AIMS AND CONTENT

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

AIMS

The courses offer students an overview of American culture in the Anglophone and global contexts, delving into the interrelations between language, literature, and society, and approaching texts from various periods and genres (poetry, fiction, memoir, criticism, politics, cinema, art). In this way, students gain a direct understanding of the specificity and complexity of contemporary Anglo-American culture.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

• Acquire knowledge about the key moments of 20th-century Anglo-American culture.
• Recognize and interpret cultural phenomena within the realms of the Italian and English languages, using theoretical, poetic, and narrative texts as tools for analysis.
• Contextualize and analyze texts of significant expressive complexity and historical importance, identifying their cultural and linguistic specificities.
• Place literary texts within the historical-cultural context of the society that produced them.
• Understand Anglo-American culture and society in its many facets, considering interdisciplinary perspectives.
• Develop critical thinking through the interpretation of literary texts and cultural phenomena, fostering independent and informed reflection.

PREREQUISITES

The course is taught in English; therefore, a good level of language proficiency (B2 or higher) is required to be able to read the proposed texts in the original language.

TEACHING METHODS

The course will be conducted in a traditional (in-person) format.
The 3 hours of weekly lessons are divided into two sessions of 2+1 hours. The lectures are held in English and alternate with seminar sessions of close textual reading and group work.
THE LESSONS ARE IN ENGLISH.
For students who decide to attend the lessons, attendance is MANDATORY for a total of 28 out of 36 hours, equivalent to 75% of the course. Attendance will be monitored with a signature at the beginning and end of each lesson.
It is, of course, possible to enroll in the course as a non-attending student. Specific critical support materials will be provided for students unable to attend.

Attendance at lessons is strongly recommended.

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

The course focuses on African American literature and culture that developed in the United States from the colonial era to the contemporary period.

In varying ways and each year with different perspectives, considering various authors, students will explore some of the fundamental themes of this tradition, such as slavery, African tradition, the Middle Passage, slave narratives, segregation, the relationship with white and European traditions, the civil rights movement, and more recent developments such as Black Lives Matter. From an African American perspective, reflections will also be offered on mainstream culture (white, European, Protestant) and minorities with diverse immigration experiences (Hispanic, Native, Asian, etc.).

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

Critical and support materials will be made available on Aulaweb.
All slides used during the lessons and other teaching materials will be available on Aulaweb. For attending students, the notes taken during lessons and the material on Aulaweb are generally sufficient for exam preparation.
For students unable to attend, specific critical support materials will be provided. The complete critical bibliography will be uploaded to Aulaweb at the end of the course (mid/end of May). The texts for analysis will instead be available on Aulaweb at the beginning of the course, as they are the same required for attending students.
The difference in the syllabus for attending and non-attending students lies solely in the different critical support materials provided to the two groups.

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

Exam Board

PAOLA ANNA NARDI (President)

LESSONS

LESSONS START

second semester 2025-26 (probably the beginning of October)

Class schedule

The timetable for this course is available here: Portale EasyAcademy

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

For attending students:
The exam, lasting two hours, is written and consists of three open-ended questions (with answers of at least 15 lines) on the historical-cultural context, the history of literature, as well as on the authors, texts, and critical materials studied in detail. Texts already analyzed in the presentations and the essay will not be part of the exam.

The evaluation will be based on participation in the activities proposed in class, including the presentation (25%), the writing of an essay/guided report (25%), and the written exam (50%), which will last two hours.

For non-attending students:
The exam, lasting three hours, is written and consists of five open-ended questions (with answers of at least 15 lines) on the historical-cultural context, the history of literature, as well as on the authors, texts, and critical materials studied in detail, and includes a short essay/guided report. Students will be allowed to consult both the texts and the critical support materials while drafting their short essay.

The evaluation will be based on the written exam, and the final grade will be the average between the answers to the open-ended questions (75%) and the writing of the essay/guided report (25%).

The exam is conducted in English.

ASSESSMENT METHODS

The final exam includes open-ended questions covering all aspects of the syllabus (the historical period, cultural contexts, the development of literary history, and major authors) aimed at assessing knowledge and comprehension. There will also be a guided essay for non-attending students (see exam description).

Additionally, the exam requires commentary on excerpts from the works studied. This type of exercise is designed to test the student’s ability to recognize the main formal features of individual texts and relate them to various historical-cultural contexts, as well as to use insights provided by the proposed critical materials.

FURTHER INFORMATION

Attendance is highly recommended. Students who are unable to attend will have to study some supplementary or different material. Course enrolment via aulaweb is mandatory. Examination enrolment is through the unige website.

This syllabus is valid till February 2027.

Erasmus students are welcome!

If you're a student with a learning difficulty, health problem or disability please contact the professor disabili@unige.it and and Professor Dickinson (sara.dickinson@unige.it)

You should also inform the professor with a mail to paola.nardi@unige.it well in advance of the exam.