13338 - Contemporary Italian Literature (S-Z)

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course the student has acquired a working knowledge of wide areas of twentieth-century literary history, with special emphasis on the relation between literature and historical, social, anthropological, and more broadly cultural phenomena. Study is assisted by secondary literature and face-to-face tuition and covers close reading of the text as well as problems of form, structure, composition, and reception.

Course contents

Tales of clothes and representations of the self: intertwining of fashion, literature and journalism

The course aims to explore the intersections among fashion, literature and journalism by rereading various writers through the theme of clothes in relation to the representation of the self, to show the unexpected depth that characterizes the writings of the ephemeral. The story of fashion thus becomes a special angle of observation for the study of modernity and its phenomena, for example the sex appeal of the inorganic, the question of gender, the evolution of femininity, the centrality of the body, the anthropological mutation, examined in an interdisciplinary perspective aimed at interpreting the texts through connections among literature, communication, art, aesthetics, history of costume, cinema, psychology, sociology, anthropology. Particular attention will be dedicated to mostly forgotten women writers and fashion journalists, such as Irene Brin, Paola Masino and Gianna Manzini, who join writers such as d'Annunzio, the futurists, Moravia, Pasolini, to create a polymorphic panorama of writings of fashion and the self through different genres, languages and communication strategies, including novels, futurist manifesto, newspaper articles and autobiographical stories.

Readings/Bibliography

PRIMARY BIBLIOGRAPHY

 - G. d'Annunzio, Il piacere

- G. d'Annunzio, Cronache romane, a cura di P. Sorge, Roma, Newton & Compton, 1993

- Manifesti del futurismo, a cura di V. Birolli, Milano, Abscondita, 2008

- I. Brin, Usi e costumi (1920-1940), Palermo, Sellerio, 1981

- G. Manzini, La moda di Vanessa, Palermo, Sellerio, 2003

- P. Masino, Album di vestiti

- Moravia, La noia

- Pasolini, Teorema (romanzo)

 

SECONDARY BIBLIOGRAPHY

- D. Baroncini, La moda nella letteratura contemporanea, Milano, Bruno Mondadori, 2010

- M.A. Bazzocchi (a cura), Cento anni di letteratura italiana 1910-2010, Torino, Einaudi, 2021

- Any materials published in "Virtuale" during lessons

TEXTS TO BE STUDIED FOR THE 6 CREDITS COURSE

PRIMARY BIBLIOGRAPHY

- G. d'Annunzio, Il piacere

- G. d'Annunzio, Cronache romane, a cura di P. Sorge, Roma, Newton & Compton, 1993

- Manifesti del futurismo, a cura di V. Birolli, Milano, Abscondita, 2008

- I. Brin, Usi e costumi (1920-1940), Palermo, Sellerio, 1981

SECONDARY BIBLIOGRAPHY

- D. Baroncini, La moda nella letteratura contemporanea, Milano, Bruno Mondadori, 2010

- M.A. Bazzocchi (a cura), Cento anni di letteratura italiana 1910-2010, Torino, Einaudi, 2021 (N.B. : Parte prima: Inizio secolo; Parte seconda: Nell'orbita del modernismo; Parte terza: Dalla fine del fascismo agli anni Cinquanta)

- Any materials published in "Virtuale" during lessons

Teaching methods

Frontal lectures

Interdisciplinary analyses

Attendance is not mandatory, but strongly recommended to improve learning and the study method, in particular the ability to analyze text in depht, placing them in a broad vision of the topics covered in class

Assessment methods

Oral exam.

During the oral exam the student must prove:

- complete and precise knowledge of all the mandatory reading as listed in the program

- critical consideration and interpretation of the relevant topics and texts

- ability to contextualize the authors and their works set in the literary and cultural backdrop of modernity, from the second half of Nineteenth century to the present day

In order to obtain an excellent evaluation, it is necessary to demonstrate an excellent knowledge of contents and topics; a sure ability to interpret the texts; critical and personal analysis of the themes; appropriate and effective presentation and language.

Teaching tools

Power point presentations with insights into the topics covered in class

Presentation of images, paintings, videos on the topics examined in class

Students who require specific services and adaptations to teaching activities due to a disability or specific learning disorders (SLD), must first contact the appropriate office: https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en/for-students .

Office hours

See the website of Daniela Baroncini