ANGLO-AMERICAN LITERATURE

According to the Dublin descriptors, students, at the end of the course, will demonstrate:

1)      Knowledge and understanding

Students must be able to identify the specific aspects of Anglo-American literature, with reference to its themes, genres, styles, regional and ethnic origin, and authors from the 19^th century to the contemporary age.

2)  Applying knowledge and understanding

Students must be able to analyze literary texts in critical perspective, identifying the thematic, formal and structural aspects of the primary works with reference to the literary and cultural history of the United States.

3)   Making judgements

Students must be able to contextualize and argue on the examined literary texts and phenomena by making comparisons and tracing links between works and authors in the complex literary landscape of the United States (and not only).

4)      Communication skills

Students must be able to present their arguments using the essential tools of literary and textual criticism and to contextualize the selected texts from a historical, social and cultural perspective as well as from a literary point of view.

5)      Learning skills

Students must be able to apply the knowledge and skills acquired at the end of the course to study other literary texts (different from those examined in the course) and to make comparisons with the products of other national literatures.

Traditional front lessons (in the Italian language) will be matched by class debate on topical issues to foster the direct involvement of the students. To further encourage their active participation and help them study for the oral exam, attending students will be required to read primary texts (from the anthological selection) before the lessons. The selected texts will be available on Studium.

Primary Works

a)     The following anthology of texts (mainly composed of short stories and poems) made available on Studium in the original language and in the Italian version:

-      W. Irving, “Rip van Winkle” (1819)

-      J.F. Cooper, The Last of the Mohicans/L’ultimo dei Moicani (1826), cap. XXXIII

-      N. Hawthorne, “Young Goodman Brown/Il Giovane Goodman Brown” (1835)

-      E.A. Poe, “The Tell-Tale Heart/Il cuore rivelatore” (1843)

-      F. Douglass, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave/Memorie di uno schiavo fuggiasco (1845), cap. X.

-      E. Dickinson, J249, J288, J324, J712, J754, J1129

-      W. Whitman, da Leaves of Grass/Foglie d’Erba (1855-1882; parti scelte)

-      M. Twain, “The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County/Il famoso ranocchio saltatore della Contea di Calaveras” (1865)

-      K. Chopin, “The Story of an Hour/Storia di un’ora” (1894)

-      T.S. Eliot, “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” (1915)

-      W.C. Williams, “The Red Wheelbarrow/La carriola rossa” (1923); “This Is Just to Say/Questo è solo per dire”

-      E. Hemingway, “Big Two-Hearted River/Grande fiume dai due cuori” (1925)

-      L. Hughes, “I, Too/Anch’io” (1926); “The Weary Blues/Blues di stanchezza” (1926); “Harlem” (1951)

-      A. Ginsberg, “A Supermarket in California/Un Supermercato in California” (1956)

-      A. Sexton, “Her Kind/Una come lei” (1960), e S. Plath, “Tulips/Tulipani” (1961)

-      L.M. Silko, “Lullaby/Ninna Nanna” (1974)

b) One of the following classics (full reading):

A. Yezierska, Cuori affamati (Hungry Hearts, 1920) – F.S. Fitzgerald, Il Grande Gatsby (The Great Gatsby, 1925) – A. Miller, Morte di un commesso viaggiatore (Death of a Salesman, 1949) – R. Ellison, L’uomo invisibile (Invisible Man, 1953) – S. Cisneros, La casa di Mango Street (The House on Mango Street, 1983).

Secondary works

a)    Literary history of the United Sates:

-      G. Fink et al., Storia della letteratura americana: dai canti dei pellerossa a Philip Roth, Milano, Rizzoli, 2013 (main writers and literary movements starting from the 19th century)

Students can also rely on the following reference websites:

-      D. Campbell, Brief Timeline of American Literature and Events: Pre-1620 to 1920: http://public.wsu.edu/~campbelld/amlit/

-      P. Reuben, Pal: Perspectives in American Literature, https://www.paulreuben.website/

b)     Further readings (mandatory):

-       C. Erdheim, “Why Speak of American Stories as Dreams?”, in K. Newlin (ed.), Critical Insights: The American Dream, Ipswich, Mass.: Salem Press, 2013, pp. 52-67.

-       D. Mogen, “The Frontier Archetype and the Myth of America: Patterns That Shape the American Dream”, in D. Mongen, M. Busby, P. Bryant (eds.), The Frontier Experience and the American Dream. Essays on American Literature, Texas A & M University Press, 1989, pp. 15-30.

c)     Supplementary reading (optional):

On the literary text, students can consult L. Chines, C. Varotti, Che cos’è un testo letterario, Roma, Carocci, 2015 (2^a ed.)

Critical material on the chosen classic (length of an essay) and any other didactic resource (such as lesson handouts and power point presentations) will be suggested and made available on Studium 

Please remember that in compliance with art 171 L22.04.1941, n. 633 and its amendments, it is illegal to copy entire books or journals, only 15% of their content can be copied.

For further information on sanctions and regulations concerning photocopying please refer to the regulations on copyright (Linee Guida sulla Gestione dei Diritti d’Autore) provided by AIDRO - Associazione Italiana per i Diritti di Riproduzione delle opere dell’ingegno (the Italian Association on Copyright).

All the books listed in the programs can be consulted in the Library.