The course, held in English, aims at intro-ducing the students to English literature (from the Victorian to the contemporary period), with specific reference to a selec-tion of canonical texts, and at presenting methodological approaches for the analy-sis of literary texts and genres. The course aims at providing a good knowledge of British literature (articulated in historical context, texts, genres, literary trends and authors) and the skills for a critical analysis and argumentation on different kinds of texts in their historical and cultural context.
At the end of the course, students will be able to:
- Analyse the literary texts of the programme in their historical and cultural context;
- Apply an aware critical approach to literary texts and present an argumen-tation which shows knowledge of literary conventions
- Express the acquired literary and critical competence in English clearly and coherently.
The course presents the articulation of identity in literary texts from the Victorian to the contemporary period. The approach will be interdisciplinary and focussed on the revision of the literary tradition (in particular the fantastic and popular culture). Particular attention will be given to theories about the evolution of the fairy tale and about the ways in which Children's Literature interfaces with cultural issues connected to the affirmation of individual and collective identity.
| Author | Title | Publisher | Year | ISBN | Note |
| Patrick Ness | A Monster Calls | 2011 | Any edition: in English, unabridged. | ||
| John Storey | Cultural Theory and Popular Culture: An Introduction | Routledge | 2018 | Any Edition. Chapter 1: What is Popular Culture? | |
| Giskin Day | “Good Grief: Bereavement Literature for Young Adults and A Monster Calls” | 2012 | in Medical Humanities, 38, 2012, 115-119. | ||
| J. K. Rowling | Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone | 1997 | Any edition: in English, unabridged. | ||
| Emma Donoghue | Kissing the Witch: Old Tales in New Skins | 1993 | Any edition: in English, unabridged. | ||
| Pamela L. Travers | Mary Poppins | 1934 | Any edition: in English, unabridged. | ||
| Annette Wannamaker | Men in Cloaks and High-heeled Boots, Men Wielding Pink Umbrellas: Witchy Masculinities in the Harry Potter Novels | Routledge | 2012 | Chapter 5 of Boys in Children's Literature and Popular Culture: Masculinity, Abjection, and the Fictional Child, by A. Wannamaker, pp. 121-147. | |
| Valerie Lawson | Poppins and Pamela in Wonderland | Simon and Schuster | 2013 | Chapter 7 of Mary Poppins, She Wrote: The Life of P. L. Travers by Valerie Lawson, pp. 143-167. | |
| Jack Zipes | The Irresistible Fairy Tale: The Cultural and Social History of a Genre | Princeton University Press | 2012 | Chapters 1-2 (pp. 1-40) | |
| Andrew Sanders | The Short Oxford History of English Literature | Oxford University Press | 2004 | Chapters: 7: High Victorian Literature; 8: Late Victorian and Edwardian Literature 1880-1920; 9: Modernism and its Alternatives: Literature 1920-1945; 10: Post-War and Post-Modern Literature | |
| Raffaele Cutolo | "Voice and Identity in the Fairy Tale: Emma Donoghue's Kissing the Witch" | 2012 | in Pólemos 6(2), 2012, 207-223. |
All lessons will be in English. The exam will be an oral discussion in English on the topic of the course and the texts in the programme. It will aim at assessing:
- the ability to discuss topics (literary trends, authors, genres) related to the history of English Literature (1837-2018)
- the ability to present a critical argumentation on topics related to the texts of the syllabus
- the ability to draw connections between the topics of the course, on the basis of the critical texts indicated in the programme
