Teaching code

4S002949

Academic staff

Silvia Bigliazzi, Emanuel Stelzer

Coordinator

Silvia Bigliazzi

Credits

6

Language

English

Scientific Disciplinary Sector (SSD)

L-LIN/10 - ENGLISH LITERATURE

Period

I semestre (Area Lingue e letterature straniere) dal Sep 23, 2024 al Dec 21, 2024.

Courses Single

Authorized

Lessons timetable Moodle Seminars 0

Learning objectives

The course, held in English, aims at introducing Students to the English Literature from the 16th century to the Restoration (1660), paying emphasis on some canonical literary texts. Besides, it will offer skills and abilities for the critical analysis of literary texts and their genres. The course objective is to provide a good knowledge of the literature of the period (historical context, texts, genres, literary movements and authors) and to develop in Students a capacity of analysis and argumentative abilities in relation to the various typologies of literary texts set in their literary, historical, and cultural context. At the end of the course, Student will be able to - analyse the examined literary texts setting them in their historical and cultural context; - discuss them in an argumentative way, with due consideration to contemporary literary conventions, and by applying a critical, knowledgeable, and aware approach to the specificity of the literary texts; - present the acquired competences in English, and in a coherent and clear way.

Prerequisites and basic notions

The English Literature 3 (L-11 ED) exam can only be taken after having passed the second year’s exams of English Language and Literature.

Program

"Revenge and Wild Justice from Thomas Kyd to William Shakespeare."
This course introduces students to Renaissance English literature with a focus on the theme of revenge through tragedy and the tragicomedy/romance genre. It also offers an introduction to the printing practices of the period, including questions about good and bad quartos, as well as today's publishing choices. Students will tackle the reading of Thomas Kyd's The Spanish Tragedy (1582-1589, but printed in 1592) (Module 1). In Module 2, they will approach William Shakespeare's Hamlet (1599-1601), with a focus on its two major versions (Q1 1603, and Q2 1604) and will discuss the use of digital archiving. In Module 3, they will shift to the study of the themes of usurpation and revenge in Shakespeare's last romance, The Tempest (1611, but printed in 1623).
Attending and non-attending students alike are required to do all the readings indicated below. All texts in the syllabus are compulsory.
Where "optional reading" is specified within brackets, it is understood that this is functional to furthering or facilitating the study, but is not compulsory.
Further teaching material will be available for download from the Moodle repository.
Syllabus:
(Module 1) Dott. Emanuel Stelzer:
• Thomas Kyd, The Spanish Tragedy, edited by Clara Calvo and Jesús Tronch. Arden Early Modern Drama, London, Bloomsbury, 2011.
• Christopher Crosbie, “Oeconomia and the Vegetative Soul: Rethinking Revenge in The Spanish Tragedy”. English Literary Renaissance 38 (1), 2008: 3-33.
• Marissa Greenberg, “Revenge Tragedy”. A New Companion to Renaissance Drama, edited by Arthur F. Kinney and Thomas Warren Hopper, Oxford, Wiley, 2017, pp. 403-16 (optional).
• Serena Cenni, Il corpo insepolto. Discorsività e affettività in The Spanish Tragedy di Thomas Kyd, Trento, Temi, 2000 (optional).
(Module 2) Prof. Silvia Bigliazzi:
• William Shakespeare, Hamlet, edited by Ann Thompson and Neil Taylor. Arden Shakespeare, Revised Edition, London, Bloomsbury, 2016
• Rocco Coronato, Guida ad Amleto, Roma, Carocci, 2021 (optional)
• Silvia Bigliazzi, Oltre il genere. Amleto tra scena a racconto. Alessandria, Edizioni dell’Orso, 2001, pp. 9-159, 271-81 (optional).
• Silvia Bigliazzi, “Verso una catarsi impossibile: l’io nelle tragedie”, in Shakespeare. Il teatro dell’io: Roma, Carocci, 2024, pp. 227-245 (optional).
(Module 3) Dott. Emanuel Stelzer:
• William Shakespeare, The Tempest, edited by Virginia Mason Vaughan and Alden T. Vaughan, revised edition, Arden Shakespeare. London, Bloomsbury, 2011.
• Barbara Mowat. “‘Knowing I Loved my Books’: Reading The Tempest Intertextually”. The Tempest and Its Travels, edited by Peter Hulme and William H. Sherman. Chicago, University of Chicago Press, 2000, pp. 27-36.
• Emanuel Stelzer, “Frammentarietà e compiutezza: l’io nei romances”, Shakespeare. Il teatro dell’io: Roma, Carocci, 2024, pp. 249-70 (optional).
• Fabio Ciambella (ed.), Shakespeare and the Mediterranean: The Tempest. Skenè Texts and Studies. Pisa: ETS, 2024 (optional).
History of literature: OBLIGATORY
• Paul Poplawski, English Literature in Context, Cambridge University Press, 2017 (or later editions), chapter 2 (“The Renaissance”).
Be advised:
- No editions other than those indicated in the syllabus are to be used. Texts are to be read in full. In the case of articles or book chapters, read the indicated page-range. Primary texts must be read in the original language.
- Any files uploaded in moodle other than those indicated in the above list, are not intended as substitutes for the texts in the syllabus.
- Other material in moodle not indicated in the syllabus is intended as optional.
• Any other material that has been uploaded on Moodle and which has not been listed in the syllabus must be understood as optional.

Bibliography

Didactic methods

The course consists of face-to-face lectures with the active participation of students. The course will be held in English.

Learning assessment procedures

Knowledge acquisition will be evaluated through an oral exam, which will consist in a discussion of the topics dealt with during the modules. The assessment methods will be the same for attending and non-attending students.

Evaluation criteria

The assessment of learning outcomes is aimed at verifying:
1) knowledge of the history of English literature of the Renaissance period;
2) the understanding of the primary texts in the syllabus, within their historical and cultural context;
3) the acquisition of a critical methodology appropriate to the analysis of texts and contexts;
4) the ability of textual analysis as well as expository and argumentative analysis in English.

Criteria for the composition of the final grade

The final mark will result from the average of the grades the student will receive for each of the three modules.

Exam language

English

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