This course is dedicated to the representation of female desire in Italian culture. From Dante's Francesca da Rimini to Pasolini's Medea, passing through renowned literary characters such as Goldoni's Mirandolina, Manzoni's Gertrude, and Verdi's Violetta, the course will explore different and contrasting voices of female desire: unrequited and fulfilled, passionate and spiritual, maternal and destructive, domestic and transgressive. In particular, the varied and beautiful voices of women in love will become privileged viewpoints to understand the changes that occur in Italian culture in the conception of desire and other intimate emotions, as well as in the notion of gender and sexuality. Students will read texts by men and women from a wide variety of literary genres and artistic forms including not only prose and poetry, but also theatre, opera, and cinema. They will also read important theoretical essays on the conception of love in Western cultures by Barthes, de Rougemont, Giddens, and Nussbaum.

Units: 1

Max Enrollment: 20

Prerequisites: ITAS 201 or ITAS 202 or permission of the instructor.

Instructor: Parussa

Distribution Requirements: LL - Language and Literature

Typical Periods Offered: Spring

Semesters Offered this Academic Year: Not Offered

Notes: