BRANDEIS UNIVERSITY – ROMS ITAL 106 – Fall 2015 (S. Monteleone)

ITALIAN 106

STORIA E STORIE D’ITALIA

ADVANCED ITALIAN THROUGH NARRATIVE, FILM AND OTHER MEDIA

M, W & TH 1:00 – 1:50 p.m.

Instructor: Silvia Monteleone

Office: Shiffman 102

Office hours: M, W & Th 11:00 – 12:00 and by appointment

Telephone: -62781

E-mail: /

BUGS Leader: Brianna Small –

Course Objectives

The objectives of the course are to:

1.  Read critically by asking pertinent questions about a text, by recognizing assumptions and implications, and by evaluating ideas.

2.  Read texts of different genres and disciplines accurately.

3.  Increase analytical, inferential and evaluative comprehension.

4.  Collect, analyze, and organize relevant information from a variety of sources.

5.  Understand idioms and expand vocabulary skills.

6.  Monitor and apply strategies to improve accuracy in grammar sentence structure, and word choice to a specified level of accuracy.

7.  Plan, write, revise and edit summaries and multi-paragraph essays, incorporating source material.

Course Goals: The course’s goal is to improve students’ listening, reading and critical thinking skills in Italian.

Course Content: This course intends to be an historical journey through Italian short fiction, poetry and film from the beginning of the 20th century to the present that will help to understand the most unique features of Italy as it is today. The course will examine the impact that history has on private lives and the specific ways in which historical events and social policies have affected and affect the Italian way of life.

Method of Instruction

The instructor will teach through different media and will require the students to actively participate to class through discussions and individual / group presentations. The instructor will evaluate students’ development and improvement by assessing their work at home and their performance and participation in class activities. Students will receive assistance with listening / reading difficulties that arise from lack of familiarity with the structure, lexicon and cultural content of the reading passages.

Evaluation

The instructor will measure competency in the stated objectives through multiple choice, short answer, and essay quizzes or oral assignments/presentations. The instructor will give a final written examination and the students will prepare a final oral presentation. The instructor expects responsibility for the following:

i) attendance and punctuality

ii) class work and assignments

iii) participation and teamwork

Final grade

20% Participation, & homework

30% Verifiche

20% mid-course essay & presentation

20% Final essay

10% Final presentation

Success in this 4 credit hour course is based on the expectation that students will spend a minimum of 9 hours of study time per week in preparation for class (homework, readings, papers, preparation for exams, etc.).

Attendance is mandatory. MORE THAN 3 UNJUSTIFIED ABSENCES and/or consistently arriving late WILL INFLUENCE YOUR FINAL GRADE, specifically a grade of A will turned into an A-, an A- into a B+ and so on.

LATE ASSIGNMENTS There are no make-up dates for the midterm or final exams. Written assignments should be turned in on scheduled due dates. A paper turned in late will receive two point less for each day that went by after the scheduled date: for instance a 95/100 paper due on Monday will receive a 93/100 if turned in on Tuesday and a 91/100 if turned in on Wednesday and so on.

Placement: (For courses 10 trough106)

Think carefully about your placement in this course: Will this course be challenging for you? Do you want to major or minor in Italian Studies and will you have enough time to do so? If you think you might not be in the right course, please speak with your professor immediately. Keep in mind that once you have completed a course in the language sequence-courses numbered 10-106; you will not be able to skip a level. If the course that is at your level is closed, we advise you to wait a semester and enroll in the right course.

Tutoring: Brandeis offers a free tutoring service in case you need extra help or you would just like extra practice in Italian. Please contact B.U.G.S at Brandeis for general information about tutoring services and/or the Italian tutor this year.

Academic integrity:

You are expected to be honest in all of your academic work. You are expected to be familiar with and follow the University’s policies on academic integrity. Students may be required to submit work to Turnitin.com software to verify originality. Please consult Brandeis University Rights and Responsibilities for all policies and procedures. All policies related to academic integrity apply to in-class and take home projects, assignments, exams, and quizzes. Students may only collaborate on assignments with permission from the instructor. Allegations of alleged academic dishonesty will be forwarded to the Director of Academic Integrity. Sanctions for academic dishonesty can include falling grades and/or suspension from the university. Citations and research assistance can be found at LTS-Library guides.

NB: THE USE OF ON LINE TRANSLATORS WILL BE CONSIDERED AS CHEATING.

Students with disabilities:

If you are a student with a documented disability on record at Brandeis University and wish to have a reasonable accommodation made for you in this class, please let the professor know at the very beginning of classes.

Study abroad
Scott van der Meid ()
Allyson Goose ()
The Study Abroad office is in 127 Usdan Student Center.

Majoring/minoring in Italian: If you are thinking about majoring or minoring in Italian Studies, you should familiarize yourself with the program in the Bulletin and then see the Undergraduate Advising Head for Fall 2015 Paola Servino.

Email policy: Email will be the best way to contact your instructor outside office hours. However, please be advised that I will not discuss sensitive information, such as your grade, over email. Please make an appointment to speak with me in person if you have questions about your standing in the class.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me at any time if you have questions or problems. I also invite you to come during office hours for practice, conversation, or any questions you may have.

SYLLABUS DETTAGLIATO

Giovedì 27 agosto Introduzione al corso.

LA FINE DELL’OTTOCENTO

Il verismo: Giovanni Verga

SETTIMANA 1 Lunedì 31 agosto &

Mercoledì 2 settembre Giovanni Verga, “La roba” da Novelle Rusticane

Giovedì 3 settembre &

SETTIMANA 2 Mercoledì 9 settembre Giovanni Verga, “La Lupa” da Vita nei campi

IL PRIMO NOVECENTO & LA PRIMA GUERRA MONDIALE

Le inquietudini del primo Novecento: Italo Svevo & Luigi Pirandello

Allegria di naufragi: Giuseppe Ungaretti

SETTIMANA 3 Giovedì 10 settembre &

Mercoledì 16 settembre Italo Svevo, “L’ultima sigaretta” da La coscienza di Zeno

Giovedì 17 settembre &

SETTIMANA 4 Lunedì 21 settembre Pirandello, “La Signora Frola e il Signor Ponza, suo genero” da Novelle per un anno

Giovedì 24 settembre Giuseppe Ungaretti

SETTIMANA 5 Martedì 29 settembre VERIFICA/ESAME in classe

Il FASCISMO E LA SECONDA GUERRA MONDIALE

L’indifferenza e il conformismo: Alberto Moravia

Il trauma della guerra: Vitaliano Brancati

L’esperienza ebrea: Giorgio Bassani

Mercoledì 30 settembre

Giovedì 1 ottobre Alberto Moravia da Gli Indifferenti e da

Il conformista

SETTIMANA 6 Mercoledì 7 ottobre FILM La notte di San Lorenzo di Paolo e

Vittorio Taviani

Giovedì 8 ottobre Vitaliano Brancati “La doccia” da Il vecchio con gli stivali

SETTIMANA 7 Lunedì 12 ottobre

Mercoledì 14 ottobre Giorgio Bassani “Una lapide in via Mazzini” da

Cinque storie ferraresi

Giovedì 15 ottobre (Natalia Ginzburg)

SETTIMANA 8 Lunedì 19 ottobre VERIFICA/ESAME in classe

LA QUESTIONE MERIDIONALE

Carlo Levi

Mercoledì 21 ottobre

Giovedì 22 ottobre Carlo Levi, da Cristo si è fermato ad Eboli

WEEK 9 Lunedì 26 ottobre SAGGIO di metà semestre & PRESENTAZIONI

GLI ANNI DEL DOPOGUERRA E IL BOOM ECONOMICO

Piepaolo Pasolini & Italo Calvino

Mercoledì 28 ottobre FILM Il sorpasso

Giovedì 29 ottobre Pierpaolo Pasolini, “Rimpianto del mondo contadino e omologazione contemporanea” da Scritti Corsari

WEEK 10 Lunedì 2 novembre

Mercoledì 4 novembre Italo Calvino, “La storia di due sposi” da Gli amori difficili

Giovedì 5 novembre ------

LA SOCIETÀ CONTEMPORANEA

Stefano Benni, Bianca Stancanelli, Gabriele Romagnoli, Andrea Camilleri.

WEEK 11 Lunedì 9 novembre

Mercoledì 11 novembre Stefano Benni, “Il ladro” da L’ultima lacrima

Giovedì 12 novembre &

WEEK 12 Lunedì 16 novembre Bianca Stancanelli, “Bilanci”

Mercoledì 18 novembre &

Giovedì 19 novembre Amara Lakhous da Scontro di civiltà per un ascensore a Piazza Vittorio

WEEK 13 Lunedì 23 novembre FILM La giusta distanza di Carlo Mazzacurati

WEEK 14 Lunedì 30 novembre

Mercoledì 2 dicembre Gabriele Romagnoli, “L’avvocatessa zoccola” da Non ci

sono santi

Giovedì 3 dicembre FILM Ricordati di me di Gabriele Muccino

Week 15 Lunedì 7 dicembre VERIFICA/ESAME in classe

Mercoledì 9 dicembre PRESENTAZIONI FINALI

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