Course program
Representation of the Native in English Literature and Native American Theatre.
The course will examine the representation of the Native in England between the 17th and 18th centuries and in America in the second half of the 20th century through three case studies: William Shakespeare, Daniel Defoe and an exponent of Native American theatre, Wallace Hampton Tucker. In particular, the plays The Tempest and At the Sweet Gum Bridge and the novel Robinson Crusoe will be analysed.
Prerequisites
The requirements are a good knowledge of spoken and written English and Italian; and a good knowledge of the English and American historical and literary context of each covered in the course.
Books
• W. Shakespeare, La Tempesta, a cura di Agostino Lombardo, edizione Feltrinelli. Il testo è presente in biblioteca (Edificio Marco Polo, II piano).
• D. Defoe, Robinson Crusoe, edizione Feltrinelli. Il testo è presente in biblioteca (Edificio Marco Polo, II piano).
• W. H. Tucker, Al ponte di Liquidambra, in Indiani sulla scena. Teatro dei nativi americani, a cura di Annamaria Pinazzi, Edizioni QuattroVenti, Urbino 2008, pp. 73-129. Il testo è presente in biblioteca (Edificio Marco Polo, II piano).
Si consiglia il manuale (solo le parti relative al programma):
Manuale di letteratura e cultura inglese, Lilla Maria Crisafulli, Keir Elam, eds, Bononia University Press, Bologna 2009. Il testo è presente in biblioteca, eBook (Edificio Marco Polo, II piano).
Frequency
Attendance not required.
Exam mode
An oral exam takes place at the end of the course. Good skill of analyzing texts is required to pass the exam; it is also required knowledge of the literary background of each author. Hence students will be asked questions aimed at evaluating their skill of responding critically to literary texts using appropriate critical terminology, and they will be asked to place authors in the proper historical-literary context. A close reading of passages by Shakespeare, Defoe, and Tucker is a substantial part of the exam.
Bibliography
• A. Lombardo, La grande conchiglia. Due studi su La Tempesta, Bulzoni, Roma 2002, pp. 13-49. Il testo è presente in biblioteca (Edificio Marco Polo, II piano).
• R. Capoferro, Defoe: guida al Robinson Crusoe, Carocci, Roma 2003 Il testo è presente in biblioteca (Edificio Marco Polo, II piano).
• Indiani sulla scena. Teatro dei nativi americani, a cura di Annamaria Pinazzi, Edizioni QuattroVenti, Urbino 2008, pp. 7-27 (“Introduzione”); pp. 319-324 (“Wallace Hampton Tucker”). Il testo è presente in biblioteca (Edificio Marco Polo, II piano).
The following handbook is recommended:
Manuale di letteratura e cultura inglese, Lilla Maria Crisafulli, Keir Elam, eds, Bononia University Press, Bologna 2009. Il testo è presente in biblioteca, eBook (Edificio Marco Polo, II piano).
Lesson mode
Lectures, and dialogic and interactive lessons, that envisage the active participation of the students. The purpose of encouraging students to interact and engage in the classroom is developing their skills in critical thinking. During the first lectures, we will focus on theoretical issues in order to provide the groundwork for the subsequent reading of the literary texts included in the exam program.