First-Year Seminar: Italian Literary Culture: Identity, Subjectivity, Audience

ITALIAN 248

In this course we'll sample eight centuries of Italian literary culture by reading some of its greatest works. While familiarizing ourselves with key Italian authors (and some outliers); we'll also work to clarify our thinking about three problems: (1) identity (How does each work express an idea of "italianness"? What other elements of identity, such as gender or religion, are in play? Why do authors sometimes conceal their true identities by using a nom de plume?); (2) subjectivity (How does the author or narrator establish their place in the world?); (3) audience (For whom does the author write? Is the author's audience the same as the narrator's? How do authors make their writings available to others?). Authors studied include Boccaccio, Petrarch, Vasari, Galilei, Collodi, Ginzburg, Ferrante. Three short papers. Class conducted in English with readings in English. This class is for first-year, non-transfer students only.
Course Attributes: FYS; BU Eth; AS HUM; AS LCD; FA HUM; AR HUM; EN H

Section 01

First-Year Seminar: Italian Literary Culture: Identity, Subjectivity, Audience
INSTRUCTOR: Sherberg