FALL Courses 2009
Shakespeare's Italy
Professor Enoch Brater, Department of English Literature, University of Michigan
4 credits
This course is designed to explore the profound influence Italy and Italian sources have had on the shape of Shakespeare‘s dramatic accomplishment. In order to do so, the class will focus on five central concerns:
1. The ―reinvention‖ of Rome based on Shakespeare‘s re-reading of Plutarch and Seutonius in Julius Caesar, Titus Andronicus, Antony and Cleopatra and Coriolanus.
2. The direct borrowings from Italian romance writers, such as Cinthio, from whom Shakespeare derives several narratives, especially the one he develops in Othello. The ―return‖ to Italy of such a narrative in the hands of Verdi.
3. The incorporation of additional sites and sources in comedies, tragedies and romances such as Romeo and Juliet, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, Much Ado about Nothing, The Taming of the Shrew, and The Tempest.
4. The idea of the Italian ―renaissance‖ as embodied in Hamlet.
5. The development of a new lyrical language for drama and poetry (Shakespeare‘s sonnets) based on the ―dolce stile nuovo‖ of Dante and Petrarch.
Students in this course will be encouraged to visit the sites where these plays are said to have taken place (included on the program‘s trip to Rome) and consider as well other representations of the figures who appear in Shakespeare‘s writing (Brutus and Lucrezia, for example) as they have been imagined by other artists in the sculpture and painting of the period. The course will conclude with students performing scenes from the plays we have studied on the outdoor theater space on the villa lawn.
The City as a Metaphor: Representations of Urban Space in Italian Literature and Film
Professor Vincenzo Binetti, Associate Professor of Italian, University of Michigan
4 credits
This course will analyze representations of chosen Italian cities in modern Italian literature, culture, and films. The course will have an interdisciplinary aspect, as it will include the study of history, art, politics and philosophy, as well as literature. In this course we will investigate the problematic relationship
between the representation of urban space and communities in nineteenth and twentieth-century Italian cultural production and the developing definition of national identity before and after Italian unification -- that is to say, the Risorgimento (around 1860), the Reconstruction (shortly after the end of the second World War and the fall of the fascist regime) and the Second Republic (from the early 1990s on). Readings of texts by Luigi Pirandello, Cesare Pavese, Sibilla Aleramo, Italo Calvino, and Enrico Brizzi. Screenings, among others, by Federico Fellini, Vittorio De Sica, Michelangelo Antonioni, Giuseppe Tornatore, Mario Martone, Paolo and Vittorio Taviani, and Nanni Moretti.
Studies in Modern Italian literature and culture
Professor Vincenzo Binetti, Associate Professor of Italian, University of Michigan
4 credits
This course will address issues of national identity, politics, literature and culture in Italy from the end of the Second World War to the present. In this course we will investigate, through a close critical analysis of specific literary and visual texts, how preconceived and often stereotypical notions of ―italianità‖ are eventually problematized and (re)negotiated, thus allowing for the uncovering of ―other‖ marginal phenomena that emerged in opposition to the prevailing hegemonic, nationalistic culture and ideology. Readings of novels by Elio Vittorini, Cesare Pavese, Giorgio Bassani, Dacia Maraini and Andrea De Carlo. Screenings, among others, by Marco Tullio Giordana, Gianni Amelio, Gabriele Salvatores, Roberto Benigni, Vittorio De Sica, and Bernardo Bertolucci
Advertising in Italian society
Professor William O'Barr, Professor of Cultural Anthropology, Duke University
4 credits
This course examines the reflection of Italian society through its various representations in advertising from the early 20th century to the present. Special attention will be devoted to the origins of the Italian national advertising tradition in the early 20th century, advertising and Italian modernism, advertising in the fascist period and during World War II, the American influence on advertising following the war, and advertising during the economic boom and the rise of consumerism in Italy. We will examine the distinctive aspects of contemporary advertising in Italy by comparing it briefly to advertising traditions in select other countries. Some specific topics to be covered include: Italian masculinity and femininity as
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portrayed in ads, advertising to children, global campaigns that originate in Italy (e.g., Benetton, Dolce and Gabbana), mythologies created by ads (e.g., Mulino Bianco, the Vespa), the advertising poster of the early 20th century, and the advertising of Italy and Italian food (both within Italy and abroad). Readings consist of selected book chapters and articles, both scholarly and from the popular press and trade journals. The course will include field study of selected advertising venues: markets, Italian television and Internet, and shops that market souvenirs of Italy and Florence. Students will write and submit several short essays throughout the course. Evaluation will be based on class participation and the essays.
Italian Encounters
Professor William O'Barr, Professor of Cultural Anthropology, Duke University
4 credits
This course focuses on the long history of visits of foreigners to the Italian peninsula. It uses the records they created (travel diaries, novels, and later photographs and film) to explore their various descriptions and representations of Italy. Specific attention will be given to materials about Florence and Venice. We will examine differences among travelers, tourists, pilgrims, refugees, guest workers, and others as to how they have experienced Italy. Two special aspects of this course will be (1) each student‘s journal about his/her own experiences of living in Italy, and (2) a field trip to Venice where we will examine the nature of contemporary tourism and compare it to tourists in Florence. Readings include selections from travel diaries and accounts, texts by E.M. Forster, Frances Mayes, Charles Dickens, Benjamin Disraeli, Tim Parks, Robert Browning and Elizabeth Barrett, Jan Morris. Films include Minghella‘s The Talented Mr. Ripley, Campion‘s The Portrait of a Lady, Zeffirelli‘s Tea with Mussolini, Ivory‘s A Room with a View, and Lean‘s Summertime. Evaluation will be based on class participation and a series of short essays submitted at regular intervals throughout the semester.
Origins and Birth of the Renaissance Style in the Arts
Professor Josephine Rogers Mariotti, Florence Faculty, University of Michigan
4 credits
Florence offers the unique opportunity of studying ―in situ‖ the works of the great masters of the Renaissance. This course will therefore focus on the birth of the Renaissance style, strictly defined as the artistic movement originating in Florence at the beginning of the Quattrocento (1400s), tracing its development up to the initial stages of the following century, the Cinquecento (1500s). Beginning with early precedents – the so-called proto-renaissance: Nicola Pisano, Giotto di Bondone – we will see that episodes dating as early as the mid-1200s share with the later age basic figurative principles that will emerge in full in the ―new style‖ of the 15th century. How this relates to the coeval humanist movement will be one of our major considerations in the conviction that the history of artistic form is an expression of the history of the human spirit. Our goal shall be to continue in these types of cultural and contextual comparisons throughout the entire survey of the lives and works of the significant personalities in the history of the figurative arts within the 15th century. Florence‘s contacts and cultural exchanges with other major centers in Italy will necessarily be part of our interest and will, in some cases, be complemented by organized excursions to places outside Florence. In-class sessions will alternate with visits to monuments and museums in and around Florence and other nearby sites allowing students to integrate their academic studies with direct experience of artists and their creations. Required readings: Coursepack available at the Villa.
Florentine Renaissance Art: From Lorenzo il Magnifico to Cosimo I: 1469-1539
Professor Josephine Rogers Mariotti, Florence Faculty, University of Michigan
4 credits
The course proposes to survey the development of the arts in Florence from the time of Lorenzo di Piero de‘ Medici (the Magnificent) to the reign of Cosimo I, the second Duke and the first Grand Duke of Tuscany. We will begin with a survey of the major workshops of late 15th century Florence: Pollaiolo,
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Verrocchio, Botticelli, Perugino, and Ghirlandaio, whose culture and activities constitute the training ground of the masters of the High Renaissance. These include Leonardo, Raphael, Filippino Lippi, Fra Bartolomeo, Andrea del Sarto and Michelangelo, whose life-span covers the entire period under exam, and whose art will serve as a guideline throughout the course: Michelangelo‘s early activity in Florence, his decorative cycles in the Vatican in Rome, and his later activity. The ‗rival‘ prince of the papal court, Raphael Sanzio, will likewise be our focus, as both become paragons of a golden age‘ of classicism, dramatically interrupted by the Sack of Rome‘ of 1527. The post-peak‘ era to follow begins with the experimental and expressively charged art of Pontormo, Rosso Fiorentino and other Tuscan masters who, along with the followers of Raphael and Michelangelo in Rome, are the protagonists of a transformation in style and content termed as Mannerism‘ or Maniera,‘ a label we will endeavor to define. The development of a self-conscious stylish style‘ in the 16th century brings us to admire the court art of Duke Cosimo I de‘ Medici, whose artists include some of the epoch greatest protagonists: Agnolo Bronzino, Benvenuto Cellini, Francesco Salviati, Parmigianino and Giambologna. More than monographic coverage of each artistic persona, our goal is to reconstruct the stylistic and cultural interactions and environment in which the artists and patrons operated. In-class sessions alternate with visits to monuments and museums in and around Florence, allowing students to integrate their academic studies with direct experience of the works and artists under study. Required readings: Coursepack available at the Villa.
European Societies
Professor Ettore Recchi, University of Florence
4 credits
This course seeks to illustrate long- and short-term dynamics of social change in Western Europe. Starting from a historical overview of national identities and the post-WW II integration process, the basic puzzle ‘What it means to be an European?’ will be addressed. As a general objective, the course is designed to stimulate students to have a comprehensive view of the conflicting political and societal forces driving contemporary Europe towards unification on the one hand and further territorial and cultural divisions on the other. The course is organized in three teaching units: a) National identities in Western Europe: a long-term historical perspective; b) The European integration process and the European Union; c) A comparative analysis of European societies. Readings will be drawn from a variety of sources in coursepack form. Students are required to participate regularly and do a presentation on one of the course subjects. Participation, presentation, and two tests (mid-term and final) will form the basis for the final evaluation.
Architecture Design Studio
Professor Neal Robinson, Taubman College of Architecture + Urban Planning, University of Michigan
6 credits
This course is open to U-M graduate architecture students only.
Thesis Seminar
Professor Neal Robinson, Taubman College of Architecture + Urban Planning, University of Michigan
4 credits
This thesis seminar in architecture proceeds by formulating a set of questions, establishing a critical position in relationship to those questions, exploring possibilities, and presenting a well-developed response to those questions. It involves criticism, research, and design. A critical project serves as the vehicle through which a thesis statement is explored. For U-M graduate architecture students.
Italian Language
Previous study of Italian is not required in order to apply for the program, as all non-language courses are taught in English. All program participants will be required to take one Italian language course and they are encouraged to study Italian prior to their participation in the program in order to facilitate their integration into Italian culture.
First Semester Italian
Professor Silvia Sammicheli
4 credits
Second Semester Italian
Professor Silvia Sammicheli
4 credits
Third Semester Italian
Professor Lucrezia Sarcinelli
4 credits
Fourth Semester Italian
Professor Lucrezia Sarcinelli
4 credits
Advanced Italian
Professor Lucrezia Sarcinelli
3 credits
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