Module ITAL3071: THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE IN LITERATURE AND ART

Department: Modern Language and Cultures (Italian)

ITAL3071: THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE IN LITERATURE AND ART

Prerequisites

• Italian Language 2B (ITAL2031) OR Italian Language 2A (ITAL2111) or an equivalent qualification to the satisfaction of the Chairman/woman of the Board of Studies of MLAC or his/her representative.

Corequisites

• Modern Languages, Combined Honours and all Joint and 'with' programmes: Italian Language 4 (ITAL3021) or Italian Language 4 following Year Abroad (ITAL3091). Others: see Chairman/woman of the Board of Studies in MLAC or his/her representative.

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None.

Aims

• To encourage appreciation of the historical value of the Libro del Cortegiano, Orlando furioso and Lorenzo de' Medici's poetry.
• to highlight the modernity and continued relevance of the texts.
• to introduce principle trends in Renaissance aesthetics and thought as exemplified in the art of the Palazzo Ducale of Urbino.
• The course offers an alternative to the other option on offer to final year students (Literature, Cinema and Reality: Existentialism and Modernism in Twentieth-century Italy).
• The modules are entirely independent of each other so students may choose to study either.
• However, if both are chosen then two hugely significant areas of Italian culture will be covered.
• The course is designed for students with advance knowledge of Italian language and advanced reading skills in Italian.

Content

• The programme will vary according to the availability of material.
• The core texts for term one will be excerpts from Ariosto's Orlando furioso and Lorenzo de' Medici's collected sonnets.
• These will be supplemented by essays from texts such as Jacob Burckhardt's The Civilisation of the Italian Renaissance, Peter Burke's The Italian renaissance: Culture and Society in Italy and Albert Rabil Jr's Renaissance Humanism: Foundations, Forms and Legacy.
• In the second term students will study Baldessare Castiglione's Libro del cortegiano and slide projections and video images of the Palazzo Ducale of Urbino.

Learning Outcomes

• Students should:
• gain a sense of the historical/artistic context of the Italian Renaissance,
• become familiar with some of the literary and artistic monuments of the period,
• understand how writers like de' Medici, Castiglione and Ariosto and artists like Piero della Francesca, Raffaello and Titian develop and adapt their chosen genres to reflect the ideals and values of contemporary society.

• Students should develop reading skills to enable them to read Renaissance texts and critical skills to help them view and interpret Renaissance art.

• By the end of the module students should have extended their written communication skills.
• Should have an extended ability to gather, process and critically evaluate information and evidence from a variety of sources.

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• Term one lectures will introduce students to the political structure of Renaissance Italy, to court life and to the importance of the arts and patronage of the arts in that society.
• The courts of Ferrara and Florence will be presented via excerpts of Ludovico Ariosto's epic romance poem Orlando furioso and the sonnets of Lorenzo de' Medici respectively.
• Term two will involve deeper study of social mores and codes of behaviour at the Italian Renaissance Court, an overview of the genre of prescriptive writing an examination of Castiglione's II libro del Cortegiano.
• The Court of Urbino, introduced by Castiglione, will then form the focus of a review of Renaissance art.
• Fortnightly seminars will be used to read closely, examine and analyse the core texts and art.
• Seminars will also involve student presentations.
• Independent learning will be encouraged by preparation for seminars and by research for the summative essays.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

None

■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University