the ability to write, to copy), even in the case of practical and often considered humble documents (lists, accounts). The analysis will be conducted through the filter of gender history, which will allow us to discuss questions such as: is there a ‘female’ way of writing? How is a ‘gender’ of technical and intellectual knowledge established during the Middle Ages? What is our view of women writers of the past?

in connection with the forthcoming publication of the book edited by the teacher ‘Women's Writing’ (provisional title), students will be invited, at the beginning of the course, to choose some topics from the various contents of the book and then to come into contact, again via the teacher, with the various authors of the book (Italian and foreign researchers).

Readings/Bibliography

The teacher will later publish a list of books and articles, highlighting the mandatory and recommended ones.

Teaching methods

Frontal lesson in Italian language with the aid of Power Point materials. The powerpoint files used during the lecture will be made available on Virtuale. In addition, images and transcripts of the sources studied during the course will be uploaded on Virtuale.

Assessment methods

The examination consists of an oral interview in which the student's critical and methodological skills are assessed and he/she is invited to engage with the course material. In the assessment of the test, particular account will be taken of the student's ability to orientate himself/herself within the examination material in order to draw out useful information that will enable him/her to illustrate themes and problems and to be able to link them together. In order to meet the teacher's requirements, the student must demonstrate his or her knowledge and analytical skills not only on the basis of the theoretical content of the course, but also through the skills acquired in reading and understanding the historical sources (analysed during the course).

The final interview will focus on the course, the required readings and/or the work carried out from the various contributions studied from the unpublished content of the current book on Women's writing (possibly in connection with the authors, see above)

Teaching tools

The course will make use for almost all the lectures of texts and images presented on Power Point. The presentations used during the lectures and the proposed readings will be found on Virtuale, the University's repository for sharing teaching support tools.

Office hours

See the website of Sylvie Marie Laure Duval