Literary Communication in Twentieth-Century Italy
A.Y. 2024/2025
Learning objectives
In line with the objectives of the three-year degree course in Humanities for Communication, this course contributes to the acquisition of basic historical and theoretical competences aimed at training professionals capable of entering the world of communication, particularly in the field of publishing (especially book publishing) or cultural journalism.
The course aims to:
- provide students with the basic notions of the history of Italian literature and the history of publishing, from the early twentieth century to the early 2000s
- provide students with the basic theoretical and methodological tools to be able to interpret a literary text and a publishing product, that is the "book object" in its complexity and totality
The aim of the course therefore is to acquire historical knowledge of the development of the contemporary publishing and literary system, and to understand the methods of analysis of publishing mediation in relation to literary production, as a fundamental element in the formation of the cultural identity of contemporary Italy.
The course aims to:
- provide students with the basic notions of the history of Italian literature and the history of publishing, from the early twentieth century to the early 2000s
- provide students with the basic theoretical and methodological tools to be able to interpret a literary text and a publishing product, that is the "book object" in its complexity and totality
The aim of the course therefore is to acquire historical knowledge of the development of the contemporary publishing and literary system, and to understand the methods of analysis of publishing mediation in relation to literary production, as a fundamental element in the formation of the cultural identity of contemporary Italy.
Expected learning outcomes
Students will be asked to:
- memorise the basic notions of the history of publishing and the history of Twentieth-century Italian literature
- understand the link between literary production and publishing production, both historically, on the basis of concrete examples of authors and texts (case studies), and theoretically, by understanding the methodological aspects underlying this link
- apply these historical and methodological acquisitions to the reading and interpretation of literary texts taken as case studies during the lesson; students will independently confront other texts chosen from the list proposed in the program
- analyse literary texts, demonstrating the ability to place them in their historical context, both from a literary and editorial point of view
- analyse literary texts, demonstrating the ability to read and interpret them from the point of view of their stylistic identity
Comparison with literary texts will therefore enable students to learn to move competently within one of the most complex textual constructions produced historically by man (literature), acquiring methods and critical skills that can then be used in professional contexts in which the written word is at the centre of communication dynamics.
- memorise the basic notions of the history of publishing and the history of Twentieth-century Italian literature
- understand the link between literary production and publishing production, both historically, on the basis of concrete examples of authors and texts (case studies), and theoretically, by understanding the methodological aspects underlying this link
- apply these historical and methodological acquisitions to the reading and interpretation of literary texts taken as case studies during the lesson; students will independently confront other texts chosen from the list proposed in the program
- analyse literary texts, demonstrating the ability to place them in their historical context, both from a literary and editorial point of view
- analyse literary texts, demonstrating the ability to read and interpret them from the point of view of their stylistic identity
Comparison with literary texts will therefore enable students to learn to move competently within one of the most complex textual constructions produced historically by man (literature), acquiring methods and critical skills that can then be used in professional contexts in which the written word is at the centre of communication dynamics.
Lesson period: First semester
Assessment methods: Esame
Assessment result: voto verbalizzato in trentesimi
Single course
This course can be attended as a single course.
Course syllabus and organization
Single session
Responsible
Lesson period
First semester
Course syllabus
The first 20 lessons of the course (Editorial history of the 20th century Italian novel) will propose the following contents
- history of twentieth-century Italian literature, with specific focus on the novel genre;
- coordinates of the new literary system of mature modernity, thus showing the different levels that characterise it, from the peaks of the avant-garde to the communicative compromises of entertainment literature, passing through institutional literature.
Within this framework of historical and theoretical references, particular attention is paid to the novel form, the hegemonic genre of modernity and the textual structure on which both the ambitions of the most sophisticated experimentalism and the aspirations of the widest readability are poured.
Further contents:
- editorial mediation: theoretical-methodological issues connected with the dynamics of the production of the book object, with the preparation of texts for publication, with editorial communication and with the interpretation of the 'book object'.
All the historical passages, both literary and editorial, and the related theoretical-methodological issues will be exemplified in concrete terms through direct confrontation with an author and with the anthological selection of a text from one of his works (case study).
The last 10 lessons of the course (Love at the time of the Resistance: Vittorini and Calvino in comparison) will propose the following contents:
- historical-critical analysis of Uomini e no by Elio Vittorini (Bompiani 1945) and Il sentiero dei nidi di ragno by Italo Calvino (Einaudi 1947),
- critical-interpretive reading of anthological excerpts from the two main works, considered first and foremost through the characteristics of their first edition and their genetic and publishing history
- placement of the two novels within the phenomenon of neo-realism and analysis of their value in the overall framework of the history of 20th century literature
- reflection on their still topical meanings, particularly in relation to the treatment of the theme of love and affectivity in the context of a war experience
The choice of the two works to be historically framed and critically commented on comes from the fact that they both represent with innovative literary force a decisive historical, political, social and cultural moment for the constitution of Italian identity in the following decades, right up to our present day. Moreover, their specific characteristics make it possible to carry out a stylistic as well as a content-related comparison, highlighting two narrative modes - Vittorini's and Calvino's - at once close and distant, undoubtedly strongly communicating with each other (as the two authors were) but also profoundly different in their constitutive stylistic identity. Observing the two novels, therefore, in the historical literary context in which they are set (first and foremost, therefore, within the neo-realism), it will be possible to identify certain contents that strongly interfere with reflections linked to contemporary events.
Accompanying this in-depth study will be the visiting professor from the University of Lyon, Marie Fabre, who has long studied the works of Vittorini and Calvino.
- history of twentieth-century Italian literature, with specific focus on the novel genre;
- coordinates of the new literary system of mature modernity, thus showing the different levels that characterise it, from the peaks of the avant-garde to the communicative compromises of entertainment literature, passing through institutional literature.
Within this framework of historical and theoretical references, particular attention is paid to the novel form, the hegemonic genre of modernity and the textual structure on which both the ambitions of the most sophisticated experimentalism and the aspirations of the widest readability are poured.
Further contents:
- editorial mediation: theoretical-methodological issues connected with the dynamics of the production of the book object, with the preparation of texts for publication, with editorial communication and with the interpretation of the 'book object'.
All the historical passages, both literary and editorial, and the related theoretical-methodological issues will be exemplified in concrete terms through direct confrontation with an author and with the anthological selection of a text from one of his works (case study).
The last 10 lessons of the course (Love at the time of the Resistance: Vittorini and Calvino in comparison) will propose the following contents:
- historical-critical analysis of Uomini e no by Elio Vittorini (Bompiani 1945) and Il sentiero dei nidi di ragno by Italo Calvino (Einaudi 1947),
- critical-interpretive reading of anthological excerpts from the two main works, considered first and foremost through the characteristics of their first edition and their genetic and publishing history
- placement of the two novels within the phenomenon of neo-realism and analysis of their value in the overall framework of the history of 20th century literature
- reflection on their still topical meanings, particularly in relation to the treatment of the theme of love and affectivity in the context of a war experience
The choice of the two works to be historically framed and critically commented on comes from the fact that they both represent with innovative literary force a decisive historical, political, social and cultural moment for the constitution of Italian identity in the following decades, right up to our present day. Moreover, their specific characteristics make it possible to carry out a stylistic as well as a content-related comparison, highlighting two narrative modes - Vittorini's and Calvino's - at once close and distant, undoubtedly strongly communicating with each other (as the two authors were) but also profoundly different in their constitutive stylistic identity. Observing the two novels, therefore, in the historical literary context in which they are set (first and foremost, therefore, within the neo-realism), it will be possible to identify certain contents that strongly interfere with reflections linked to contemporary events.
Accompanying this in-depth study will be the visiting professor from the University of Lyon, Marie Fabre, who has long studied the works of Vittorini and Calvino.
Prerequisites for admission
In line with the objectives of the three-year degree course in Humanities for Communication, this course contributes to the acquisition of basic historical and theoretical competences aimed at training professionals capable of entering the world of communication, particularly in the field of publishing (especially book publishing) or cultural journalism.
The course aims to:
- provide students with the basic notions of the history of Italian literature, from the early twentieth century to the early 2000s
- provide students with the basic theoretical and methodological tools to be able to interpret a literary text and a publishing product, that is the "book object" in its complexity and totality
- provide the theoretical coordinates of publishing mediation
The aim of the course therefore is to acquire historical knowledge of the development of the contemporary publishing and literary system, and to understand the methods of analysis of publishing mediation in relation to literary production, as a fundamental element in the formation of the cultural identity of contemporary Italy.
The course aims to:
- provide students with the basic notions of the history of Italian literature, from the early twentieth century to the early 2000s
- provide students with the basic theoretical and methodological tools to be able to interpret a literary text and a publishing product, that is the "book object" in its complexity and totality
- provide the theoretical coordinates of publishing mediation
The aim of the course therefore is to acquire historical knowledge of the development of the contemporary publishing and literary system, and to understand the methods of analysis of publishing mediation in relation to literary production, as a fundamental element in the formation of the cultural identity of contemporary Italy.
Teaching methods
Frontal lessons with PowerPoint projections, links to web pages and prior distribution of reading materials to be used in class, these ones uploaded on the Ariel page of the course (further clarifications will be given in the classroom).
During the lessons, the historical and theoretical contents will be explained with the same structure and articulation with which they will be requested during the exam; the reading and analysis of the textual materials is a concrete and empirical example guided by the teacher of what the student will be asked to do autonomously during the exam.
Practical indications are given on how to check learning and evaluation criteria and suggestions are given on how to use the bibliography in the program for an effective preparation of the subject.
Attendance is optional but strongly recommended.
During the lessons, the historical and theoretical contents will be explained with the same structure and articulation with which they will be requested during the exam; the reading and analysis of the textual materials is a concrete and empirical example guided by the teacher of what the student will be asked to do autonomously during the exam.
Practical indications are given on how to check learning and evaluation criteria and suggestions are given on how to use the bibliography in the program for an effective preparation of the subject.
Attendance is optional but strongly recommended.
Teaching Resources
Who takes an exam for 6 CFU have to study only the first part of the program (first 20 lessons)
COURSE SYLLABUS FOR ATTENDING STUDENTS (THEY ARE REQUIRED TO TAKE THE EXAMINATION IN ITALIAN)
First 20 lessons: Editorial history of 20th century Italian novel
· the contents of the lessons
· anthological excerpts provided from lesson to lesson for commentary purposes
· Letteratura italiana contemporanea. Narrativa e poesia dal Novecento ad oggi, a cura di Beatrice Manetti e Massimiliano Tortora, Roma, Carocci, 2022, solo la parte dedicata alla narrativa (pp. 21-220).
· Franco Brioschi, Costanzo Di Girolamo, Massimo Fusillo, Introduzione alla letteratura, Roma, Carocci, ed. 2013 (ristampa 2021), solo i seguenti capitoli (pp. 9-31 e pp. 135-180):
- L'istituzione letteraria (fino a 2.2)
- Modi della narrativa
· Roberto Cicala, I meccanismi dell'editoria. Il mondo dei libri dall'autore al lettore, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2021, i seguenti capitoli:
- Parte I: Un libro oggi (pp. 21-30)
- Parte II, capitolo VI: Collane tra generi e paratesto + Capitolo VII: I testi in redazione: tra editing e grafica (pp. 79-142)
· Vittorio Spinazzola, Le articolazioni del pubblico novecentesco (pp. 49-66) essay contained in the volume La modernità letteraria, Milano, il Saggiatore-Fondazione Mondadori, 2001 (the essay is available on MyAriel)
· One title of your choice from this group of volumes (each to be read with the introductory essay, when present):
- Luigi Pirandello, Quaderni di Serafino Gubbio operatore, Oscar Mondadori o Feltrinelli
- Luigi Pirandello, Quaderni di Serafino Gubbio operatore, Oscar Mondadori o Feltrinelli
- Aldo Palazzeschi, Il codice di Perelà. Romanzo futurista (edizione 1911), Oscar Mondadori
- Piero Jahier, Con me e con gli alpini (edizione 1918), Claudiana
- Sibilla Aleramo, Una donna, Milano, Feltrinelli
- Emilio Cecchi, Pesci rossi, Roma, Eliot
- Giuseppe Antonio Borgese, Rubè, Oscar Mondadori
- Alberto Moravia, Gli indifferenti, Tascabili Bompiani
- Cesare Pavese, Paesi tuoi, Tascabili Einaudi
- Elio Vittorini, Conversazione in Sicilia, BUR / Tascabili Bompiani
- Beppe Fenoglio, I ventitré giorni della città di Alba, Tascabili Einaudi
- Vasco Pratolini, Metello, BUR
- Pier Paolo Pasolini, Ragazzi di vita, Tascabili Garzanti
- Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa, Il Gattopardo, Tascabili Feltrinelli
- Giorgio Bassani, Il giardino dei Finzi-Contini, Tascabili Feltrinelli
- Natalia Ginzburg, Lessico famigliare, Tascabili Einaudi
- Carlo Emilio Gadda, Quer pasticciaccio brutto de via Merulana, Adelphi
- Carlo Emilio Gadda, La cognizione del dolore, Adelphi
- Paolo Volponi, Memoriale, Tascabili Einaudi
- Edoardo Sanguineti, Capriccio italiano, Feltrinelli
- Nanni Balestrini, Vogliamo tutto, Oscar Mondadori
- Elsa Morante, La Storia, Tascabili Einaudi
- Umberto Eco, Il nome della rosa, Bompiani o La Nave di Teseo
- Pier Vittorio Tondelli, Altri libertini, Tascabili Feltrinelli
- Antonio Tabucchi, Sostiene Pereira, Tascabili Feltrinelli
- Ammanniti, Brancaccio e altri, Gioventù cannibale, Einaudi Stile Libero
Lessons 21-30: Love at the time of the Resistance: Vittorini and Calvino in comparison
· the contents of the lessons
· Elio Vittorini, Uomini e no, edited by Virna Brigatti, Oscar Mondadori Cult, 2022 (exactly that edition: https://www.oscarmondadori.it/libri/uomini-e-no-elio-vittorini/ ): read the novel and the chapters in the appendix and study the Introduction and the Note to the text
· Virna Brigatti, Pagine inedite di Elio Vittorini: il grande amore di Berta, in «La modernità letteraria», vol. 7, anno 2014, pp. 181-190 (the essay is available on MyAriel)
· Virna Brigatti, Elio Vittorini, «Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani» on line: https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/elio-vittorini_%28Dizionario-Biografico%29/
· Italo Calvino, Il sentiero dei nidi di ragno, with an unpublished story, edited by Mario Barenghi, Oscar Mondadori Cult, 2020 (exactly that edition: https://www.oscarmondadori.it/libri/il-sentiero-dei-nidi-di-ragno-italo-calvino-2/ ): read the novel and the chapters in the appendix and study the Introduction and the Note to the text
· Annalisa Ponti, Invito a leggere "Il sentiero dei nidi di ragno" di Italo Calvino, Milano, Mursia, https://www.mursia.com/products/32125 (chapters I and II, pp. 5-116)
· Francesco De Nicola, Neorealismo, Milano, Editrice Bibliografica, 2016, first two chapters (pp. 7-76)
COURSE SYLLABUS FOR NOT-ATTENDING STUDENTS
(FOREIGN STUDENTS ATTENDING LESSONS HAVE TO STUDY THE ITALIAN BIBLIOGRAPHY)
Below is the complete program with ALL the texts to be prepared.
Part one: Editorial history of 20th century Italian literature
· Ian Watt, The rise of the novel, Berkeley - Los Angeles, University of California, 2001 (chapters 1, 2, 6)
· Robert S. C., Gordon, An introduction to Twentieth-century Italian literature: a difficult modernity, London, Duckworth, 2005
Part Two: Love at the time of the Resistance: Vittorini and Calvino in comparison
· Italo Calvino, The Path to the Nest of Spiders (any edition)
· Martin McLaughlin, Italo Calvino, Edinburgh, Edinburgh University Press, 1998
· Elio Vittorini, Men and not men (any edition)
· Guido Bonsaver, Elio Vittorini: the writer and the written, Leeds, Northern Universities press, 2000
COURSE SYLLABUS FOR ATTENDING STUDENTS (THEY ARE REQUIRED TO TAKE THE EXAMINATION IN ITALIAN)
First 20 lessons: Editorial history of 20th century Italian novel
· the contents of the lessons
· anthological excerpts provided from lesson to lesson for commentary purposes
· Letteratura italiana contemporanea. Narrativa e poesia dal Novecento ad oggi, a cura di Beatrice Manetti e Massimiliano Tortora, Roma, Carocci, 2022, solo la parte dedicata alla narrativa (pp. 21-220).
· Franco Brioschi, Costanzo Di Girolamo, Massimo Fusillo, Introduzione alla letteratura, Roma, Carocci, ed. 2013 (ristampa 2021), solo i seguenti capitoli (pp. 9-31 e pp. 135-180):
- L'istituzione letteraria (fino a 2.2)
- Modi della narrativa
· Roberto Cicala, I meccanismi dell'editoria. Il mondo dei libri dall'autore al lettore, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2021, i seguenti capitoli:
- Parte I: Un libro oggi (pp. 21-30)
- Parte II, capitolo VI: Collane tra generi e paratesto + Capitolo VII: I testi in redazione: tra editing e grafica (pp. 79-142)
· Vittorio Spinazzola, Le articolazioni del pubblico novecentesco (pp. 49-66) essay contained in the volume La modernità letteraria, Milano, il Saggiatore-Fondazione Mondadori, 2001 (the essay is available on MyAriel)
· One title of your choice from this group of volumes (each to be read with the introductory essay, when present):
- Luigi Pirandello, Quaderni di Serafino Gubbio operatore, Oscar Mondadori o Feltrinelli
- Luigi Pirandello, Quaderni di Serafino Gubbio operatore, Oscar Mondadori o Feltrinelli
- Aldo Palazzeschi, Il codice di Perelà. Romanzo futurista (edizione 1911), Oscar Mondadori
- Piero Jahier, Con me e con gli alpini (edizione 1918), Claudiana
- Sibilla Aleramo, Una donna, Milano, Feltrinelli
- Emilio Cecchi, Pesci rossi, Roma, Eliot
- Giuseppe Antonio Borgese, Rubè, Oscar Mondadori
- Alberto Moravia, Gli indifferenti, Tascabili Bompiani
- Cesare Pavese, Paesi tuoi, Tascabili Einaudi
- Elio Vittorini, Conversazione in Sicilia, BUR / Tascabili Bompiani
- Beppe Fenoglio, I ventitré giorni della città di Alba, Tascabili Einaudi
- Vasco Pratolini, Metello, BUR
- Pier Paolo Pasolini, Ragazzi di vita, Tascabili Garzanti
- Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa, Il Gattopardo, Tascabili Feltrinelli
- Giorgio Bassani, Il giardino dei Finzi-Contini, Tascabili Feltrinelli
- Natalia Ginzburg, Lessico famigliare, Tascabili Einaudi
- Carlo Emilio Gadda, Quer pasticciaccio brutto de via Merulana, Adelphi
- Carlo Emilio Gadda, La cognizione del dolore, Adelphi
- Paolo Volponi, Memoriale, Tascabili Einaudi
- Edoardo Sanguineti, Capriccio italiano, Feltrinelli
- Nanni Balestrini, Vogliamo tutto, Oscar Mondadori
- Elsa Morante, La Storia, Tascabili Einaudi
- Umberto Eco, Il nome della rosa, Bompiani o La Nave di Teseo
- Pier Vittorio Tondelli, Altri libertini, Tascabili Feltrinelli
- Antonio Tabucchi, Sostiene Pereira, Tascabili Feltrinelli
- Ammanniti, Brancaccio e altri, Gioventù cannibale, Einaudi Stile Libero
Lessons 21-30: Love at the time of the Resistance: Vittorini and Calvino in comparison
· the contents of the lessons
· Elio Vittorini, Uomini e no, edited by Virna Brigatti, Oscar Mondadori Cult, 2022 (exactly that edition: https://www.oscarmondadori.it/libri/uomini-e-no-elio-vittorini/ ): read the novel and the chapters in the appendix and study the Introduction and the Note to the text
· Virna Brigatti, Pagine inedite di Elio Vittorini: il grande amore di Berta, in «La modernità letteraria», vol. 7, anno 2014, pp. 181-190 (the essay is available on MyAriel)
· Virna Brigatti, Elio Vittorini, «Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani» on line: https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/elio-vittorini_%28Dizionario-Biografico%29/
· Italo Calvino, Il sentiero dei nidi di ragno, with an unpublished story, edited by Mario Barenghi, Oscar Mondadori Cult, 2020 (exactly that edition: https://www.oscarmondadori.it/libri/il-sentiero-dei-nidi-di-ragno-italo-calvino-2/ ): read the novel and the chapters in the appendix and study the Introduction and the Note to the text
· Annalisa Ponti, Invito a leggere "Il sentiero dei nidi di ragno" di Italo Calvino, Milano, Mursia, https://www.mursia.com/products/32125 (chapters I and II, pp. 5-116)
· Francesco De Nicola, Neorealismo, Milano, Editrice Bibliografica, 2016, first two chapters (pp. 7-76)
COURSE SYLLABUS FOR NOT-ATTENDING STUDENTS
(FOREIGN STUDENTS ATTENDING LESSONS HAVE TO STUDY THE ITALIAN BIBLIOGRAPHY)
Below is the complete program with ALL the texts to be prepared.
Part one: Editorial history of 20th century Italian literature
· Ian Watt, The rise of the novel, Berkeley - Los Angeles, University of California, 2001 (chapters 1, 2, 6)
· Robert S. C., Gordon, An introduction to Twentieth-century Italian literature: a difficult modernity, London, Duckworth, 2005
Part Two: Love at the time of the Resistance: Vittorini and Calvino in comparison
· Italo Calvino, The Path to the Nest of Spiders (any edition)
· Martin McLaughlin, Italo Calvino, Edinburgh, Edinburgh University Press, 1998
· Elio Vittorini, Men and not men (any edition)
· Guido Bonsaver, Elio Vittorini: the writer and the written, Leeds, Northern Universities press, 2000
Assessment methods and Criteria
Assessment method: oral test
Type: oral questioning structured as an interview with the teacher on the topics envisaged in the program; in particular, starting with questions that cover the main contents and topics dealt with in the lesson, the interview will be structured in more or less in-depth directions depending on the student's ability to argue and analyse
Assessment parameters: the student must demonstrate:
- knowledge of the history of literature and publishing in Twentieth-century Italy
- have understood the dynamics of literary and publishing system in Twentieth-century Italy
- have acquired an adequate and effective ability to analyse the literary texts and the "book object" that conveys it
- to know and be able to critically analyse the case studies presented in class, both the anthological ones in the first part of the course and the complete ones in the second part
- have read and be able to critically analyse the theses read independently
- be able to express themselves correctly and appropriately in relation to the topics dealt with, using the specific critical terminology
- be able to link and rework the content presented in class and/or in the volumes and essays on the program.
Type of evaluation used: grade in thirtieths. The exam is passed with 18/30.
Type: oral questioning structured as an interview with the teacher on the topics envisaged in the program; in particular, starting with questions that cover the main contents and topics dealt with in the lesson, the interview will be structured in more or less in-depth directions depending on the student's ability to argue and analyse
Assessment parameters: the student must demonstrate:
- knowledge of the history of literature and publishing in Twentieth-century Italy
- have understood the dynamics of literary and publishing system in Twentieth-century Italy
- have acquired an adequate and effective ability to analyse the literary texts and the "book object" that conveys it
- to know and be able to critically analyse the case studies presented in class, both the anthological ones in the first part of the course and the complete ones in the second part
- have read and be able to critically analyse the theses read independently
- be able to express themselves correctly and appropriately in relation to the topics dealt with, using the specific critical terminology
- be able to link and rework the content presented in class and/or in the volumes and essays on the program.
Type of evaluation used: grade in thirtieths. The exam is passed with 18/30.
Unita' didattica A
L-FIL-LET/11 - CONTEMPORARY ITALIAN LITERATURE - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours
Unita' didattica B
L-FIL-LET/11 - CONTEMPORARY ITALIAN LITERATURE - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours
Unita' didattica C
L-FIL-LET/11 - CONTEMPORARY ITALIAN LITERATURE - University credits: 3
Lessons: 20 hours
Educational website(s)
Professor(s)