| CODE | ITL2150 | ||||||
| TITLE | Storia della letteratura italiana dal Cinquecento al Settecento | ||||||
| 今日黑料 LEVEL | 02 - Years 2, 3 in Modular Undergraduate Course | ||||||
| EQF/MQF LEVEL | Not Applicable | ||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 4 | ||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Italian | ||||||
| DESCRIPTION | This study-unit offers a chronological introduction to Italian literature from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century, combining lectures on historical, cultural, and social contexts with close readings of selected texts. The unitbegins with Niccolò Machiavelli, examining the relationship between literature, politics, and modern thought, and continues with Ludovico Ariosto and the development of the "poema cavalleresco", with attention to its narrative complexity and imaginative scope. The analysis then focuses on Torquato Tasso through selected cantos of the "Gerusalemme liberata", reflecting on the transformation of the chivalric epic, its themes, and its synthesis of different epic traditions. The seventeenth century is explored through the work of Giambattista Marino, highlighting its Baroque aesthetics. The unit then turns to the eighteenth century with Carlo Goldoni, whose theatrical works allow for a broader reflection on the central role of theatre in Italian and European society. Throughout the course, key intellectual figures such as Galileo Galilei, Giordano Bruno, and Vittorio Alfieri are also considered in order to contextualize literary production within wider cultural debates. A course pack of readings which will be available at the beginning of the study-unit. Study-Unit Aims: To provide students with a coherent overview of Italian literary culture from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century, situating texts within the major historical and intellectual frameworks of the Renaissance, the Counter-Reformation, the Baroque period, and the Enlightenment, and highlighting their relevance to today's culture. To develop an understanding of the relationships between literature, society, and cultural institutions, with particular attention to the role of theatre in Italian and European contexts between the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. To encourage critical reflection on the development and transformation of major Italian literary genres, including the poema cavalleresco, lyric poetry, theatre, and the novel, and on their formal, thematic, and cultural evolution across these periods. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Trace the evolution of Italian literature from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century, with particular attention to the development of major literary genres, especially theatre, the poema cavalleresco, lyric poetry, and the novel. - Describe the principal cultural and aesthetic transitions from the Renaissance and Mannerism through the Counter-Reformation and the Baroque period to the Enlightenment. - Recognise the importance of Italian authors and literary models in the formation of early modern European culture. 2. Skills: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Read, analyse, and interpret key texts by major authors from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century, with particular reference to Niccolò Machiavelli, Ludovico Ariosto, Torquato Tasso, Giambattista Marino, and Carlo Goldoni. - Critically relate literary texts to their historical, social, political, and economic contexts, evaluating the contribution of different disciplines to the study of literature. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture | ||||||
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2026/7. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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