|
|
Italian Language Program
Studying Italian at Fordham University is a challenging and rewarding experience. The student's interests are stimulated by a variety of activities which provide an understanding of the full range of Italian cultural traditions, from art to cinematography to music. The major focus is on Italian literature which comprises knowledge of classical authors such as Dante, Petrarca, Boccaccio, Machiavelli, Tasso, Manzoni, Pirandello, as well as contemporary writers such as Moravia and Calvino. However, mastery of the language is emphasized in order to prepare the student for a variety of career choices where knowledge of Italian is helpful and desirable: graduate school in the humanities, law, international business, medicine and publishing. Student clubs provide further enrichment through many activities: lectures on various aspects of Italian literature and culture, film series, conversation groups and trips to the opera. A program abroad in conjunction with the University of Rome provides the opportunity to expand more fully the students' language skills and cultural awareness.
The Italian Major
Majors in Italian may choose one of two tracks: a literature major or an Italian studies major. The literature major normally takes three advanced language courses and seven courses in Italian literature, selected in consultation with a faculty adviser. The Italian studies major normally takes three literature courses from different periods and seven other courses. Appropriate courses, usually no more than three, may be taken from other wings of the Modern Languages Department and other departments such as art, music, history, philosophy and classics with the approval of the departmental advisers.
Prerequisites for the Italian Major
Students must successfully complete the language requirement or demonstrate sufficient linguistic ability to understand a class conducted entirely in Italian in order to major in Italian.
Faculty
Susanna Barsella
562 Faber Hall, Rose Hill
(718) 817-2660; barsella@fordham.edu
Ph.D. Johns Hopkins University
Dr. Barsella’s main area of research is in Italian Medieval literature and Renaissance Humanism with a specific interest in the literature of Early Humanism. Her approach is multidisciplinary and privileges literature, philosophy, and theology. She has publications on Dante, Petrarca, Boccaccio, Michelangelo, and on the idea of work from antiquity to the Middle Ages. Her most recent publication is “Boccaccio, Petrarch, and Peter Damian. Two Models of Intellectual Work in Early Humanism.” Modern Language Notes (2006). She is currently working on the theological and philosophical implications of the concepts of art and technique in Early Humanistic texts. Dr Barsella’s interests also embrace Twentieth Century literature. Her publications in this area include articles on Pirandello, Gadda, and Twentieth-century poetry.
Francesca Parmeggiani
564 Faber Hall, Rose Hill
(718) 817-2672; parmeggiani@fordham.edu
Ph.D. Indiana University
19th and 20th Century Literature and Film
Joseph Perricone
551 Faber Hall, Rose Hill
(718) 817-2653; perricone@fordham.edu
923C Lowenstein, Lincoln Center
(212) 636-6247
Ph.D. University of Connecticut
Professor of Italian and Comparative Literature; specializes in 17th-20th Century Literature; Film; Linguistics; Translation
Alessandro Polcri
556 Faber Hall, Rose Hill
(718) 817-2654; polcri@fordham.edu
Ph.D. Yale University
Italian Medieval and Renaissance Literature
Professor Polcri’s principal area of research is the Italian Medieval and Renaissance Literature with a specific attention for the Florentine Quattrocento Literature. His publications include studies on Pulci, Boiardo and Ficino. He has recently co-edited the volume “Rossella Bessi, Umanesimo volgare, Firenze: Olschki, 2004”, and serves on the Editorial Board of Interpres. Rivista di studi quattrocenteschi. He is currently writing on the political implications of the philosophical and literary debate about Magnificentia in Quattrocento Florence. Polcri’s interests also include twentieth-century Italian poetry and he is Associate Editor of Italian Poetry Review (Columbia University & The Italian Academy for Advanced Studies in America).
|
|
|
