UNDERSTANDING THE MEDITERRANEAN

This course will provide students with a critical, multidimensional understanding of the contemporary Mediterranean world from both European/Western and Global South perspectives. It will introduce key approaches and debates in Mediterranean studies and it will provide an overview of the changing political, cultural and economic significance of the region during recent decades. The course will consider a series of topics such as urbanization, cultural heritage, environmental change and maritime economies in order to equip students with the knowledge and analytical tools necessary to pursue further research and to actively participate in discussions on the future of the Mediterranean region. The course will be structured around lectures, films and group activities and discussions. There will be some guest speakers.

By the end of the course, students will have acquired a solid understanding of:
- key theories and approaches in Mediterranean studies;
- the historical and contemporary significance of the Mediterranean region from both European/Western and Global South perspectives.
- the recent history of initiatives aimed at building political, economic and cultural relations across the Mediterranean region.

In addition, students will be able to:
- understand how major current issues such as climate change and global logistics relate to the Mediterranean area;
- apply their knowledge to propose suitable topics for research in the field of Mediterranean studies;
- engage with key debates about the future of Mediterranean region.

Criteria for admission are the same as those for the study programme of Trans-Mediterranean Studies: Migration, Cooperation and Development. A good knowledge of English is essential.

Il corso introduce ai principali concetti, le teorie e i dibattiti nel campo degli studi mediterranei, prestando particolare attenzione a come l’idea del Mediterraneo quale regione distinta sia stata elaborata e venga oggi messa in discussione. Verrà fornito un quadro delle recenti trasformazioni politiche e economiche nell’area e di come queste abbiano riconfigurato le relazioni tra le sponde Nord e Sud del Mediterraneo, nonché del significato che assume di adottare un approccio specificamente transmediterraneo.

La seconda parte del corso approfondirà alcuni temi centrali nel contesto del Mediterraneo contemporaneo:
(1) L’urbanizzazione e le particolarità delle città mediterranee;
(2) Le reti e le politiche euro-mediterranee;
(3) La politica e l’economia del patrimonio culturale mediterraneo;
(4) I cambiamenti e le sfide ambientali;
(5) Il Mediterraneo come rotta logistica.

The bibliography will be further integrated with other texts provided by the teacher during the course.

General readings:
Fanon, F. (1961 [2001]) The Wretched of the Earth. London: Penguin [Chapter 1]
Matvejević, P. (2004). Breviario mediterraneo. Garzanti
Maselli, F. (2023). L’Italia ha paura del mare. NR edizioni

Unsettling the (idea of the) Mediterranean:
Danewid, I., Proglio, G., Pesarini, A., Hawthorne, C., Raeymaekers, T., Khalil Saucier, P., Grechi, G. and Gerrand, V. (2021) ‘Introduction.’ In The Black Mediterranean Collective (ed.), The Black Mediterranean: Bodies, Borders and Citizenship, pp. 9-27. Cham: Palgrave MacMillan
Giaccaria, P. & Mina, C. (2010) ‘The Mediterranean Alternative.’ Progress in Human Geography, 35(3), 345-365.
Herzfeld, M. (1984) ‘The horns of the Mediterraneanist Dilemma’ American Ethnologist, 11(3), 439-454

Colonial past and postcolonial present:
Borutta, M. & Geaks, S. (2012) ‘A colonial sea: the Mediterranean, 1798-1956.’ European Review of History, 19(1), 1-13.
Bullen, C. (2020). “Unravelling histories: researching uneasy heritage associations in Oran, Algeria.” International Journal of Heritage Studies, 26(12): 1208-1220.
Oualdi, M. (2021) ‘Commemorating the abolition of slavery in Tunisia. The rights of black citizens and the history of slaves of European origin’ Slaveries & Post-esclavages, 4, 1-14.
Yiakoumaki, V. (2011). ‘On Bureaucratic Essentialism: Constructing the Mediterranean in European Union Institutions’ In Kousis, Selwyn and Clark (eds) Contested Mediterranean Spaces (pp.17-34). New York: Berghahn.

Students will be assessed on classroom participation and a final exam ((presentation of a written paper and subsequent oral presentation)). The details and weighting of each assessment will be specified in the course.

Regarding the grading scale, scores will be assigned according to the following schema:
A. Scores in the 18-22 range will be awarded in the presence of: Sufficient knowledge and applied
comprehension of the program;
B. Scores in the 23-26 range will be awarded in the presence of: Fair knowledge and applied
comprehension of the program;
C. Scores in the 27-30 range will be awarded in the presence of: Good or excellent knowledge and
applied comprehension of the program;
D. Honors will be awarded in the presence of excellent knowledge and applied comprehension of
the program.

written and oral

The course is structured as in-person seminar lessons in which the students and the professor comment together on the week's readings. The teaching approach aims to encourage students' active participation through discussions on the topics introduced by the professor.

English