Italian Literature II: Historical Survey

Description

The aim of this course is to acquire an in-depth knowledge of the main genres, currents and authors in Italian literature from the twelfth to the nineteenth century. The main focus of the course is on the understanding of the historical development of (and interactions between) the genres that shaped the Italian literary tradition. The students gain insight into the literary-historical significance of the most important texts from the Italian literary canon, and are able to relate formal and thematic features of these texts to their literary-historical and institutional position. After attending this course, students are also familiar with a number of central concepts from literary historiography (periodization, canon formation, reception, tradition, etc.) and are able to apply these concepts to Italian literary history.