RUSSIAN LITERATURE 2

Course title: “From Pushkin to Tolstoy: literature and society in 19th-century Russia”.
The course will provide the students with basic tools for reading the texts of Russian 19th-century prose as a reflection of the contemporary intellectual debate. Students will become in touch with the most relevant literary works of this period, which will be analysed taking into account the historic and social background. In this regard, particular attention will be devoted to the theme of the Caucasus in Russian literature, as well as to significant social changes (the problem of the serfdom, the decadence of the aristocrats and the rise of the bourgeoisie).
The educational objectives of the course, which takes its place among the basic courses of the degree program in Languages, Civilizations and Language Sciences (cultural curriculum), are therefore in line with the general degree course: developing an ability to reflect on the historical-cultural processes of 19th-century Russia and providing the basic methodological tools for analysing literary prose texts. Special attention is given to the historical background in which the phenomena of literary culture took place in the period being studied. Achieving these objectives will allow students to acquire a basis for studying other eras of Russian culture and for making subsequent analyses of individual aspects and protagonists.

Expected learning outcomes
1. Knowledge and understanding:
- knowledge of the basic critical literary terminology and understanding of the texts that use it;
- knowledge of the main literary, artistic and cultural phenomena in Russia in 19th-century Russia;
- knowledge and understanding of the historical-cultural evolution of 19th-century Russia;
- knowledge of the main methods of analysis of the literary works in question;
2. Ability to apply knowledge and understanding:
- an ability to use critical-literary terminology correctly in all the applications and communications of the acquired knowledge;
- an ability to frame a literary object related to the period studied in its historical-cultural context;
- an ability to apply the analytical methodologies for understanding the society and culture that produced the works being studied;
- an ability to carry out independent investigations on specific instances by means of an analytical method on the literary work being studied.
3. Ability to judge:
knowing how to formulate and argue simple interpretive hypotheses of literary texts, and to develop a critical approach to evaluating alternative hypotheses.
4. Communication skills:
- knowing how to communicate the specificities of critical-literary reflection, using appropriate terminology;
- knowing how to interact with the instructor in a critical and respectful manner, orally in the classroom and in written communications.
5. Learning skills:
- knowing how to use bibliographic tools and to access them in their places of conservation (libraries and databases);
- knowing how to critically consult reference texts and the bibliographies contained in them.

Pre-requirements
A basic understanding of the development of Russian history and culture up to Catherine the Great, as discussed in the foundation course Russian Literature 1, is necessary. Knowledge of Russian language is not a prerequisite.

Lessons will focus principally on an analysis and close reading of the set texts (in Italian). The course will examine the contribution these works made to the ongoing ideological debates in Russia from the reign of Alexander I to the end of the century, the social and cultural issues at the core of these works, and the place of these works in the literary evolution of the time.

TESTI PRIMARI
- A.S. Puškin, Evgenij Onegin, esclusivamente nell’edizione BUR a cura di Eridano Bazzarelli, cap. I, III, V, VII
- M.Ju. Lermontov, Un eroe del nostro tempo
- N.V. Gogol’, Le anime morte
- F.M. Dostoevskij, Delitto e castigo
- I.S. Turgenev, Padri e figli
- L.N. Tolstoj, La sonata a Kreutzer, Chadži Murat

TESTI CRITICI
- Storia della civiltà letteraria russa, a cura di R. Picchio e M. Colucci, Torino: UTET 1997, limitatamente alle pagine 404-433, 484-504, 505-524, 654-665, 666-689, 690-721
- Ju. Lotman, La storia e il testo. L’Evgenij Onegin di Puškin, Bologna, Il Mulino 1985, pp. 81-92, 93-110, 123-141
- L. Magarotto, La conquista del Caucaso nella letteratura russa dell’Ottocento. Puškin, Lermontov, Tolstoj, Firenze, FUP 2015, pp. 177-192, 255-283
- V. Brjusov, Iperbolicità di Gogol’, in N. Gogol’, Le anime morte, Torino, Einaudi, 1964, pp. VII-XVIII
- L. Pareyson, Dostoevskij. Filosofia, romanzo ed esperienza religiosa, Einaudi: Torino 1993, cap. 2, pp. 26-70
- I. Berlin, Il riccio e la volpe, Milano, Adelphi 2018 (o precedenti edizioni), limitatamente al cap. “Padri e figli. Turgenev e il dilemma liberale”, pp. 417-477
- M. Zalambani, L’istituzione del matrimonio in Tolstoj, Firenze, FUP 2015, pp. 13-21, 103-162

Non-attenders are required to read the above material as well as the following:
- Ju.M. Lotman, Conversazioni sulla cultura russa, a cura di S. Burini, Milano, Bompiani 2017, cap. “Puškin e il suo ambiente” (pp. 355-437)
- Ju. Mann, La poetica di Gogol’, a cura di C. De Lotto, Roma, Lithos 2014, cap. 6 (pp. 275-373)
- M. Bachtin, Dostoevskij. Poetica e stilistica, Torino, Einaudi 2003, cap. 1-2-3
- V. Strada, EuroRussia. Letteratura e cultura da Pietro il Grande alla Rivoluzione, Bari, Laterza 2005, cap. 9 (“Il romanzo russo”), pp. 145-181

Students will sit for an oral exam testing the following: the historical and literary evolution in the period from the French Invasion of Russia (1812) to the end of the 19th century (worth 25%); the main events in the biography and literary journey of the set authors (25%); and an in-depth knowledge of the set novels (50%).

Traditional classroom lessons held by the instructor, during which the student is free to participate with questions and observations.

Italian

Students are warmly invited to read the more recent versions of the novels published by Garzanti, Mondadori or Einaudi; any notes, introductory articles, prefaces or afterword are an integral part of the exam programme.

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