OVERVIEW

The course offers an overview of Spain’s literary, cultural, social and historical landscape, from the emergence of the avant-garde movements through to the early post-war years, with the aim of equipping students with the tools to understand and appreciate the leading authors and works of this vibrant and tragic period in history.

AIMS AND CONTENT

LEARNING OUTCOMES

The course aims to illustrate key moments of Spanish culture and literature during the first three decades of the twentieth century.

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

Through attendance at the course and independent study, students will gain an understanding of the development of Spanish literary history from the early decades of the 20th century up to the decade following the Civil War (not ‘from its origins to the 20th century’, as erroneously stated in the ‘learning outcomes’) and the relevant historical, political and cultural context. They will be able to relate the major European cultural movements to the works and authors studied, establishing appropriate connections.

Students will be able to read, paraphrase and translate the literary texts provided in Spanish and contextualise a literary work. They will also be able to comment on and analyse a literary text from the period under study, identifying literary stylistic features, topoi and rhetorical devices.

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PREREQUISITES

Speak and understand Spanish.

TEACHING METHODS

During the first 36 hours of teaching (first semester, 6 CFU), the topics comprising the course syllabus will be covered. The remaining 18 hours (second semester), intended for students who need to earn 9 CFU for the module, will focus on an in-depth examination of certain topics – taking into account any requests or suggestions from the students themselves – covered during the first part of the course.

Where possible, the texts to be discussed will be made available on AulaWeb before each lecture, so that students can have them with them in class. Furthermore, for each topic covered, supporting materials, various in-depth resources and suggestions for those wishing to explore a specific topic or author further on their own will be uploaded to AulaWeb.

The lecturer will also use AulaWeb to communicate with students, who are therefore invited to enrol on the course.

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

“The Spanish Avant-Garde”:

Poetry (Vicente Huidobro, Ultraism, calligrams and Surrealism in Spain).

Prose (Ramón Gómez de la Serna and the Greguería, José López Rubio and José Díaz Fernández, avant-garde prose and micro-stories).

Aesthetics (Ramón Gómez de la Serna, José Díaz Fernández and José Ortega y Gasset, the ‘Isms’ and literary manifestos).

“From militant poetry to intimate poetry”:

From Miguel Hernández and Lucía Sánchez Saornil to Dámaso Alonso and Blas de Otero.

During the lectures, due emphasis will be placed on studying the emergence and development of the various literary movements, situating them within the historical, political, economic and artistic context of Western culture in which they arose. Students’ attention will, however, be drawn in particular to the literary text itself. A selection of the proposed texts will be read, discussed and analysed; these will be made available, where possible, via Aulaweb.

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

6 and 9 CFU course (For the 9 CFU course, further texts and lecture notes will be uploaded to AulaWeb in the second semester)

For attending students:

1. Lecture notes.

2. Texts:

- Gómez de la Serna, Ramón, Greguerías and Micro-stories – These texts will be selected by the lecturer and uploaded to AulaWeb during the course.

- Huidobro, Vicente, Poemas Árticos (1918. Poems selected by the lecturer) and Altazor (1931. Preface, Cantos I, III, IV and V) – These texts will be uploaded to AulaWeb during the course.

- López Rubio, José, Roque Six (1928), any edition.

- José Díaz Fernández, La Venus mecánica (1929). Recommended edition: Stockcero, 2009, edited by C. de Vicente Hernando.

- José Díaz Fernández, El nuevo romanticismo (1930) – Chapters selected by the lecturer and uploaded to AulaWeb.

3. A further extensive selection of texts and articles will be provided by the lecturer and uploaded to AulaWeb.

For non-attending students:

1. Texts:

- Gómez de la Serna, Ramón, Greguerías and Micro-stories – These texts will be selected by the lecturer and uploaded to AulaWeb during the course.

- Huidobro, Vicente, Poemas Árticos (1918. Poems selected by the lecturer) and Altazor (1931. Preface, Cantos I, III, IV and V) – These texts will be uploaded to AulaWeb during the course.

- López Rubio, José, Roque Six (1928), any edition.

- José Díaz Fernández, La Venus mecánica (1929). Recommended edition: Stockcero, 2009, edited by C. de Vicente Hernando.

- José Díaz Fernández, El nuevo romanticismo (1930) – Chapters selected by the lecturer and uploaded to AulaWeb.

2. A further extensive selection of texts and articles will be provided by the lecturer and uploaded to AulaWeb.

3. Manual: Morelli, Gabriele, Le avanguardie spagnole. Letteratura, arti visive, cinema, musica. Roma, Carocci editore, 2024.

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

Exam Board

ANDREA BAGLIONE (President)

MARCO SUCCIO

LESSONS

LESSONS START

Start: Tuesday, 29 september 2026.

Schedule:

Tuesday, 13:00-14:00, classroom IV, via Balbi 5.

Friday, 8:00-10:00, classroom IV, via Balbi 5.

Class schedule

SPANISH LITERATURE AND CULTURE III

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

The exam consists of an interview in Italian or Spanish (30 minutes) on the topics covered by the course.

ASSESSMENT METHODS

Students must demonstrate that they are familiar with the prescribed reading list (including the material uploaded to AulaWeb) and the course notes (for those attending lectures), and that they are able to read, translate, comment on and contextualise a given literary text.

- Be familiar with the themes and stylistic evolution of Spanish literature from the avant-garde movements up to the decade following the Civil War.

- Be able to contextualise, comment on and analyse the literary texts set.

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FURTHER INFORMATION

Students with SLD, disability or other special educational needs certification are advised to contact the teacher at the beginning of the course to agree on teaching and exam methods that, in compliance with the teaching objectives, take into account the learning methods individual and provide suitable compensatory tools.