Duration
30h Th
Number of credits
Lecturer
Language(s) of instruction
Italian language
Organisation and examination
Teaching in the first semester, review in January
Schedule
Units courses prerequisite and corequisite
Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program
Learning unit contents
The course aims to trace the external history of the Italian language, following the dynamics of Italianisation in written and oral communicative uses (literature, politics, bureaucracy, media).
Here are the main stages in this journey:
- The seventeenth century and the Accademia della Crusca, the scientific language of Galileo, melodrama.
- The eighteenth century, lexicography and linguistic renewal.
- Reflections on language in the early nineteenth century (purism, classicism and romanticism).
- Manzoni and national linguistic unification.
- Italian after unification.
- Italian in the twentieth century: the language policy of Fascism, the role of the mass media, the new language issue.
- The Italian of the 2000s.
Particular attention will be paid to Italian in opera and film.
Learning outcomes of the learning unit
At the end of the course, students will have acquired knowledge of the history of the Italian language as a history of communicative uses in relation to linguistic, socio-political and literary history. They will be able to structure a linguistic reflection on the changes in the Italian language from the 17th century to the present day and will have developed the skills necessary for the comprehension and linguistic reading of texts.
Prerequisite knowledge and skills
Good knowledge of Italian (B2 level)
Planned learning activities and teaching methods
Reading, analysis and commentary aimed at global and detailed comprehension of texts in Italian. Interactive method.
Participation in the course will be required and requested.
Mode of delivery (face to face, distance learning, hybrid learning)
Face-to-face course
Course materials and recommended or required readings
Platform(s) used for course materials:
- eCampus
Further information:
Required readings
G. Frosini (a cura di), Storia dell'italiano. La lingua, i testi, Roma, Salerno, 2020 (Il Seicento, Il Settecento, L'Ottocento, Il Novecento e I primi anni Duemila)
S. Jossa, La più bella del mondo. Perché amare la lingua italiana, Torino, Einaudi, 2018 (a selection of chapters)
Platform(s) used for course materials: eCampus
Oral examination.
Work placement(s)
Organisational remarks and main changes to the course
Cultural activities (screenings, shows, conferences, visits, etc.) will be organised. These are an integral part of the course programme and may be assessed. Organisational details will be communicated to students in due course.
Contacts
Thea Rimini
Office A2 6/18
E-mail :
thea.rimini@uliege.be