HISTORY OF PORTUGUESE AND BRAZILIAN CULTURE

The teaching of Portuguese and Brazilian literature 2 is common to all addresses of the degree course in Languages, Civilization and Language Sciences. Based on the Ursula K. Le Guin’s theory of fiction named “the carrier bag”, the course aims to deepen the reflection on the condition of human life through the reading of stories of the Portuguese language literatures from 20th and 21st century.

1. Knowledge and understanding: to form a critical awareness of the culture of the various Portuguese-speaking areas by reading the short forms of prose; strengthen the understanding of literature as a way of awakening and at the same time dreaming with a better world.

2. Applied knowledge and understanding: apply the theoretical-critical knowledge of fiction and non-fiction acquired to the literary systems of the various spaces of Portuguese-language literature; promote knowledge about the political history and literary systems of the countries involved, as well as the work of each writer.

3. Autonomy of judgment: ability to acquire and apply adequate critical tools in the analysis of the narrative texts indicated, on a thematic and stylistic-formal level, also by relating them to different contexts.

4. Communication skills: understand the presentation of an academic speech; knowing how to present a problem studied in a clear and coherent manner; knowing how to argue in a coherent and effective way;

5. Ability to learn: to learn to recognize the typology of a text and formulate analysis hypotheses; learn to establish appropriate links between the facts and materials under consideration and ideas; learn the basics of building a bibliography starting from a research interest.

Basic knowledge of European history and culture from the end of the XIX century to the contemporaneity.

In the Carrier bag of fiction, Le Guin remind us that “if it is a human thing to do put something you want, because it’s useful, edible or beautiful, into a bag, or a basket, or a bit of rolled bark or leaf, or a net woven of your own hair, or what have you, and then take it home with you”, the stories could be seen as plenty of elements that we need to go on. They cannot be characterized either as producing conflict or harmony, since its purpose could be seen as a continuing process. This course intends to read and analyze stories from Portuguese culture, as those of Lima Barreto, Clarice Lispector, Paulina CHiziane, Lidia Jorge, between others, fiction, and non-fiction, without a heroic undertaking. It will try to think about what one generation can teach to another or how environmental, justice and sexual rights could be embroidered into stories.

1. Primary Resources
1.1 Narrative:
CHIZIANE, Paulina. Niketche, una storia di poligamia. Trad. De Marchis G.; La Nuova Frontiera, 2006.
DIAS, Fernanda. Dias da Prosperidade. Macau: Instituto Cultural de Macau e Instituto Português do Oriente, 1998.
JORGE, Lidia. Il racconto del nuotatore. Trad. Marisa Mourinha. Edizioni dell’Urogallo, 2019.
______. La Strumentalina. Trad. M. Diani. Edizioni dell’Urogallo, 2010.
KOPENAWA, DAVI e ALBERT, Bruce. La caduta del cielo. Parole di uno sciamano yanomami. Trad. di Alessandro Lucera e Alessandro Palmieri.
LISPECTOR, Clarice. Tutti i racconti. Trad. Roberto Francavilla. Feltrinelli, 2021.
LIMA BARRETO, A. H. Nella terra di Bruzundanga. Cronache dal Brasile. Trad. Jessica Falconi. Ed. Arcoiris, 2013.
PEIXOTO, José Luís. L’antidoto. Scritturapura Casa Editrice: 2008.
2.1 Essay:
LE GUIN, Ursula K. The carrier bag theory of fiction. Literary Trust, 2019.

2 – Theoretical storical critical texts:

CORTAZAR, Julio. Valise de Cronópio. São Paulo: 2008. [Storie di cronopios e di famas, nota di Italo Calvino, Torino: Einaudi, 1971].
LANCIANI (a cura di). Il Novecento in Portogallo. Universitalia: 2014.
LOURENÇO, Eduardo. A Nau de Ícaro seguido de Imagem e Miragem da Lusofonia. Lisboa: Gradiva, 1999. [La nave di Icaro seguito da Immagine e miraggio dela Lusofonia. Pineto (Te): Riccardo Condò Editore, 2019]
______. Portugal como Destino seguido de Mitologia da Saudade. Lisboa: Gradiva, 1999. [Il labirinto della saudade. Portogallo come destino. Parma: Diabasis, 2014]
RIBEIRO, Margarida Calafate. I tempi della fine. Il processo di decolonizzazione in Portogallo e i percorsi dell’Europa. Altre Modernità. Rivista di studi letterari e culturali. Milano: Università degli Studi di Milano, n. 16, 2016. Nel sito: https://riviste.unimi.it/index.php/AMonline/article/view/7840
SEABRA PEREIRA, José Carlos. As literaturas em língua portuguesa (Das origens aos nossos dias). Macau: Instituto Politécnico de Macau e Lisboa: Gradiva, 2019.
STEGAGNO PICCHIO, Luciana. Breve storia della letteratura brasiliana. Genova: Il melangolo, 2005.

Further bibliographical information will be provided during the lessons.

Oral test aimed at verifying the degree of achievement of the expected learning outcomes. In order to pass the exam, a short written paper (3-5pp) that discusses a subject related to the course is also required. The text must be done by the last day of class.

Lectures, seminars with preparation of compulsory and supplementary readings, commented reading of texts, literary analysis writing workshop; remote interaction with students via the University's Moodle e-learning platform.

Italian

Students who do not attend classes are invited to contact the teacher at the beginning of the course. Additional teaching material will be made available online during the course.

written and oral

This subject deals with topics related to the macro-area "Poverty and inequalities" and contributes to the achievement of one or more goals of U. N. Agenda for Sustainable Development