Oriental languages and civilizations

The course focuses on the cultural and literary history of Japan from the modern era to the present day. Its aim is to provide students with the basic framework needed to navigate the literary production of modern and contemporary Japan, and to help them master its fundamental elements (chronology, genres, authors, and works). During the lectures, the main textual genres of modern and contemporary Japanese literature will be introduced from a diachronic perspective, with reference to the historical and socio-cultural contexts in which they developed and spread. Attention will also be given to the most representative authors and works of each genre and each decade. Furthermore, the course aims to familiarize students with the use of critical methodologies applied to literature, particularly by examining recent trends in Japanese literary production from a critical standpoint. Five works will be examined in detail and are to be read in their entirety: • Mori Ōgai, translated by Matilde Mastrangelo, Il giovane Jun'ichi, Venice: Marsilio, 2026. • Ōe Kenzaburō, translated by Nicoletta Spadavecchia, A Personal Matter, Milan: Garzanti, 1996 (or later editions). • Tsushima Yūko, translated by Maria Teresa Orsi, Hikari no Ryobun. The Domain of Light, Pordenone: Safarà, 2023. • Ekuni Kaori, translated by Paola Scrolavezza, Stella Stellina, Rome: Atmosphere Libri, 2013. • Chesil, translated by Takami Nieda, The Color of the Sky Is the Shape of the Heart, New York: Soho Press, 2023. The analysis will be supported by the critical apparatus included in the translated editions and by the following scholarly article: • Christina Yi (2023). “Women and the Ethnic Body: Lee Jungja, Y. Miri, and Che Sil,” in Rebecca Copeland (ed.), Handbook of Modern and Contemporary Japanese Women Writers, pp. 359–373.

Knowledge of Japan modern and contemporary history, from Meiji to Reiwa eras.

Please note: All the following bibliography (Outline, Readings, Critical Articles) is part of the exam program. » Outline: Luisa Bienati (ed), Storia della letteratura giapponese. Dalle riforme Meiji all'era digitale. Torino: Einaudi, 2026. » Readings: Mori Ōgai, Matilde Mastrangelo (trad.), Il giovane Jun'ichi, Venezia: Marsilio, 2026. Ōe Kenzaburō, Nicoletta Spadavecchia (trad.), Un'esperienza personale, Milano: Garzanti, 1996 (o edizioni successive). Tsushima Yūko, Maria Teresa Orsi (trad.), Hikari No Ryobun. Il dominio della luce, Pordenone: Safarà, 2023. Ekuni Kaori, Paola Scrolavezza (trad.), Stella Stellina, Roma: Atmosphere libri, 2013. Chesil, Takami Nieda (trad.), The Color of the Sky Is the Shape of the Heart, New York: Soho Press, 2023. » Critical Articles: Christina Yi (2023). “Women and the Ethnic Body: Lee Jungja, Y. Miri, and Che Sil” in Rebecca Copeland (a cura di), Handbook of Modern and Contemporary Japanese Women Writers, pp. 359-373.

Attendance is not compulsory but highly recommended

To meet everyone’s needs and preferences, the exam can be taken both in written and oral form. In each exam session, the first exam will be written only (multiple choice questions and open-ended questions, approximately two hours) while the second (and the third, when scheduled) will be oral only. The exam is aimed at evaluating the acquisition of the basic coordinates of the literary production of modern and contemporary Japan and its fundamental elements (chronology, genres, authors, works). The acquisition of the contents of the second module will also be evaluated: knowledge of the texts and their interpretation in the light of the selected critical bibliography. To pass the written test it is necessary to obtain a score equal to or greater than 60/100. To pass the oral one it is necessary to obtain a score equal to or higher than 18/30.

Classroom learning. The course will be held in Italian.

The course focuses on the cultural and literary history of Japan from the modern era to the present day. Its aim is to provide students with the basic framework needed to navigate the literary production of modern and contemporary Japan, and to help them master its fundamental elements (chronology, genres, authors, and works). During the lectures, the main textual genres of modern and contemporary Japanese literature will be introduced from a diachronic perspective, with reference to the historical and socio-cultural contexts in which they developed and spread. Attention will also be given to the most representative authors and works of each genre and each decade. Furthermore, the course aims to familiarize students with the use of critical methodologies applied to literature, particularly by examining recent trends in Japanese literary production from a critical standpoint. Five works will be examined in detail and are to be read in their entirety: • Mori Ōgai, translated by Matilde Mastrangelo, Il giovane Jun'ichi, Venice: Marsilio, 2026. • Ōe Kenzaburō, translated by Nicoletta Spadavecchia, A Personal Matter, Milan: Garzanti, 1996 (or later editions). • Tsushima Yūko, translated by Maria Teresa Orsi, Hikari no Ryobun. The Domain of Light, Pordenone: Safarà, 2023. • Ekuni Kaori, translated by Paola Scrolavezza, Stella Stellina, Rome: Atmosphere Libri, 2013. • Chesil, translated by Takami Nieda, The Color of the Sky Is the Shape of the Heart, New York: Soho Press, 2023. The analysis will be supported by the critical apparatus included in the translated editions and by the following scholarly article: • Christina Yi (2023). “Women and the Ethnic Body: Lee Jungja, Y. Miri, and Che Sil,” in Rebecca Copeland (ed.), Handbook of Modern and Contemporary Japanese Women Writers, pp. 359–373.

Knowledge of Japan modern and contemporary history, from Meiji to Reiwa eras.

Please note: All the following bibliography (Outline, Readings, Critical Articles) is part of the exam program. » Outline: Luisa Bienati (ed), Storia della letteratura giapponese. Dalle riforme Meiji all'era digitale. Torino: Einaudi, 2026. » Readings: Mori Ōgai, Matilde Mastrangelo (trad.), Il giovane Jun'ichi, Venezia: Marsilio, 2026. Ōe Kenzaburō, Nicoletta Spadavecchia (trad.), Un'esperienza personale, Milano: Garzanti, 1996 (o edizioni successive). Tsushima Yūko, Maria Teresa Orsi (trad.), Hikari No Ryobun. Il dominio della luce, Pordenone: Safarà, 2023. Ekuni Kaori, Paola Scrolavezza (trad.), Stella Stellina, Roma: Atmosphere libri, 2013. Chesil, Takami Nieda (trad.), The Color of the Sky Is the Shape of the Heart, New York: Soho Press, 2023. » Critical Articles: Christina Yi (2023). “Women and the Ethnic Body: Lee Jungja, Y. Miri, and Che Sil” in Rebecca Copeland (a cura di), Handbook of Modern and Contemporary Japanese Women Writers, pp. 359-373.

Attendance is not compulsory but highly recommended

To meet everyone’s needs and preferences, the exam can be taken both in written and oral form. In each exam session, the first exam will be written only (multiple choice questions and open-ended questions, approximately two hours) while the second (and the third, when scheduled) will be oral only. The exam is aimed at evaluating the acquisition of the basic coordinates of the literary production of modern and contemporary Japan and its fundamental elements (chronology, genres, authors, works). The acquisition of the contents of the second module will also be evaluated: knowledge of the texts and their interpretation in the light of the selected critical bibliography. To pass the written test it is necessary to obtain a score equal to or greater than 60/100. To pass the oral one it is necessary to obtain a score equal to or higher than 18/30.

Classroom learning. The course will be held in Italian.