OVERVIEW

Meaning and Expression: How We Say What We Say

The course aims to analyse the relationship between meaning and expression, starting from the semantic, pragmatic, textual and syntactic levels and seeking to identify the relationships between them. The approach will be empirical and inductive: the observation of linguistic phenomena through the reading of texts in different languages will form the starting point for reflections that will be compiled into a course handbook, supplemented by critical readings indicated during the course. The course will also take the form of a seminar and will encourage students’ active participation in the analysis of texts. The aim is to make participants more aware as readers and writers, capable of understanding and utilising the syntactic architecture of language to refine their expressive abilities. At the start of the course, the basic concepts of syntax, information structure and text linguistics necessary for analysing the texts will be reviewed.

AIMS AND CONTENT

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Through in-depth study of the topic proposed for the semester, the course aims to: (1) consolidate the ability to independently apply and reflect on theories, methods and tools of linguistics; (2) acquire a structural, historical-comparative and critical approach to linguistic data; (3) develop linguistic awareness, both in production and perception, including in everyday practice.

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

The course aims to provide students with a more organic understanding of language, both as an articulated structure, as a system of signs and as a cultural product.

By the end of the course, students will be able to:

• recognise the relationship between information structure and syntax;
• distinguish syntax as an autonomous formal level, recognising its general features and linguistic specificities from a theoretical perspective;
• identify logical and linguistic flaws in an argument;
• structure an argumentative text.

PREREQUISITES

No specific prerequisites. Those who did not take a linguistics exam at BA level can catch up on the basics by using a reference manual.

TEACHING METHODS

Lectures.

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

Part One: Fundamentals of information structure, syntax and text linguistics. Part Two: Reading and analysing argumentative (and non-argumentative) texts. Part Three (except for students taking the 6-cfu exam): Interlinguistic comparison (through the analysis of translations) and the identification of syntactic features specific to different languages. Part Four: Theoretical reflection.

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

The course is based on the lecture notes that will be compiled by the lecturer during the semester, which will also include the texts analysed. A series of supplementary readings will be suggested during the course.

Students sitting the 6-credit exam will not be required to prepare the section of the lecture notes and texts relating to interlinguistic comparison.

Students sitting the 12-credit exam will also add:

• Platone, Protagora, ed. Bompiani (G. Reale., ed.)

Non-attending students may download the lecture notes and reading materials from AulaWeb, preparing for the exam using the same materials as attending students, or alternatively follow the programme below:

• Platone, Protagora.
• Lombardi Vallauri, Edoardo, 2001, “La teoria come separatrice di fatti di livello diverso: l’esempio della struttura informativa dell’enunciato”, in F. Albano Leoni et al. (a cura di), Dati empirici e teorie linguistiche. Atti del del XXXIII Congresso della SLI, Roma, Bulzoni: 151-173 (verrà caricato su AulaWeb).
• Prandi, Michele, 2023, Retorica. Una disciplina da rifondare, Bologna, il Mulino
• Ferrari, Angela, 32022, Che cos’è un testo, Roma, Carocci

Non-attending students sitting the 6-credit exam who choose the readings listed above will not need to study Angela Ferrari’s text

For those aiming to take the exam in English, German or French and lacking sufficient passive comprehension of written Italian, the teacher will provide a list of texts

• De Beaugrande, R., Dressler, W.U., 1981, Introduction to text linguistics, London, Longman.
• Lambrecht, K., 1994, Information structure and sentence form, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.

This list applies to both attending and non-attending students. Alternatively, both groups can create a customised programme based on the reading list during the course.

Non-attending students are requested to contact the lecturer (who is also available for online group receptions — see reception) at least two months before the scheduled examination date.

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

LESSONS

LESSONS START

During the week of September, 28th 2026. according to the schedule.

Class schedule

The timetable for this course is available here: Portale EasyAcademy

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

The exam consists of an oral test.

Erasmus students not proficient in Italian can rely on the substitutive bibliography and take the examination in English, French or German.

ASSESSMENT METHODS

The examination will assess students’ ability to reflect critically on the text and its syntactic structure, with particular regard to the relationship with the structure of information and (for students sitting the 9- or 12-credit exam) to the various formal strategies employed by languages to manage the relationship between information and syntax. Students will be free to choose their own passages on which to base their analysis.

FURTHER INFORMATION

Students with disabilities or specific learning difficulties (SLD) can find guidance on how to apply for services, compensatory tools or special arrangements, and specific aids in the document available at the following link: https://unige.it/disabilita-dsa/modulistica