Undergraduate - UnitATS2898 - The Italian city: historical and literary perspectives

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Synopsis

The Italian city, a microcosm of Italian society, reveals the rich layers of Italian culture and history. This unit explores Italian cityscapes through their monuments and art works and their representation in literature and film. It offers a journey through the social spaces of the modern city to the virtual zones of the postmodern city. By visiting the city through literature and film students will be exposed to a diversity of texts, written and visual, that grapple with the complexity of urban spaces and with challenges posed to Italian cities by increased migration. In addition to considering textual representations of urban spaces, a particular focus of the unit will be the urban biography of Prato, from the Middle Ages to the present day. This will include examining how Prato's remarkable economic history has contributed to its distinctive civic identity, and how the culture of the city is reflected in contemporary writings.

Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this unit, students should:

1. Have a greater understanding of Italy, the Italian city (Prato) and Italian culture;
2. Have consolidated both oral and written language through linguistic and cultural immersion;
3. Have gained knowledge of the city's long history and its contemporary cultural and urban landscape;
4. Have acquired an understanding of how Italian Archives work and be able to further develop research skills;
5. Have acquired an understanding theoretical issues surrounding the conception of city.

Assessment

Research proposal (500 words): 10%
Critical literature review (1500 words): 30%
Project presentation (equivalent 500 words): 10%
Research project (2500 words): 50%

Contact hours

The unit will be taught in intensive mode at Prato, Italy.

This unit applies to the following area(s) of study

History
Italian studies
European studies
Literary studies (International literatures)

Prerequisites

Completion of a first-year sequence or equivalent knowledge of the language