ITAL 0465
Representations Urban Italy
Representations of Urban Italy: Florence and Ferrara
In this interdisciplinary seminar, we will consider broadly how Italian cities are represented in historical novels, in film and in the arts. Middlebury's two university cities provide the primary, but not exclusive, focus of the course. After considering "the urban" through selected theoretical material, memoirs, and fiction, we will discuss two modern historical novels on famous Renaissance and Baroque women, by women, Bellonci's (Rinascimento privato; Isabella d'Este) and Banti's (Artemisia[Gentileschi]). Through their heroines' peripatetic lives, these two novels encourage a consideration of other Italian cities. In the works of Bassani and Pratolini, we will consider how Florence and Ferrara are portrayed between and after the two World Wars. Relevant urban sites, art works, and films will also be discussed. 3 hr sem./screening (ITAL 0354, 0355, or equivalents)
In this interdisciplinary seminar, we will consider broadly how Italian cities are represented in historical novels, in film and in the arts. Middlebury's two university cities provide the primary, but not exclusive, focus of the course. After considering "the urban" through selected theoretical material, memoirs, and fiction, we will discuss two modern historical novels on famous Renaissance and Baroque women, by women, Bellonci's (Rinascimento privato; Isabella d'Este) and Banti's (Artemisia[Gentileschi]). Through their heroines' peripatetic lives, these two novels encourage a consideration of other Italian cities. In the works of Bassani and Pratolini, we will consider how Florence and Ferrara are portrayed between and after the two World Wars. Relevant urban sites, art works, and films will also be discussed. 3 hr sem./screening (ITAL 0354, 0355, or equivalents)