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Course unit
ANGLO-AMERICAN LITERATURE
SUP6076057, A.A. 2018/19
Information concerning the students who enrolled in A.Y. 2018/19
ECTS: details
Type |
Scientific-Disciplinary Sector |
Credits allocated |
Educational activities in elective or integrative disciplines |
L-LIN/11 |
Anglo-American Languages and Literature |
6.0 |
Course unit organization
Period |
Second semester |
Year |
1st Year |
Teaching method |
frontal |
Type of hours |
Credits |
Teaching hours |
Hours of Individual study |
Shifts |
Lecture |
6.0 |
42 |
108.0 |
No turn |
Examination board
Board |
From |
To |
Members of the board |
4 1920 |
01/10/2019 |
30/11/2020 |
SCACCHI
ANNA
(Presidente)
CORONATO
ROCCO
(Membro Effettivo)
DE BIASIO
ANNA
(Membro Effettivo)
BORDIN
ELISA
(Supplente)
OBOE
ANNALISA
(Supplente)
|
3 1819 |
01/10/2018 |
30/11/2019 |
SCACCHI
ANNA
(Presidente)
CORONATO
ROCCO
(Membro Effettivo)
DE BIASIO
ANNA
(Membro Effettivo)
BORDIN
ELISA
(Supplente)
OBOE
ANNALISA
(Supplente)
|
2 1718 |
01/10/2017 |
30/11/2018 |
SCACCHI
ANNA
(Presidente)
CORONATO
ROCCO
(Membro Effettivo)
DE BIASIO
ANNA
(Membro Effettivo)
BORDIN
ELISA
(Supplente)
OBOE
ANNALISA
(Supplente)
|
Prerequisites:
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Students should be familiar with basic facts of US history, culture and literature and have an advanced knowledge of English |
Target skills and knowledge:
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Students will become acquainted with the contemporary historiographic debate on slavery and modernity and on its memorialization in the public space via literature and cinema. A range of "historiographic metafictions," that is to say texts, literary and cinematic, reflecting on the representation of the enslaved past from a variety of perspectives, will offer them the opportunity to gain a solid knowledge of postmodern critical approaches to historic discourse. |
Examination methods:
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Final paper, about 15 pages long, and discussion of the paper. The student can opt for an oral exam, which is mandatory if you have not attended classes. Active participation in class discussions. |
Assessment criteria:
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The student will be evaluated according to her acquired competence in the most relevant aspects of the critical debate and her ability to apply it in original readings of the assigned texts. Evaluation will be based on:
attendance and active participation to class discussions: 25%
paper: 50%
oral discussion of paper: 25% |
Course unit contents:
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Slavery and the Making of the Modern World: Contemporary Narratives of the Slave Past
Since the second half of the twentieth century American slavery has gained major prominence in historiography and sociocultural debates and has become a crucial theme in the literature, cinema and visual arts of the Black Diaspora in the Americas. Through the reading of novels selected from among the most interesting contemporary works of US and Caribbean literature, the course will focus on slavery as constitutive of Western modernity, both in its historical developments and present legacies. Basing on Linda Hutcheon's notion of "historiographic metafiction," we will primarily investigate how these work critique national master narratives of the past and historical methods at large. |
Planned learning activities and teaching methods:
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Classes will be delivered both as lectures and seminars. Students' participation in discussions and through brief oral presentation will be encouraged. Because of the multidisciplinary focus of the topics explored and its methodological approach, the course will often rely on films and other audio visual material and, whenever possible, will host guest lecturers. |
Additional notes about suggested reading:
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You will find all assigned readings in our library or on my Moodle page, where you will also find the detailed syllabus and schedule before the beginning of classes but copies of the novels, if in print, should be bought. Caryl Phillips's novel is required reaing only if you take the 9 CFU course.
Students not attending classes should contact me at least two months before their exam. |
Textbooks (and optional supplementary readings) |
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Williams, Sherley Anne, Dessa Rose (1986). New York: Quill, 1999.
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Morrison, Toni, Beloved (1987). London: Vintage, 2005.
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Marshall, Paule, Praisesong for the widow. New York: Dutton, 1984.
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Phillips, Caryl (solo per il programma da 9 cfu), Crossing the river (1993). London: Vintage, 2006.
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