The course, held in English, aims at introducing the students to English literature (from the Victorian to the contemporary period), with specific reference to a selection of canonical texts, and at presenting methodological approaches for the analysis 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 argumentation 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 (literature, culture, law) and focussed on the revision of the literary tradition (in particular the fantastic and the fairy tale genre).
A) Primary Texts (any edition, but NOT abridged)
J.M. Barrie, Peter Pan (1902)
P. Lyndon Travers, Mary Poppins (1934)
Angela Carter, “The Bloody Chamber”
Emma Donoghue, Kissing the Witch (1997)
B) Critical texts
- Monique Chassagnol, "Masks and Masculinity in James Barrie's Peter Pan", in John Stephens, ed., Ways of Being Male. Representing Masculinities in Children's Literature and Film, New York and London, Routledge, 2002, pp. 200-215
- Anne McLeer, “Practical Perfection? The Nanny Negotiates Gender, Class, and Family Contradictions in 1960s Popular Culture”, NWSA Journal, 14.2 (2002), 80-101(le parti indicate durante il corso)
- Kathleen E. B. Manley, “The Woman in Process in Angela Carter's "The Bloody Chamber"”, Marvels & Tales, 12.1 (1998), pp. 71-81
- Jennifer Orme, “Mouth to Mouth: Queer Desires in Emma Donoghue's Kissing the Witch”, Marvels & Tales 24.1 (2010), pp. 116-130
- Cristina Bacchilega, Postmodern Fairy Tales. Gender and Narrative Strategies, University of Pennsylvania Press, 1997, ch 1
- Jack Zipes, The Irresistible Fairy Tale, Princeton, Princeton University Press, 2012, ch 1 e 2
C) History of Literature (From the Victorian period to the contemporary period)
- A. Sanders, The Short Oxford History of English Literature, Oxford University Press, 2003
| Author | Title | Publisher | Year | ISBN | Note |
| Emma Donoghue | Kissing the Witch | 1997 | |||
| P. Lyndon Travers | Mary Poppins | 1934 | |||
| Monique Chassagnol | , "Masks and Masculinity in James Barrie's Peter Pan", in John Stephens, ed., Ways of Being Male. Representing Masculinities in Children's Literature and Film, New York and London, Routledge, 2002, pp. 200-215 | 2002 | |||
| Jennifer Orme | “Mouth to Mouth: Queer Desires in Emma Donoghue's Kissing the Witch”, Marvels & Tales 24.1 | 2010 | pp. 116-130 | ||
| J.M. Barrie | Peter Pan | 1911 | |||
| Cristina Bacchilega | Postmodern Fairy Tales. Gender and Narrative Strategies, University of Pennsylvania Press | 1997 | ch 1 | ||
| Anne McLeer | “Practical Perfection? The Nanny Negotiates Gender, Class, and Family Contradictions in 1960s Popular Culture”. NWSA Journal, 14.2 (2002), 80-101 | 2002 | |||
| Angela Carter | "The Bloody Chamber", in Angela Carter The Bloody Chamber | 1979 | |||
| Jack Zipes | The Irresistible Fairy Tale, Princeton, Princeton University Press | 2012 | ch 1 e 2 | ||
| Kathleen E. B. Manley | “The Woman in Process in Angela Carter's "The Bloody Chamber"”, Marvels & Tales, 12.1 | 1998 | pp. 71-81 |
The 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 program (parts A,B,C).
In particular:
- the ability to discuss topics (literary trends, authors, genres) within the history of English literature
- the ability to present a critical argumentation on topics related to the texts of the syllabus (making examples from scenes and passages)
- the ability to make connections between the topics of the course, on the basis of the critical texts indicated in the programme
Requirements
Students unable to attend lectures are required to get in touch before preparing for the exam. The programme and the modalities of assessment do not vary for Erasmus students
All students, possibly also the students who will not be able to attend the course regularly, are kindly invited to attend the first class of the course, when the programme will be illustrated in detail.
