OVERVIEW

The course aims to provide students with an understanding of key themes and methods of cultural history.

AIMS AND CONTENT

LEARNING OUTCOMES

The course aims to provide students with the tools to orientate themselves with respect to themes and methods of cultural history, in its various and diverse articulations. The goal is to become familiar with the specific lexicon of this type of scholarship; to acquire a basic understanding of the major currents of international historiography; to develop - through appropriate exercises (seminars and written reports) - techniques of analysis and critical interpretation of primary sources using this method of investigation. In particular, the applications of that method for the analysis of the key turning points and transformations characterizing the contemporary age will be object of scrutiny.

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

At the end of the course the student will be able to: 1. engage in a critical reading of the sources (knowledge and skills of applied comprehension) 2. effectively articulate an argument with the use of a specific vocabulary and an appropriate use of the bibliography (written and oral communication skills). 3. demonstrate in-depth knowledge of the scientific debate on the specific topic to which the course is dedicated (knowledge, understanding, autonomy of judgment).

PREREQUISITES

An understanding of the essential features of historical method is required. The ability to orientate with respect to the main conceptual issues and chronological phases of the contemporary age is also required.

TEACHING METHODS

Lessons will take place in person.

For those who expressly request it at the beginning of the course it will be possible to follow the lessons remotely (in streaming or listening to the recordings of the lessons via the Teams platform). In this case, students will be considered for all intents and purposes not attending and the program to prepare will be the one for non-attending students.

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

The program is divided into two sections.

The first part of the program (section A) aims to familiarize students with a classic text, that is, with the reflections of Maurice Halbwachs, one of the fathers of modern studies on memory. In the lessons dedicated to this part, the figure of Halbwachs will be historically framed and the impact that his studies had on subsequent scholarship will be analyzed. 

The second part of the program (section B) is instead dedicated to the analysis of the specific dynamics related to the memory of the Holocaust, to the relationship between the historian and the witness, to the tensions existing between history and memory, and to the public uses of that past. 

STUDENTS WHO ATTEND THE LECTURES MAY DECIDE IF THEY WISH TO TAKE AN ORAL EXAM OR TO PRESENT A WRITTEN REPORT. IF THEY OPT FOR THE ORAL EXAM THEY WILL BE REQUIRED TO PREPARE 1 TEXT FROM SECTION A AND 1 TEXTS FROM SECTION B. IF THEY DECIDE TO PRESENT A WRITTEN REPORT THEY WILL HAVE TO DEFINE THE TOPIC AND THE BIBLIOGRAPHY WITH THE INSTRUCTOR.

STUDENTS WHO DO NOT ATTEND THE LECTURES WILL TAKE THE EXAM ORALLY, THEY ARE REQUIRED TO STUDY 1 TEXT FROM SECTION A AND 1 FROM SECTION B AS WELL AS TO TO INTEGRATE THEIR PREPARATION WITH THE FOLLOWING TEXT:

F. Mazzini, C. Sorba, La svolta culturale. Come è cambiata la pratica storiografica, Laterza, Roma-Bari, 2021.

A. - Halbwachs' contribution to memory studies (choose one book from the following list)

Students may study these books in their original language or in an English translation.

1. M. Halbwachs, I quadri sociali della memoria, Ipermedium, Napoli, 1997 [ed. or. 1925].

2. Id., La memoria collettiva, Unicopli, Milano, 2007 [ed. or. 1949].

B. - Holocaust Memory (choose two books from the following list)

Students may study these books in their original language or in an English translation (where available).

1. S. D. Kassow, Chi scriverà la nostra storia? L'archivio ritrovato del ghetto di Varsavia, Mondadori, Milano, 2009.

2. A. Wieviorka, L'era del testimone, Cortina, Milano, 1999.

3. S. Gensburger, S. Lefranc, Beyond Memory? Can We Really Learn from the Past?, Palgrave MacMillan, Cham, 2020.

4. R. Gordon, Scolpitelo nei cuori. L'Olocausto nella cultura italiana (1944-2010), Bollati-Boringhieri, Torino, 2013.

5. A. Minuz, La Shoah e la cultura visuale. Cinema, memoria, spazio pubblico, Bulzoni, Roma, 2010.

6. G. Didi-Huberman, Immagini malgrado tutto, Cortina, Milano, 2005.

7. Frédéric Rousseau, Il bambino di Varsavia. Storia di una fotografia, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2011.

8. L. David, The Past Can't Heal Us. The Dangers of Mandating Memory in the Name of Human Rights, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2020.

9. M. Rothberg, Multidirectional Memory. Remembering the Holocaust in the Age of Decolonization, Stanford University Press, Stanford, 2009.

10. F. Bertolini,Gli inganni della memoria. Testimonianza, falsificazioni, negazioni, Mimesi, Milano, 2016.

11. T. Kushner, The Holocaust and the Liberal Imagination. A Social and Cultural Histoy, Blackwell, Oxford, 1994. 

12. M. Hirsh, The Generation of Postmemory. Writing and Visual Culture after the Holocaust, Columbia University Press, NY, 2012.

13. J. E. Young, The Texture of Memory. Holocaust Memorials and Meaning,Yale University Press, New Haven, 1994.

14. F. Azouvi, Le mythe du grand silence: Auschwitz, les Français, la mémoire, Paris, Fayard, 2012.

15. J. Shandler, Holocaust Memory and the DIgital Age: Survivor's Stories and New Media Practices, Stanford University Press, Stanford, 2017.

16. P. Novick, The Holocaust in American Life, Houghton Mifflin, NY, 1999.

17. F. Focardi, Nel cantiere della memoria. Fascismo, Resistenza, Shoah, Foibe, Viella, Roma, 2020.

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

The program is divided into two sections.

The first part of the program (section A) aims to familiarize students with the reflections of Maurice Halbwachs, one of the fathers of modern studies on memory. In the lessons dedicated to this part, the figure of Halbwachs will be historically framed and the impact that his studies had on subsequent scholarship will be analyzed. 

The second part of the program (section B) is instead dedicated to the analysis of the specific dynamics related to the memory of the Holocaust, to the relationship between the historian and the witness, to the tensions existing between history and memory, and to the public uses of that past. 

STUDENTS WHO WILL ATTEND THE LECTURES ARE ASKED TO PREPARE FOR THE EXAM BUY STUDYING 1 TEXT FROM SECTION A AND 2 TEXTS FROM SECTION B.

IN ADDITION, STUDENTS WHO DO NOT ATTEND THE LECTURES ARE REQUIRED TO INTEGRATE THEIR PREPARATION WITH THE FOLLOWING TEXT:

1. F. Mazzini, C. Sorba, La svolta culturale. Come è cambiata la pratica storiografica, Laterza, Roma-Bari, 2021.

A. - Halbwachs' contribution to memory studies (choose one book from the following list)
 

Students are welcome to study these books in their original language or in an English translation.

1. M. Halbwachs, I quadri sociali della memoria, Ipermedium, Napoli, 1997 [ed. or. 1925].

2. Id., La memoria collettiva, Unicopli, Milano, 2007 [ed. or. 1949].

B. - Holocaust Memory (choose two books from the following list)

Students are welcome to study these books in their original language or in an English translation (where available).

1. S. D. Kassow, Chi scriverà la nostra storia? L'archivio ritrovato del ghetto di Varsavia, Mondadori, Milano, 2009.

2. A. Wieviorka, L'era del testimone, Cortina, Milano, 1999.

3. S. Gensburger, S. Lefranc, Beyond Memory? Can We Really Learn from the Past?, Palgrave MacMillan, Cham, 2020.

4. R. Gordon, Scolpitelo nei cuori. L'Olocausto nella cultura italiana (1944-2010), Bollati-Boringhieri, Torino, 2013.

5. A. Minuz, La Shoah e la cultura visuale. Cinema, memoria, spazio pubblico, Bulzoni, Roma, 2010.

6. G. Didi-Huberman, Immagini malgrado tutto, Cortina, Milano, 2005.

7. Frédéric Rousseau, Il bambino di Varsavia. Storia di una fotografia, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2011.

8. L. David, The Past Can't Heal Us. The Dangers of Mandating Memory in the Name of Human Rights, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2020.

9. M. Rothberg, Multidirectional Memory. Remembering the Holocaust in the Age of Decolonization, Stanford University Press, Stanford, 2009.

10. F. Bertolini,Gli inganni della memoria. Testimonianza, falsificazioni, negazioni, Mimesi, Milano, 2016.

11. T. Kushner, The Holocaust and the Liberal Imagination. A Social and Cultural Histoy, Blackwell, Oxford, 1994. 

12. M. Hirsh, The Generation of Postmemory. Writing and Visual Culture after the Holocaust, Columbia University Press, NY, 2012.

13. J. E. Young, The Texture of Memory. Holocaust Memorials and Meaning,Yale University Press, New Haven, 1994.

14. F. Azouvi, Le mythe du grand silence: Auschwitz, les Français, la mémoire, Paris, Fayard, 2012.

15. J. Shandler, Holocaust Memory and the DIgital Age: Survivor's Stories and New Media Practices, Stanford University Press, Stanford, 2017.

16. P. Novick, The Holocaust in American Life, Houghton Mifflin, NY, 1999.

17. F. Focardi, Nel cantiere della memoria. Fascismo, Resistenza, Shoah, Foibe, Viella, Roma, 2020.

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

Exam Board

GURI SCHWARZ (President)

ENRICA ASQUER

NICOLA BASSONI (Substitute)

MATTEO CAPONI (Substitute)

MARCO NATALIZI (Substitute)

LESSONS

LESSONS START

February 2023

Class schedule

CULTURAL HISTORY (LM)

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

Students regularly attending the lectures  are encouraged to substitute the oral exam with the presentation of a written report (between 14,000 and 20,000 marks, spaces and footnotes included), on a topic agreed upon with the instructor.

Students not attending the lectures will have to take an oral exam, based on the assigned program indicated above.

ASSESSMENT METHODS

The written report (for attending students) or the oral examination (for non-attending students) allow the exam committe to evaluate the skills acquired. In particular, the skills matured both with respect to the horizon of cultural history in general, and with respect to the specific monographic theme of the course in particular, will be considered.

The examination committee verifies the achievement of the training objectives, taking into account the following factors: a) level of mastery of the fundamental notions; b) ability to apply knowledge (source analysis); c) ability of critical reasoning on the study carried out; d) ability to organize knowledge discursively, using the specific lexicon of the discipline.

Exam schedule

FURTHER INFORMATION

Regular attendance of the lectures is strongly reccomended.

Erasmus students may discuss changes to the program with the instructor.

Erasmus students may take the exam in English.