Comparative Literature

This course introduces the students to the universe of graphic novels in the Global Iberian World. The focus is on the transnational understanding of the main themes, styles and influences emerging from different disciplinary and national traditions, as well across media. It provides conceptual and analytical tools for students to systematise their experience as critical readers of graphic novels, moving beyond the Western fictional universe to the expanding field of Portuguese speaking Africa and Latin America.

The course is part of the Laurea Magistrale program and is intended for advanced level students. The course is taught in Italian. Enrolment is by consent of the instructor. The course has two separate modules on two different topics, PART A and PART B. Students who complete a research paper on a pre-approved topic are awarded 1 extra unit for the course. Maximum units for the course are 8, 4 for each part. The course focuses on diachronic aspects of the Italian literary tradition, the critical discussion regarding key issues about texts and authors, and the use of the principal tools of methodological analysis of texts and contexts. The topic for spring 2022 is on types of identity and women writings. Through a conceptual and thematic point of view, the course focuses on female identity in literature. PART A: The first module is dedicated to the writings of Elena Ferrante, Goliarda Sapienza, and Maria Rosa Cutrufelli. PART B: The second module is devoted to Sibilla Aleramo and Anna Banti. The course includes traditional lectures and seminars on specific texts as well as the use of audio and visual materials.

The fear of conspiracy functions as a recurring motif in many American cultural forms including novels, film, television, certain genres of music like hip-hop and rap, graphic novels, and social media. After considering early articulations of conspiracism in the US, this course focuses on 20th and 21st Century mediations and figurations of conspiracy fears and theories. The course considers conspiracism through key events that have unsettled epistemic certainty and fuelled hermeneutic activity, including the assassination of JFK, 9/11, the election of Barack Obama, and the Covid-19 pandemic.

This course provides a study of Korean classical literature for cultural contents on the basis of storytelling for movies, exhibitions, and performance arts. It examines how Korean classic literature transforms into media and its methodology.

Students familiarize themselves with the basic concepts of evolutionary theory and cognitive science in order to able to evaluate the controversies and debates within the framework of an evolutionary perspective on art, literature, and music. Several themes are discussed, such as: the mating mind; artistic universals; human nature: blank or pre-wired, the rhythm of poetry; the science of art; the origins of music, grooming, gossip, and the novel; art as adaptation vs. art as by-product. At the conclusion of this course, students are able to evaluate and apply Darwinist approaches to practices in art, literature, music, and religion.