ENGLISH CULTURE AND LITERATURE

The course is part of the core subjects of Bachelor's Degree Programme in Linguistic and Cultural Mediation and aims to introduce students to the analysis of literary and cinematic works produced in the context of English-speaking cultures. It will provide students with the tools to analyse such works from a formal point of view and to relate them to the cultural, historical and social issues from which they emerge and which they represent. The course also aims to stimulate reflection on linguistic and cultural mediation and translation practices represented in the texts.

Students should acquire basic knowledge of the cultures and history of English-speaking countries, literary genres and the categories of stylistic and narratological analysis. They should learn to read and analyse literary and cinematic works from a formal point of view, and establish relationships between texts and their cultural and historical context. Finally, they will have to develop skills in oral (through class discussion) and written communication (in order to prepare for the exam); and to develop the ability to independently analyse literary texts and the issues raised by them.

No prerequisites, but knowledge of English to at least B1 level is recommended.

TITLE: Mediators, translators and interpreters in English-speaking cultures and literatures

We will examine different literary representations of mediators, translators and interpreters in a variety of historical and cultural contexts (Great Britain, United States, India). We will discuss how literature can become a resource for critically reflecting on the communicative, cultural, linguistic, political and moral challenges of language and cultural mediation and translation practices.

We will begin by discussing the meaning of the concept of "English culture" today, with particular emphasis on the processes of colonisation, decolonisation, migration and globalisation that have led to the creation of multicultural English-speaking societies, as well as English-speaking (literary and artistic) traditions in former colonies. We will then examine interpreters and translators in a short story by Anita Desai ("Translator, Translated") and a novel by Amitav Ghosh ("The Hungry Tide"), both prominent representatives of Indian Anglophone literature. The former records the difficult position of the translator of minor languages, the latter, a classic of ecocritical literature, illustrates the problems of cultural mediation against the backdrop of an endangered ecosystem. We will then discuss examples of linguistic and cultural mediation in science fiction works by US author Ursula K. Le Guin and in the film "Arrival", examining how science fiction can also be used to discuss reality. Special attention will be given to the topic of inter- and multi-species communication. Finally, we will discuss the short story anthologies of the Refugee Tales project, in which various British authors collaborate with asylum seekers to tell their stories. We will examine the role of translation and mediation thematically (that is, in the stories) and in the organisation of the project itself, also as an opportunity to explore the political dramas of contemporary England and the highly topical issue of (political, 'economic', climate) migration.

Amitav Ghosh, 2004, The Hungry Tide, Harper Collins. (To be read in English or Italian: Il Paese delle Maree, Neri Pozza)
Anita Desai, 2012, “Translator, Translated”, in The Artist of Disappearance, Chatto & Windus.
Ursula K. Le Guin, 2012, "Solitude" and "The Author of the Acacia Seeds", in The Real and the Unreal - Selected Short Stories Vol. 2, Gollancz
Denis Villeneuve (dir.), 2016, Arrival.
Carol Watts, "The Interpreter's Tale", in David Herd, Anna Pincus (eds.), 2016, Refugee Tales, Comma Press.

The secondary bibliography will be made available on Moodle.

The written examination (in Italian) lasts 2 hours and consists of four questions on the topics of the course, including the analysis of short excerpts from the texts. The student must be able to understand and comment on the excertps independently. In the examination, the student must demonstrate knowledge of the contents of the texts discussed in class, knowledge of the historical and cultural context of the texts, ability to apply basic textual analysis tools presented in class, and ability to reflect on the problems of linguistic and cultural mediation illustrated in the texts.

The examination is conducted in the same way for non-attending students, who will however have to study additional critical texts (available on Moodle).

Lectures. Class discussions.

Italian

written

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