OVERVIEW

The course is held in the second semester and is divided into two fractions. Fraction A (Frazionamento A) is intended for beginner students in  Spanish language (taught in Italian), and Fraction B (Frazionamento B) is intended for intermediate or advanced students (taught in Spanish).

The course provides a literary, cultural, social, and historical overview of Spain from the Middle Ages to the seventeenth century, aiming to equip students with the tools to understand and appreciate the main authors and works of the period, with particular attention to the Siglo de Oro.

AIMS AND CONTENT

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

By attending the course and through individual study, the students will learn about the evolution of the history of Spanish literature from its origins to the seventeenth century, the literary periods, and the historical-political and cultural context in which they developed. They will be able to relate the great European cultural currents with the works and authors studied, also establishing links between them.

The students will be able to read, paraphrase and translate the literary texts proposed in Spanish and contextualize a literary work. They will also be able to comment and analyze a literary text identifying literary stylistic features, topoi and figures of speech.

TEACHING METHODS

36 hours of lectures with the help of multimedia material.

Before each lesson, the literary texts that will be commented in class will be charged on Aulaweb, so that students can have them with them in class. In Aulaweb the teacher will also upload support material, various types of in-depth analyzes and suggestions for autonomous study of a specific theme.

The teacher will also use Aulaweb to communicate with students, who are therefore invited to register on the course page on this platform.

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

First Part: The Middle Ages

The concept of the Middle Ages; the centers of culture in medieval Spain; Arab, Jewish and Christian Spain;

The first literary manifestation in a Romance language: the Jarchas

The Spanish epic and the Poema de Mio Cid

Mester de juglaría and mester de clerecía

The Romancero and the Cancionero

Medieval prose and don Juan Manuel

Medieval poetry: Gonzalo de Berceo, El Arcipreste de Hita, Jorge Manrique

La Celestina and the dawn of the Renaissance.

Second part: "Siglo de Oro" (Renaissance and Baroque):

Poetry (Garcilaso de la Vega, san Juan de la Cruz, fray Luis de León, santa Teresa de Jesús, Luis de Góngora, Francisco de Quevedo, Lope de Vega);

Prose (Picaresca, Miguel de Cervantes);

Theater (Lope de Vega, Tirso de Molina, Calderón de la Barca).

During the lessons, we will focus our attention on the birth and development of the various literary currents, placing them in the historical-political, economic, artistic framework of Western culture in which they come to life. However, students' attention will be particularly drawn to the literary text. A selection of proposed texts, made available through aulaweb, will be read, commented and analyzed.

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

For attending students:

1. Notes of the lessons
2. Literary texts inserted in Aulaweb
3. Diccionario de tópicos literarios (available in Aulaweb).
4. Cesare Segre, “Costruzioni rettilinee e costruzioni a spirale nel Don Chisciotte”, in Le strutture e il tempo, Torino, Einaudi, 1974, pp. 183-219. (available Aulaweb)
5. Felipe B. Pedraza – Milagros Rodríguez, “La ‘comedia’: caracteres, evolución, entorno”, in Manual de literatura española IV. Barroco: teatro (available Aulaweb).

Students who are NOT attending the course of Modern Languages and Cultures can request an alternative text, in Italian, to replace the text in point 5.

For non attending students:

1. Carlos Alvar, José Carlos Mainer, Rosa Navarro, Storia della letteratura spagnola. Vol. 1. Il Medioevo e l’età d’oro, Torino, Einaudi, 2000.
2. Cesare Segre, “Costruzioni rettilinee e costruzioni a spirale nel Don Chisciotte”, in Le strutture e il tempo, Torino, Einaudi, 1974, pp. 183-219. (available in aulaweb).
3. Felipe B. Pedraza – Milagros Rodríguez, “La ‘comedia’: caracteres, evolución, entorno”, in Manual de literatura española IV. Barroco: teatro (available in aulaweb).
4. Two books (in critical edition with notes and introduction) to choose from:

- F. de Rojas, La Celestina.

- Anonimo, Lazarillo de Tormes.

- Miguel de Cervantes, don Quijote de la Mancha.

- Miguel de Cervantes, Novelas ejemplares.

- Lope de Vega, Fuenteovejuna.

- Lope de Vega, Peribáñez y el comendador de Ocaña.

- Pedro Calderón de la Barca, La vida es sueño.

Students who are NOT attending the course of Modern Languages and Cultures can request an alternative text, in Italian, to replace the text in point 3.

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

LESSONS

LESSONS START

The lessons will take place starting from Monday, February 17, 2025, according to the following schedule:

• Monday, 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM, Room IV (Balbi 5)
• Tuesday, 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM, Room C (Polo Didattico delle Fontane)

Students are kindly requested to register on the corresponding page of Aulaweb, where they will find further information and any notices related to the course.

Class schedule

The timetable for this course is available here: Portale EasyAcademy

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

The exam consists of an interview in Italian (Fraction A) or Spanish (Fraction B) on the topics covered by the course.

ASSESSMENT METHODS

The student must demonstrate knowledge of the bibliography and course notes (for attending students), and of being able to read, translate, comment and contextualize a proposed literary text. Students will need to demonstrate that they:

- Know the themes and stylistic evolution of Spanish literature from its origins to the seventeenth century;

- Know how to comment and analyze literary texts and contextualize them;

- Understand the original texts, primary and secondary literature on the proposed themes.

FURTHER INFORMATION

Students who have valid certification of physical or learning disabilities on file with the University and who wish to discuss possible accommodations or other circumstances regarding lectures, coursework and exams, should speak both with the instructor and with prof. Sara Dickinson (sara.dickinson@unige.it), the Department's disability liaison. Further information available at https://unige.it/disabilita-dsa.