Narrating and Negotiating Identities
A.Y. 2024/2025
Learning objectives
Our core interest in this course is migrants' and refugees' storytelling and in the representations of migrants, approached through different perspectives: legal/bureaucratic, media and cultural/artistic. In all these cases, narratives become a vital issue, and a complex one since narratives are normally shared, translated, brokered cross-culturally and/or often misunderstood, contested, repurposed and subjected to multiple entextualizations. These entextualizations may end up misrepresenting them, deliberately or otherwise. In particular, the documentation of the self emerges as a need in both the artistic and the administrative contexts, giving rise to different narratives adopting diversified registers, tone, tools and codes depending on the kind of constraints which apply. A detailed, well-contextualised, adequately supported and engaging narrative is a knowledge base both in cultural/artistic endeavours and in asylum seeking proceedings, amongst other things, though what counts as such may differ depending on the circumstances in which it occurs.
The purpose of the course consists in making the students aware of a) the linguistic and cultural aspects of different kinds of narrations, specifically from an intercultural perspective; b) the tools and codes that are normally used and can be successfully exploited to reach the envisaged communicative aims; c) the multiple difficulties or the processes of mediation and translation involved in the act of telling one's own story; d) the ways that have been devised to address and overcome these difficulties.
The students will be offered opportunities to analyse different case studies, so as to provide them with a reasonably articulated toolkit to approach migration narratives in their broadest sense. They will be expected to engage with different methodological tools, since the course is located at the cross-currents of Linguistic Studies, Translation/Interpreting Studies and Comparative Cultural Studies.
The purpose of the course consists in making the students aware of a) the linguistic and cultural aspects of different kinds of narrations, specifically from an intercultural perspective; b) the tools and codes that are normally used and can be successfully exploited to reach the envisaged communicative aims; c) the multiple difficulties or the processes of mediation and translation involved in the act of telling one's own story; d) the ways that have been devised to address and overcome these difficulties.
The students will be offered opportunities to analyse different case studies, so as to provide them with a reasonably articulated toolkit to approach migration narratives in their broadest sense. They will be expected to engage with different methodological tools, since the course is located at the cross-currents of Linguistic Studies, Translation/Interpreting Studies and Comparative Cultural Studies.
Expected learning outcomes
By the end of the course, students should successfully be able to:
1. Show awareness of the different kinds of narratives, in terms of purpose, structure, organization and impact.
2. Critically examine and question literature and data concerning migrants' narratives for legal/bureaucratic purposes.
3. Critically examine different texts and narratives belonging to the field of art and culture.
4. Prove able to compare them, working and thinking across disciplines.
5. Show awareness of the ways in which the words and bodies of the migrants become texts and language through mechanism that are often out of their control.
6. Appreciate the relevance of translation and interpreting, as well as the complexities of the process of mediating, translating and interpreting.
7. Develop the ability to apply theoretical skills to practical case studies.
1. Show awareness of the different kinds of narratives, in terms of purpose, structure, organization and impact.
2. Critically examine and question literature and data concerning migrants' narratives for legal/bureaucratic purposes.
3. Critically examine different texts and narratives belonging to the field of art and culture.
4. Prove able to compare them, working and thinking across disciplines.
5. Show awareness of the ways in which the words and bodies of the migrants become texts and language through mechanism that are often out of their control.
6. Appreciate the relevance of translation and interpreting, as well as the complexities of the process of mediating, translating and interpreting.
7. Develop the ability to apply theoretical skills to practical case studies.
Lesson period: First semester
Assessment methods: Esame
Assessment result: voto verbalizzato in trentesimi
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
Single session
Responsible
Lesson period
First semester
Course syllabus
UNIT 1 - Prof. Pasolini - cultural/artistic storytelling
Topics: migration and translation in books, films and the arts; docufiction and autoficition; cultural translation; storytelling and the act of making sense; representation: a matter of gaze; visuals and culture-bound items.
UNIT 2 - Prof. Paola Catenaccio - Talking about migration and migrants: discourse, language and identity
Topics: media, political and activist discourse about migration; migrants' self-representation, language and discourse; migration linguistics; language and discourse in asylum procedures; challenges in intercultural communication; language policies and migration; language as social capital.
A compendium of the required/recommended reading will be made available.
Topics: migration and translation in books, films and the arts; docufiction and autoficition; cultural translation; storytelling and the act of making sense; representation: a matter of gaze; visuals and culture-bound items.
UNIT 2 - Prof. Paola Catenaccio - Talking about migration and migrants: discourse, language and identity
Topics: media, political and activist discourse about migration; migrants' self-representation, language and discourse; migration linguistics; language and discourse in asylum procedures; challenges in intercultural communication; language policies and migration; language as social capital.
A compendium of the required/recommended reading will be made available.
Prerequisites for admission
Lessons are held in English; therefore, students are expected to be familiar with the structure and lexis required to attend classroom practice in an active, collaborative way.
Teaching methods
Students are required to participate actively through the proposed in-class team activities (presentations, case-studies, discussions of particular topics, flipped classroom activities).
Teaching Resources
Unit 1
Books and poems:
Behrouz Boochani, No Friend but the Mountains (2018) (autobiographic reportage; excerpts)
Chris Cleave, The Other Hand (2008) (novel; excerpts)
Warsan Shire, "Conversation about home (at the deportation centre)" e "Home" (2009) (poems - available online)
Film (class viewing of parts of or whole films):
Y. Feddah, Queens of Syria (2014)
V. Redgrave, Sea Sorrow (2017)
Photographic projects:
The Game, by Mario Badagliacca
Refugees cameras, by Kevin McElvaney (http://kevin-mcelvaney.com/refugeecameras/)
Critical readings:
Bertacco, Simona, and Nicoletta Vallorani. The Relocation of Culture. Literatures, Cultures, Translation. Bloomsbury Academic, 2021.
Recommended critical readings (optional):
Bhabha Homi K. "The Other Question ... The Stereotype and Colonial Discourse". Screen, vol. 24 no. 6: 1983, pp. 18-36. (the article will be made available on myAriel)
Maribel Casas-Cortes, Sebastian Cobarrubias, Nicholas, De Genova, Glenda Garelli, Giorgio Grappi, Charles, et al. 2014. "New Keywords: Migration and Borders". Cultural Studies, vol. 29, no. 1, pp. 1-33. (the article will be made available on myAriel)
Polezzi, Loredana. "Translation and Migration". Translation Studies, vol. 5, no. 3, 2012, pp. 345-368. (open access: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14781700.2012.701943)
These and other recommended (i.e. non compulsory) readings will be uploaded on the myAriel site of the course.
Unit 2
The list of texts is indicative and includes texts to be used as a starting point for individual or group research.
Baker, Mone 2020. Rehumanizing the migrant: the translated past as a resource for refashioning the contemporary discourse of the (radical) left. Palgrave Communications 6, 12.
Borlongan, Ariane Macalinga 2023. Migration linguistics. A synopsis. AILA Review 36(1), pp. 38 - 63.
Chouliaraki, Lilie 2017. Symbolic bordering: the self-representation of migrants and refugees in digital news. Popular Communication 15(2), 78-94.
Cooper, Glenda, Blumell, Lindsey, Bunce, Mel 2021. Beyond the 'refugee crisis': How the UK news media represent asylum seekers across national boundaries. International Communication Gazette, 83(3), 195-216.
Guido, Maria Grazia 2018. ELF in migration. In Jenkins, Jane, Baker, Will, Dewey, Martin (eds), The Routledge Handbook of English as a Lingua Franca¸ London: Routledge.
Jacobs, Marie, and Maryns, Katrijn 2022. Managing narratives, managing identities: Language and credibility in legal consultations with asylum seekers. Language in Society 51(3), 375-402.
Kiramba, Lydiah Kananu., and Oloo, James Alan 2023. "It's OK. She Doesn't Even Speak English": Narratives of Language, Culture, and Identity Negotiation by Immigrant High School Students. Urban Education 58(3), 398-426.
Lenette, Caroline, Baker, Sally and Hirsch, Asher 2019. Systemic Policy Barriers to Meaningful Participation of Students from Refugee and Asylum Seeking Backgrounds in Australian Higher Education: Neoliberal Settlement and Language Policies and (Deliberate?) Challenges for Meaningful Participation. In McBrien, Jody L. (ed) Educational Policies and Practices of English-Speaking Refugee Resettlement Countries Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, pp. 88-109.
Li, Guofang and Sah, Pramod Kumar 2019. Immigrant and refugee language policies, programs, and practices in an era of change. Promises, contradictions, and possibilities. In Gold, Steven J. and Nawyn, Stephanie J. (eds) Routledge International Handbook of Migration Studies, 2nd edition, London and New York: Routledge, pp. 325-338.
Maryns, Katrijn 2017. The Use of English as ad hoc Institutional Standard in the Belgian Asylum Interview. Applied Linguistics 38(5), 737-758.
Maryns, Katrijn and Slembrouck, Stef 2022. Categorization and the Use of English as an (Im)mobile Resource in Service Encounters with Migrants in Flanders. In De Fina, Anna, and Mazzaferro, Gerardo (eds) Exploring (Im)mobilities: Language Practices, Discourses and Imaginaries. Bristol, UK; Blue Ridge Summit: Multilingual Matters.
Onganaert, David, Joye, Stijn 2019. Selling displaced people? A multimethod study of the public communication strategies of international refugee organisations. Disasters 43(3): 478−508.
Onganaert, David, Joye, Stijn, Ihlen, Øyvind 2023. Manufacturing Humanitarian Imagery: Explaining Norwegian Refugee Council's Public Communication Strategies Toward the Syrian and Central African Crises. International Journal of Communication 17, 3799-382.
Piacentini, Teresa, O'Donnell, Catherine, Phipps, Alison, Jackson¸ Ima and Stack, Niamh 2019. Moving beyond the 'language problem': developing an understanding of the intersections of health, language and immigration status in interpreter-mediated health encounters, Language and Intercultural Communication, 19:3, 256-271,
Smith-Khan, Laura 2019. Communicative resources and credibility in public discourse on refugees. Language in Society 48, 403-427.
Smith-Khan, Laura 2019. Why refugee visa credibility assessments lack credibility: a critical discourse analysis. Griffith Law Review 28(4), 406-430.
Taylor, Charlotte 2021. Metaphors of migration over time. Discourse & Society 32(4), 463-481.
Van Leuven, Sarah, Deprez, Annelore, Joye, Stijn, Ongenaert, David 2018. How do Flemish politicians talk about migration? A study on the political framing of migration in Belgium 2016-2018. Ghent University.
Wright, Sue 2020. Migration, Linguistics and Sociolinguistics. In Inglis, Christine, Li, Wei and Khadria, Binod (eds), The SAGE Handbook of International Migration, London: SAGE, 142-158.
Books and poems:
Behrouz Boochani, No Friend but the Mountains (2018) (autobiographic reportage; excerpts)
Chris Cleave, The Other Hand (2008) (novel; excerpts)
Warsan Shire, "Conversation about home (at the deportation centre)" e "Home" (2009) (poems - available online)
Film (class viewing of parts of or whole films):
Y. Feddah, Queens of Syria (2014)
V. Redgrave, Sea Sorrow (2017)
Photographic projects:
The Game, by Mario Badagliacca
Refugees cameras, by Kevin McElvaney (http://kevin-mcelvaney.com/refugeecameras/)
Critical readings:
Bertacco, Simona, and Nicoletta Vallorani. The Relocation of Culture. Literatures, Cultures, Translation. Bloomsbury Academic, 2021.
Recommended critical readings (optional):
Bhabha Homi K. "The Other Question ... The Stereotype and Colonial Discourse". Screen, vol. 24 no. 6: 1983, pp. 18-36. (the article will be made available on myAriel)
Maribel Casas-Cortes, Sebastian Cobarrubias, Nicholas, De Genova, Glenda Garelli, Giorgio Grappi, Charles, et al. 2014. "New Keywords: Migration and Borders". Cultural Studies, vol. 29, no. 1, pp. 1-33. (the article will be made available on myAriel)
Polezzi, Loredana. "Translation and Migration". Translation Studies, vol. 5, no. 3, 2012, pp. 345-368. (open access: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14781700.2012.701943)
These and other recommended (i.e. non compulsory) readings will be uploaded on the myAriel site of the course.
Unit 2
The list of texts is indicative and includes texts to be used as a starting point for individual or group research.
Baker, Mone 2020. Rehumanizing the migrant: the translated past as a resource for refashioning the contemporary discourse of the (radical) left. Palgrave Communications 6, 12.
Borlongan, Ariane Macalinga 2023. Migration linguistics. A synopsis. AILA Review 36(1), pp. 38 - 63.
Chouliaraki, Lilie 2017. Symbolic bordering: the self-representation of migrants and refugees in digital news. Popular Communication 15(2), 78-94.
Cooper, Glenda, Blumell, Lindsey, Bunce, Mel 2021. Beyond the 'refugee crisis': How the UK news media represent asylum seekers across national boundaries. International Communication Gazette, 83(3), 195-216.
Guido, Maria Grazia 2018. ELF in migration. In Jenkins, Jane, Baker, Will, Dewey, Martin (eds), The Routledge Handbook of English as a Lingua Franca¸ London: Routledge.
Jacobs, Marie, and Maryns, Katrijn 2022. Managing narratives, managing identities: Language and credibility in legal consultations with asylum seekers. Language in Society 51(3), 375-402.
Kiramba, Lydiah Kananu., and Oloo, James Alan 2023. "It's OK. She Doesn't Even Speak English": Narratives of Language, Culture, and Identity Negotiation by Immigrant High School Students. Urban Education 58(3), 398-426.
Lenette, Caroline, Baker, Sally and Hirsch, Asher 2019. Systemic Policy Barriers to Meaningful Participation of Students from Refugee and Asylum Seeking Backgrounds in Australian Higher Education: Neoliberal Settlement and Language Policies and (Deliberate?) Challenges for Meaningful Participation. In McBrien, Jody L. (ed) Educational Policies and Practices of English-Speaking Refugee Resettlement Countries Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, pp. 88-109.
Li, Guofang and Sah, Pramod Kumar 2019. Immigrant and refugee language policies, programs, and practices in an era of change. Promises, contradictions, and possibilities. In Gold, Steven J. and Nawyn, Stephanie J. (eds) Routledge International Handbook of Migration Studies, 2nd edition, London and New York: Routledge, pp. 325-338.
Maryns, Katrijn 2017. The Use of English as ad hoc Institutional Standard in the Belgian Asylum Interview. Applied Linguistics 38(5), 737-758.
Maryns, Katrijn and Slembrouck, Stef 2022. Categorization and the Use of English as an (Im)mobile Resource in Service Encounters with Migrants in Flanders. In De Fina, Anna, and Mazzaferro, Gerardo (eds) Exploring (Im)mobilities: Language Practices, Discourses and Imaginaries. Bristol, UK; Blue Ridge Summit: Multilingual Matters.
Onganaert, David, Joye, Stijn 2019. Selling displaced people? A multimethod study of the public communication strategies of international refugee organisations. Disasters 43(3): 478−508.
Onganaert, David, Joye, Stijn, Ihlen, Øyvind 2023. Manufacturing Humanitarian Imagery: Explaining Norwegian Refugee Council's Public Communication Strategies Toward the Syrian and Central African Crises. International Journal of Communication 17, 3799-382.
Piacentini, Teresa, O'Donnell, Catherine, Phipps, Alison, Jackson¸ Ima and Stack, Niamh 2019. Moving beyond the 'language problem': developing an understanding of the intersections of health, language and immigration status in interpreter-mediated health encounters, Language and Intercultural Communication, 19:3, 256-271,
Smith-Khan, Laura 2019. Communicative resources and credibility in public discourse on refugees. Language in Society 48, 403-427.
Smith-Khan, Laura 2019. Why refugee visa credibility assessments lack credibility: a critical discourse analysis. Griffith Law Review 28(4), 406-430.
Taylor, Charlotte 2021. Metaphors of migration over time. Discourse & Society 32(4), 463-481.
Van Leuven, Sarah, Deprez, Annelore, Joye, Stijn, Ongenaert, David 2018. How do Flemish politicians talk about migration? A study on the political framing of migration in Belgium 2016-2018. Ghent University.
Wright, Sue 2020. Migration, Linguistics and Sociolinguistics. In Inglis, Christine, Li, Wei and Khadria, Binod (eds), The SAGE Handbook of International Migration, London: SAGE, 142-158.
Assessment methods and Criteria
Assessment is based on coursework, including groupwork, presentations and essays (as negotiated and agreed with students collectively and individually) (60% of overall mark), and a final oral exam in which all students will be expected to critically discuss the materials dealt with and the issues addressed in class (40%). The content of each unit will be assessed separately, with the final mark being based on both coursework/project/presentations and oral exam. The ability to use the knowledge acquired to critically address migration discourse will be a key assessment criterion.
L-LIN/10 - ENGLISH LITERATURE - University credits: 3
L-LIN/12 - LANGUAGE AND TRANSLATION - ENGLISH - University credits: 3
L-LIN/12 - LANGUAGE AND TRANSLATION - ENGLISH - University credits: 3
Lessons: 40 hours
Professors:
Catenaccio Paola, Pasolini Anna
Educational website(s)
Professor(s)
Reception:
From Thursday, September 19th, every Thursday morning from 9:30 to 11:30. On Thursday, 7th November, office hours are postponed to the afternoon, from 15:30 to 17:30.
Room 4018