Italian Literature

A.Y. 2024/2025
9
Max ECTS
60
Overall hours
SSD
L-FIL-LET/10
Language
Italian
Learning objectives
The course aims to provide students with a critical knowledge of the main elements of the Italian literary system, from the Origins to the Seventeenth century, following the tradition and development of models, themes, forms.
Expected learning outcomes
At the end of the course the student must know the fundamental aspects and issues of Italian literature from the Origins to the Seventeenth century, with a proper historic contextualization and specific reference to genres, themes and poetics, authors and works, methods of transmission of texts and their philological problems. Furthermore, the student will have to know the tools (metric elements, rhetoric, style theory and narratology) and the critical methodologies necessary to analyse and interpret the texts.
The student will then have to demonstrate the ability to understand and analyse literary texts (in their thematic and formal aspects), framing them in their respective contexts. Likewise, the student must demonstrate competence in the comprehension and use of literary essays, ability to identify the bibliography and to make use of the main tools of bibliographic resources, as well as the ability to communicate clearly and correctly, both in oral and written presentation, with appropriate use of scientific terminology.
Single course

This course cannot be attended as a single course. Please check our list of single courses to find the ones available for enrolment.

Course syllabus and organization

(A-D)

Lesson period
Second semester
Unita' didattica A
L-FIL-LET/10 - ITALIAN LITERATURE - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours
Unita' didattica B
L-FIL-LET/10 - ITALIAN LITERATURE - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours
Unita' didattica C
L-FIL-LET/10 - ITALIAN LITERATURE - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours

(E-N)

Lesson period
Second semester
Course syllabus
Title of the course: Tools and texts of Italian literature (60 hours, 9 cfu)

Teaching unit A (20 hours, 3 cfu): Italian literature from XIII to early XVI century
Teaching unit B (20 hours, 3 cfu): Italian literature from late XVI century XIX century
Teaching unit C (20 hours, 3 cfu): Matteo Maria Boiardo's Inamoramento de Orlando

The course is aimed at undergraduate Science of Cultural Property students whose surname begins with E-N.

The teaching program of units A and B focuses on the history of Italian literature from Origins to Leopardi and Manzoni; teaching unit C is dedicated to the analysis of Matteo Maria Boiardo's Inamoramento de Orlando (well known as Orlando innamorato).
Prerequisites for admission
No prerequisites for admission. Nevertheless, a good high-school background is the ideal prerequisite for the course, which, however, is also thought to amend shortcomings.
Teaching methods
The course will be in Italian, through frontal lessons; attendance is not mandatory, though strongly recommended.

Units A and B will be taught on texts included in the lecture notes. During the lessons, thanks to slide projection, the focus will be on movements, authors and works and their cultural context; on the main critical problems of every topic, through quotations from critical essays and comparisons between different positions; on tradition and reception of works and texts; on their most interesting formal aspects. All the materials will be available on MyAriel (http://myariel.unimi.it).

Non-attending students must use the materials expressly indicated in this program.
Teaching Resources
Reference text:
- Antologia della letteratura italiana. Dalla Scuola poetica siciliana a Alessandro Manzoni, a cura di Gabriele Baldassari e Guglielmo Barucci, Milano, Cortina, 2021.
The volume consists of a part of history of Italian literature and of a section of texts; both of them are to be prepared for the exam, along with notes of the lessons and further material uploaded on Ariel.
Students interested in a deeper knowledge of Italian literature should look at
- Gianfranco Alfano, Paola Italia, Emilio Russo, Franco Tomasi, Letteratura italiana. Manuale per studi universitari, 2 vols., Milano, Mondadori Università, 2018 (I. Dalle origini a metà Cinquecento; II. Da Tasso a fine Ottocento).
Useful reference tools for metre and poetic forms could be:
- Pietro G. Beltrami, Gli strumenti della poesia, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2012 [I ed. 1996]
or:
- Giuseppe Sangirardi, Francesco De Rosa, Breve guida alla metrica italiana, Milano, Sansoni, 2002
Useful reference for rethoric could be:
- Bice Mortara Garavelli, Prima lezione di retorica, Roma - Bari, Laterza, 2011

Attending Students
The students will be asked to prepare the whole Antologia della letteratura italiana. Dalla Scuola poetica siciliana a Alessandro Manzoni, in addition to the materials uploaded on Ariel site.

Not Attending Students
The students will be asked to prepare the whole Antologia della letteratura italiana. Dalla Scuola poetica siciliana a Alessandro Manzoni, in addition to the materials uploaded on Ariel site.

Teaching unit C
Attending Students
Reference text: Matteo Maria Boiardo's Inamoramento de Orlando. Suggested edition:
- Matteo Maria Boiardo, Orlando innamorato (L'inamoramento de Orlando), a cura di Andrea Canova, BUR, Milano, 2011.

Students are asked to prove an overall knowledge of the work (writing, structure, models, themes, style).
Poem's cantos and parts required for the examination will be indicated on MyAriel site before the end of the course.
More texts to be discussed in the class will be available on MyAriel.
Furthermore, students are required to study:
- Roberto Galbiati, Il romanzo e la corte. L'«Inamoramento de Orlando» di Boiardo, Roma, Carocci, 2018: limitatamente ai capp. 1. L'inamoramento de Olando tra novità e tradizione e 2. Le avventure di Orlando.

- Cristina Montagnani, La magia del potere: Boiardo e le politiche estensi, in «Griseldaonline», 18 (2019), pp. 83-88 disponibile online all'indirizzo ‹https://griseldaonline.unibo.it/article/view/9443/9584
Not Attending Students
Not attending students, in addition to the references above for attending students, will also study all the other chapters from Roberto Galbiati, Il romanzo e la corte. L'«Inamoramento de Orlando» di Boiardo, Roma, Carocci, 2018 and the following pages of Tiziano Zanato:
- Tiziano Zanato, Boiardo, Roma, Salerno editrice, 2015, pp. 145-223
Assessment methods and Criteria
The exam consists of a preliminary written test on the teaching units A and B and an oral test on the teaching unit C; both are aimed at ascertaining students' knowledge of the bibliography.

The written test will be held three times a year (on May, on September, on November/December 2023); passing the written test is prerequisite for the oral examination. Written tests will be graded sufficient, discreet, good, excellent and will be considered in the final overall grade. Grades of the written test will be published in Ariel in the dedicated section.

The written test (90 minutes) counts of two sections: 6 closed-ended questions on technical aspects (chronology, works, metre, rhetoric) and 4 short open questions (max 10 lines) on authors, themes, and works. A fifth question is the analysis of a text: the student will be required to define author, work, genre, metrics, rhyme scheme, and to provide a paraphrasis and a short cultural and stylistical framework.
The analysis will concerne one of the following texts (or part of texts), provided in the Anthology:
- Jacopo da Lentini, Amor è uno desio che ven da core
- Guido Guinizelli, Al cor gentil rempaira sempre amore (stanzas I e IV)
- Guido Cavalcanti, Chi è questa che vèn, ch'ogn'om la mira
- Cino da Pistoia, Poscia che saziar non posso li occhi miei
- Dante Alighieri, Guido, i' vorrei che tu e Lapo ed io
- Dante Alighieri, Così nel mio parlar voglio esser aspro (stanzas I e V)
- Dante Alighieri, Vita nova, XIX Donne ch'avete intelletto d'amore (stanzas I e II)
- Francesco Petrarca, Rvf 1, Voi ch'ascoltate in rime sparse il suono
- Francesco Petrarca, Rvf 90, Erano i capei d'oro a l'aura sparsi
- Francesco Petrarca, Rvf 272, La vita fugge e non s'arresta una hora
- Luigi Pulci, Morgante, XVIII 115-120
- Pietro Bembo, Crin d'oro crespo
- Giovanni della Casa, Questa vita mortal
- Ludovico Ariosto, Orlando furioso, I 1-3 and XXIV 1-3
- Torquato Tasso, Gerusalemme liberata, I 1-5
- Giambattista Marino, Adone, III 156-158
- Ugo Foscolo, Né più mai toccherò le sacre sponde
- Ugo Foscolo, Dei sepolcri, vv. 137-150
- Giacomo Leopardi, A se stesso
- Giacomo Leopardi, Canto notturno di un pastore errante dell'Asia, vv. 133-143
Passing the written test on teaching units A and B is a necessary condition for completing the examination.

The oral test consists of a critical discussion on the main issues studied in Unit C. The student will have, at request, to prove his ability to paraphrase the text. The student will be required to prove his ability to develop a critical and organized exposition of the informations and competences acquired through the classes and the bibliography, using proper terminology

The final grade will be expressed on a 30-point scale and will take into consideration the grade of the written test.

Erasmus students are invited to contact the professor via email during office hours for further information about the exam.

Examination methods for students with disabilities or SLD must be defined with the teacher in agreement with the University Disability and SLD Services. It is recommended to follow the guidelines of the "Documento personalizzato".

Master's degree students wishing to take the exam must contact the teacher to agree on a specific program.
Unita' didattica A
L-FIL-LET/10 - ITALIAN LITERATURE - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours
Unita' didattica B
L-FIL-LET/10 - ITALIAN LITERATURE - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours
Unita' didattica C
L-FIL-LET/10 - ITALIAN LITERATURE - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours

(O-Z)

Responsible
Lesson period
Second semester
Course syllabus
Title of the course: Tools and texts of Italian literature (60 hours, 9 cfu)

Teaching unit A (20 hours, 3 cfu): Italian literature from XIII to early XVI century
Teaching unit B (20 hours, 3 cfu): Italian literature from late XVI century XIX century
Teaching unit C (20 hours, 3 cfu): Dante's Purgatorio

The course is aimed at undergraduate Science of Cultural Property students whose surname begins with O-Z-

The teaching program of units A and B focuses on the history of Italian literature from Origins to Leopardi and Manzoni; teaching unit C is dedicated to the role of Dante's Purgatorio as a pivotal bridge in the evolution of the character and of the genre of the poem.
Prerequisites for admission
No prerequisites for admission. Nevertheless, a good high-school background is the ideal prerequisite for the course, which, however, is also thought to amend shortcomings.
Teaching methods
The course will be taught, in Italian, through frontal lessons; attendance is not mandatory, though strongly recommended.

Teaching units A and B will be taught on texts included in the lecture notes. During the lessons, thanks to slide projection, the focus will be on movements, authors and works and their cultural context; on the main critical problems of every topic, through quotations from critical essays and comparisons between different positions; on tradition and reception of works and texts; on their most interesting formal aspects. All the materials will be available on myAriel.

Non-attending students must use the materials expressly indicated in this program.
Teaching Resources
Teaching units A and B

*Attending Students*
"Antologia della letteratura italiana. Dalla Scuola poetica siciliana a Alessandro Manzoni", a cura di Gabriele Baldassari e Guglielmo Barucci, Milano, Cortina, 2021. The volume consists of a part of history of Italian literature and of a section of texts; both of them are to be prepared for the exam, along with notes of the lessons and further material uploaded on Ariel.

Students interested in a deeper knowledge of Italian literature should look at Letteratura italiana. Manuale per studi universitari, 2 volumi, Milano, Mondadori Università, 2018 (I: Dalle origini a metà Cinquecento e II: Da Tasso a fine Ottocento).

Useful reference tools could be:

a) for metre and poetic forms:
- P. Beltrami, Gli strumenti della poesia, Bologna, il Mulino;
- G. Lavezzi, I numeri della poesia, Roma, Carocci;
- G. Sangirardi-F. De Rosa, Breve guida alla metrica italiana, Milano, Sansoni.

b) for rethoric:
- B. Mortara Garavelli, Prima lezione di retorica, Roma-Bari, Laterza.

The students will be asked to prepare the whole Antologia della letteratura italiana. Dalla Scuola poetica siciliana a Alessandro Manzoni, in addition to the materials uploaded on myAriel site

*Not Attending Students*
The students will be asked to prepare the whole Antologia della letteratura italiana. Dalla Scuola poetica siciliana a Alessandro Manzoni, in addition to the materials uploaded on Ariel site

TEACHING UNIT C

*Attending Students*

Dante Alighieri, Purgatorio

Edition Suggested
Every edition provided with good introduction and notes. A good edition is Purgatorio, edited by U. Bosco e G. Reggio, Firenze, Le Monnier; another one is Purgatorio, edited by R. Mercuri, Torino, Einaudi, 2021.

More texts to be discussed in the class will be available on Ariel.

Students are asked to prove an overall knowledge of the work (writing, structure, models, themes, style); in case, an useful tool will be G. Inglese, Dante: guida alla Divina Commedia, Roma, Carocci, 2015.

Students will be asked to paraphrase the following cantos or parts of cantos :

Purgatorio I; V 22-136; VIII; X; XI; XXI 76-136; XXII 19-99; XXIII 76-133; XXIV 40-93; XXVI, XXVII; XXVIII 1-84 e 121-148; XXX; XXXI 1-104.

Additional materials will be uploaded on myAriel site

The exam will _always_ start with a paraphrasis of part of cantos I, VIII, XI, XXVII. Students will be required to analyze and comment a part from one of the cantos in this syllabus, in the wider frame of Dante's masterpiece with the help of bibliography.

Bibliography
Students are required to study two of the following papers:

1. Roberto Antonelli, Il destino del personaggio poeta: lettura del canto XXVI del Purgatorio, in «Rivista di studi danteschi», XII, 2, 2012, pp. 361-387 [poi in «Lectura Dantis Romana. Cento canti per cento anni. II. Purgatorio. 2. Canti XVIII-XXXIII» (2014), pp. 775-800, con il titolo: Canto XXVI. Il destino del personaggio-poeta];
2. Dante Della Terza, Dante e Forese. L'incontro in Purgatorio, in "Dante: rivista internazionale di studi su Dante Alighieri", I, 2004, pp. 101-111
3. Enrico Malato, La nostalgia che "volge il disio". Lettura del canto VIII del Purgatorio, in «Rivista di studi danteschi», 2001, 1, pp. 91-119;
4. Michelangelo Picone, Dante nel girone dei superbi (Purg. X-XII), in «L'Alighieri», 26, 2005, pp. 97-110.

These papers are available on the Digital Library of Università degli Studi di Milano ("Banche dati e altre risorse" > Lettera E > EIO Editoria italiana online > accessTorrossa. To use the search tool).

Students are required to show at the exam a written list of the chosen papers.

*NOT ATTENDING STUDENTS*

Dante Alighieri, Purgatorio

Edition Suggested
Every edition provided with good introduction and notes. A good edition is Purgatorio, edited by U. Bosco e G. Reggio, Firenze, Le Monnier; another one is Purgatorio, edited by R. Mercuri, Torino, Einaudi, 2021.

Students are asked to prove an overall knowledge of the work (writing, structure, models, themes, style); in case, an useful tool will be G. Inglese, Dante: guida alla Divina Commedia, Roma, Carocci, 2015.

Students will be asked to paraphrase the following cantos or parts of cantos :

Purgatorio I; V 22-136; VIII; X; XI; XXI 76-136; XXII 19-99; XXIII 76-133; XXIV 40-93; XXVI, XXVII; XXVIII 1-84 e 121-148; XXX; XXXI 1-104.

The exam will _always_ start with a paraphrasis of part of cantos I, VIII, XI, XXVII. Students will be required to analyze and comment a part from one of the cantos in this syllabus, in the wider frame of Dante's masterpiece with the help of bibliography.

Bibliography
Students are required to study two of the following papers:

1. Roberto Antonelli, Il destino del personaggio poeta: lettura del canto XXVI del Purgatorio, in «Rivista di studi danteschi», XII, 2, 2012, pp. 361-387 [poi in «Lectura Dantis Romana. Cento canti per cento anni. II. Purgatorio. 2. Canti XVIII-XXXIII» (2014), pp. 775-800, con il titolo: Canto XXVI. Il destino del personaggio-poeta];
2. Dante Della Terza, Dante e Forese. L'incontro in Purgatorio, in "Dante: rivista internazionale di studi su Dante Alighieri", I, 2004, pp. 101-111
3. Enrico Malato, La nostalgia che "volge il disio". Lettura del canto VIII del Purgatorio, in «Rivista di studi danteschi», 2001, 1, pp. 91-119;
4. Michelangelo Picone, Dante nel girone dei superbi (Purg. X-XII), in «L'Alighieri», 26, 2005, pp. 97-110.

These papers are available on the Digital Library of Università degli Studi di Milano ("Banche dati e altre risorse" > Lettera E > EIO Editoria italiana online > accessTorrossa. To use the search tool).

Students are required to show at the exam a written list of the chosen papers.





Students are required to study two of the following papers:
Assessment methods and Criteria
The exam consists of a preliminary written test on the teaching units A and B and an oral test on the teaching unit C; both are aimed at ascertaining students' knowledge of the bibliography.

The written test will be held three times a year (on May 2025, September 2025, on November/December 2025); passing the written test is prerequisite for the oral examination. Written tests will be graded sufficient, discreet, good, excellent and will be considered in the final overall grade. Grades of the written test will be published in Ariel in the dedicated section.

The written test (90 minutes) counts of two sections: 6 closed-ended questions on technical aspects (chronology, works, metre, rhetoric) and 4 short open questions (max 10 lines) on authors, themes, and works. A fifth question is the analysis of a text: the student will be required to define author, work, genre, metrics, rhyme scheme, and to provide a paraphrasis and a short cultural and stylistical framework.

The analysis will concerne one of the following texts (or part of texts), provided in the Anthology:

- Jacopo da Lentini, Amor è uno desio che ven da core
- Guido Guinizelli, Al cor gentil rempaira sempre amore (stanze I e IV)
- Guido Cavalcanti, Chi è questa che vèn, ch'ogn'om la mira
- Cino da Pistoia, Poscia che saziar non posso li occhi miei
- Dante, Guido, i' vorrei che tu e Lapo ed io
- Dante, Così nel mio parlar voglio esser aspro (stanze I e V)
- Dante, Vita nova: XIX Donne ch'avete intelletto d'amore (stanze I e II)
- Francesco Petrarca, Rvf 1, Voi ch'ascoltate in rime sparse il suono
- Francesco Petrarca, Rvf 90, Erano i capei d'oro a l'aura sparsi
- Francesco Petrarca, Rvf 272, La vita fugge e non s'arresta una hora
- Luigi Pulci, Morgante, XVIII 115-120
- Pietro Bembo, Crin d'oro crespo
- Giovanni della Casa, Questa vita mortal
- Ludovico Ariosto, Orlando furioso, XXIV 1-3
- Torquato Tasso, Gerusalemme liberata, I 1-5
- Giambattista Marino, Adone, III 156-158
- U. Foscolo, Né più mai toccherò le sacre sponde
- U. Foscolo, Dei sepolcri, vv. 137-150
- Giacomo Leopardi, A se stesso
- Giacomo Leopardi, Canto notturno di un pastore errante dell'Asia, vv. 133-143

Passing the written test on teaching units A and B is a necessary condition for completing the examination.

The oral test consists of a critical discussion on the main issues of the work studied in teaching unit C. The student will have, at request, to prove his ability to paraphrase the text. The student will be required to prove his ability to develop a critical and organized exposition of the informations and compétences acquired through the classes and the bibliography, with a proper terminology.

The final grade will be expressed in the 30 grade point system, and it will take into consideration the grade of the written test.

Erasmus students are invited to contact the professor via email in office hours for further information on the exam.

Examination methods for students with disabilities or SLD must be defined with the teacher in agreement with the University Disability and SLD Services. It is recommended to respect the indications of the "Documento personalizzato".
Unita' didattica A
L-FIL-LET/10 - ITALIAN LITERATURE - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours
Unita' didattica B
L-FIL-LET/10 - ITALIAN LITERATURE - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours
Unita' didattica C
L-FIL-LET/10 - ITALIAN LITERATURE - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours
Professor(s)
Reception:
Office hours: wednesday 15.00-18.00, by appointment only. Nevertheless, due to multiple administrative tasks, appointments could be given in other days.
Department of Literary Studies, Philology and Linguistics; sector Modern Philology, 1st floor, via Francesco Sforza
Reception:
wednesady 15:00-18:00, by appointment by e-mail
First floor of Dipartimento di Studi letterari, filologici e linguistici (via Festa del Perdono, 7)