Teaching code

4S012405

Credits

12

Coordinator

Valentina Romanzi

Language

Italian

Erasmus students

Not available

Courses Single

Authorized

Moodle Seminars 0

The teaching is organized as follows:

Learning objectives

The two-module course is aimed at increasing students’ metalinguistic awareness, which will allow them not only to analyse some of the distinctive features of the English language through the study of its origin and evolution, but also and foremost to acquire knowledge of, recognise and exploit the potential of language as a major means of communication. By the end of the course, students will have improved their ability to analyse language and the way in which it is and can be used in specific communicative contexts. I MODULE The module is aimed at providing an introduction to English linguistics, both in diachronic and in synchronic terms, in order to consolidate the students’ linguistic skills that are mostly relevant to the professional prospects related to a degree in Communication Studies. Diachronically, the module will outline the key stages of the history of the English language, with a focus on the evolution of the role of English as the language of global communication. From a synchronic perspective, the module will focus on aspects of the language at the phonological/phonetic and morphological levels. The peculiarities of the phonological/phonetic and morphological features related to the use of English as a lingua franca will be highlighted through a comparative analysis with major native varieties of English. II MODULE The aim of the module is to develop students’ ability to critically observe the use of language in specific communicative settings through an introduction to the discipline of discourse analysis. Adopting a critical discourse analysis approach, the main features and communication strategies of argumentative/persuasive texts will be investigated, with a special focus on linguistic choices. Specifically, the main rhetorical-discursive features of the language of politics, advertising, and journalism will be analysed. At the end of the module, students will be able to apply methods and contents typical of critical discourse analysis to examine and interpret with a higher degree of critical awareness linguistic and communication strategies adopted in the production of different texts belonging to different genres.

Prerequisites and basic notions

English B2 certification

Criteria for the composition of the final grade

The exam, in English, will be held in written form during the appropriate scheduled sessions. It is composed of two parts. The first consists of a series of open and closed questions aimed at ascertaining the acquisition of the theoretical contents of module I covered in class. The second refers to module II of this course and consists of 4 tasks of linguistic analysis or production from which to choose only one. Non-attending students will have to prepare for the exam with a selection of texts agreed with the teacher from those listed in the course bibliography.