Courses of Study
Sections
Italian Studies
Last updated: May 25, 2016 at 2:09 p.m.
Brandeis offers students the opportunity to focus on the cultural heritage of Italy from the inception of the Italian language to the present day. The study of Italy’s language and creative achievements enables a student to explore another culture in depth in preparation for study abroad and eventual graduate work or related opportunities in the workplace.
Italian studies provides a minor and an independent major (through an Independent Interdisciplinary Major or IIM) for those who wish to extend their study of Italian beyond language and culture to areas of Italian literature, history, film, art history, and music. The study of Italian within a variety of cultural contexts enables students to deepen their understanding of Italian culture beyond the boundaries of a single time frame, region, gender, genre, or academic discipline.
Students in the program work closely with an adviser to develop an individualized plan of study that balances the exploration of a broad range of topics and sectors with a focus on a single discipline or cultural period.
Italian Studies is an interdepartmental program that prepares students to explore and understand several aspects of Italian culture while broadening analytical skills. Students who wish to pursue a minor will be required to take five courses from a range of disciplines, which include advanced Italian Language and Culture, Literature, Film Studies, Art History, Italian History, Music, and Classical Studies. The pursuit of these interests takes an interdisciplinary approach, encouraging students to study the culture of Italy from antiquity to the present both in depth and in breadth. Those who wish to pursue Italian Studies further can petition for an Independent major and discuss with the Italian Studies Faculty options for fulfilling the requirements. In such a case, the requirement is nine courses from the same core of suggested disciplines, including three additional courses given in Italian Language (such as ITAL 110 Introduction to Italian Literature, ITAL 120 Modern Italian Literature, ITAL 128 Mapping Italian Culture, ITAL 134 Italian Jewish Culture) offered at Brandeis or their equivalent taken through study abroad or the offerings of consortium institutions in Boston.
1. Knowledge:
- An understanding of the fundamental contributions of Italy to the development of vernacular European literature, the Visual Arts and Architecture since Antiquity, and Western Music. In all of the fields, especially the latter, much of the technical terminology and core forms and concepts are Italian in origin.
- Familiarity with the major writers, artists, monuments, and composers who contributed to the historical pre-eminence of Italian culture in literature (1300-1600), art and architecture (100 B.C.E - 500 C.E.; 1250 -1700), and Music (1500 - 1725).
- An appreciation of the continuing dynamism and vitality of Italian culture from the Napoleonic era through the Risorgimento and to the present day in literature, music, opera, fine arts, architecture, film, design, and fashion.
- An understanding of the key moments in Italian political history from the rival republics and princely courts of the Renaissance, to the unification during the Risorgimento, to the importance of the Italian Kingdom and Republic in European and Global affairs of the past century. Related to this is an understanding of the role these political entities played in fostering Italian culture.
- An understanding of the social and religious diversity of Italy in the historical past and evolving present. This includes the dominant and fraught role of the Catholic Church and Papal States in Italian history and society, as well as minority communities.
2. Core Skills
- To attain proficiency in all five language skills: speaking, writing, listening, reading, and socio-cultural awareness.
- To communicate and express oneself in Italian at the expected range of proficiency (Intermediate-high to advanced-low for the minor, and from advanced-low to advanced-high for the independent major) in both everyday and academic settings.
- To write prose clearly and effectively in Italian.
- To acquire essential analytical skills in relation to art, literature, film, and music, and the ability to think critically about primary texts/ works.
3. Study Abroad
All students are strongly encouraged to study in Italy for a semester, a full year, or in intensive summer programs. Study abroad provides students with daily interaction in the target language and enables them to achieve two goals:
- Greater linguistic precision in speaking, reading, writing and listening to the language.
- The experience of living and learning the culture in an authentic setting.
- The Italian Studies minor/independent major will obtain a greater understanding of human diversity based on the study or experience of different social backgrounds and settings, especially that obtained through time spent abroad.
4. Social Justice:
- Italian humanist thinkers and political philosophers are essential to the development of historical and modern political theory as it applies to the Republic, Absolutism, Constitutional Democracy, Fascism, and Communism. Throughout its history, Italian political entities have served, for better or worse, as the venues for the implementation of such theories, thereby revealing both intended and unintended consequences of social interactions among diverse economic, cultural and religious communities.
5. Upon Graduation:
- The Italian Studies minor or independent major will have the background to embark on graduate studies in Italian and/or Comparative literature.
- The Italian Studies minor or independent major can employ one’s mastery of language and cultural background in any number of fields in which Italy makes a major contribution: Design, fashion, film, architecture, studio art, art history, hospitality, tourism, cuisine, international business, Italian translation, teaching, and medical and legal interpreting and translation. A minor or independent major in Italian Studies conspicuously enhances credentials in applying to graduate programs in these fields.
In order to graduate, students must be able to function at an intermediate level in reading, writing, speaking, and listening in a foreign language. They may satisfy this requirement in several ways:
- A score of 620 or higher on the SAT II language exam, 4 or higher on an Advanced Placement exam in language or literature, or 5 or higher on the International Baccalaureate Higher Levels Exam. We encourage students to continue studies in our program (please see below to choose a course at the appropriate level).
- A passing score on the Proficiency Exam that shows you have gained an intermediate-level proficiency in Italian. Please contact Professor Hollie Harder (harder@brandeis.edu) to make arrangements to take the Proficiency Exam.
- OR, the study of language at Brandeis. Completion of a 30-level course with a passing grade satisfies the language requirement.
Students interested in learning more about the minor in Italian Studies or about studying abroad are encouraged to speak with the Undergraduate Advising Head.
How to Become an Independent Interdisciplinary Major
Students interested in the Independent Interdisciplinary Major option in Italian Studies should contact the Office of Academic Services or visit www.brandeis.edu/acserv/advising/sophomores/iim/index.html for application information.
At the end of their courses in Italian Studies (usually during the spring semester of the senior year), all students pursuing an IIM in Italian Studies will participate in an oral presentation and discussion of a sample of their work that best demonstrates their proficiency in and knowledge of Italian Studies.
Paola Servino, Co-Chair and Undergraduate Advising Head of Italian Studies Program
(Romance Studies)
Ramie Targoff, Co-Chair of Italian Studies Program
(English)
Seth Coluzzi
(Music)
William Kapelle
(History)
Alice Kelikian
(History)
Ann O. Koloski-Ostrow
(Classical Studies)
Charles McClendon
(Fine Arts)
Jonathan Unglaub
(Fine Arts)
Cheryl Walker
(Classical Studies)
A. One or two advanced language and culture course(s): ITAL 105a and/or ITAL 106a.
B. Two or more upper level courses in Italian: ITAL 110a, 120b, 128a, or 134b.
C. One or two of the Italian Studies electives listed below or two other courses on Italian-related culture approved by the student’s Italian Studies advisor. CLAS 145b and FA 191b may count towards the minor when the topic is related to Italian Studies.
D. No grade below a C- will be given credit toward the minor.
E. No course taken pass/fail may count toward the minor requirements.
Minors in Italian Studies are encouraged to study abroad for all or part of their junior year.
How to Choose a Course at the Appropriate Level
For more information, please refer to the Registrar’s website at www.brandeis.edu/registrar/newstudent/testing.html#italtest or to the Department of Romance Studies website.
Courses of Instruction
(1-99) Primarily for Undergraduate Students
FYS
48a
JustBooks: Voicing the Outrage of Silence, Social Justice and the Mafia
[
hum
]
Taught in English.
Examines the Mafia and issues of social justice in contemporary Italy. We will take an in-depth look at both social reality and artistic representation in essays, novels, newspaper articles, and film. Readings will include Sciascia's The Day of the Owl and Saviano's Gomorrah. Offered as part of the JustBooks program.
Ms. Servino (Romance Studies)
ITAL
10a
Beginning Italian
Prerequisite: For students with no previous study of Italian. Students enrolling for the first time in an Italian Studies course at Brandeis should refer to www.brandeis.edu/registrar/newstudent/testing.html#italtest.
Offers an interactive and very lively approach to the learning of Italian. A systematic presentation of the basic grammar and vocabulary of the language within the context of Italian culture, with focus on all five language skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and socio-cultural awareness. Usually offered every fall.
Ms. Monteleone or Ms. Servino
ITAL
20b
Continuing Italian
Prerequisite: For students with some previous study of Italian. A grade of C- or higher in ITAL 10a or the equivalent. Students enrolling for the first time in an Italian Studies course at Brandeis should refer to www.brandeis.edu/registrar/newstudent/testing.html#italtest.
Continuing dynamic presentation of basic grammar and vocabulary within the context of Italian culture and practice of the five language skills. Special attention to reading and writing skills, as well as guided conversation. Usually offered every spring.
Ms. Monteleone or Ms. Servino
ITAL
30a
Intermediate Italian
[
fl
]
Prerequisite: A grade of C- or higher in ITAL 20b or the equivalent. Students enrolling for the first time in an Italian Studies course at Brandeis should refer to www.brandeis.edu/registrar/newstudent/testing.html#italtest.
Focuses on the development of fluency in the language. Spoken and written Italian will be improved through the study and the discussion of the most characteristic aspects of contemporary Italian culture. Through reading and discussion of short stories, newspaper and journal articles and selected text as well as through the viewing of movie and video clips, the course promotes critical and analytical skills. Typical themes include social conflicts, Italian family, and education systems. Usually offered every fall.
Ms. Monteleone or Ms. Servino
ITAL
92a
Internship in Italian Studies
May be taken with the written permission of the Undergraduate Advising Head.
Combines on- or off-campus internship experience related to Italian Studies with written analysis under the supervision of a faculty sponsor. This may include study-abroad documented projects. Students arrange their own internships. Counts only once toward the fulfillment of requirements for the Minor or the Independent Major. Usually offered every semester.
Staff
ITAL
97a
Senior Essay
Students should consult the Undergraduate Advising Head before enrolling. May not be taken for credit by students who have satisfactorily completed ITAL 97b.
Offers students an opportunity to produce a senior essay under the direction of an individual instructor. Usually offered every fall.
Staff
ITAL
97b
Senior Essay
Students should consult the Undergraduate Advising Head before enrolling. May not be taken for credit by students who have satisfactorily completed ITAL 97a.
Offers students an opportunity to produce a senior essay under the direction of an individual instructor. Usually offered every spring.
Staff
ITAL
98a
Independent Study
May be taken only with the written permission of the Undergraduate Advising Head.
Reading and reports under faculty supervision. Usually offered every year.
Staff
ITAL
98b
Independent Study
May be taken only with the written permission of the Undergraduate Advising Head.
Reading and reports under faculty supervision. Usually offered every year.
Staff
(100-199) For Both Undergraduate and Graduate Students
ITAL
105a
Italian Conversation and Composition
[
fl
hum
]
Prerequisite: ITAL 30a or the equivalent. Students enrolling for the first time in an Italian Studies course at Brandeis should refer to www.brandeis.edu/registrar/newstudent/testing.html#italtest.
Provides students with an opportunity to develop their oral and written proficiency in Italian, while familiarizing themselves with different facets of contemporary Italian culture and society. Readings will be supplemented by films, videos and music. The course focuses on the expansion of vocabulary and the improvement of analytical, interpretive and presentational skills. Usually offered every spring.
Ms. Monteleone
ITAL
106a
Advanced Italian through Narrative, Film, and Other Media
[
fl
hum
]
Prerequisite: ITAL 30a, ITAL 105a, or the equivalent. Students enrolling for the first time in an Italian Studies course at Brandeis should refer to www.brandeis.edu/registrar/newstudent/testing.html#italtest.
Close study and analysis of representative Italian texts (prose, poetry, drama) and culture. Each year, emphasis will be given to a specific theme, such as women writers and Italian history through short stories. Reading and listening activities followed by in-class discussions and presentations are designed to strengthen communication and reading skills. Usually offered every fall.
Ms. Monteleone or Ms. Servino
ITAL
110a
Introduction to Italian Literature
[
fl
hum
]
Prerequisite: ITAL 105a or 106a or permission of the instructor.
Surveys the masterpieces of Italian literature from Dante to 1700. It is designed to introduce the student to the major authors and literary periods, styles, and genres and present an overview of the history of the literature. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Servino
ITAL
120b
Modern Italian Literature
[
fl
hum
]
Prerequisite: ITAL 105a or 106a or permission of the instructor.
Focuses on the literature of twentieth-century writers such as Sciascia, Lampedusa, Calvino, and Moravia as well as contemporary writers, such as Baricco, Tamaro, Mazzantini, and Giordano with emphasis on the theme of historical, individual, and familial identity within the context of traumatic socio-economic upheaval and transformative cultural events. Several films based on these works will also be examined, with emphasis on an analysis of cinematic innovation. Usually offered every other year.
Ms. Servino
ITAL
128a
Mapping Modern Italian Culture: Inherited Conflicts
[
fl
hum
oc
]
Prerequisite: ITAL 105a or 106a or permission of the instructor. Conducted in Italian with Italian texts.
Covers a broad and significant range of cultural topics that exemplify creative responses to historical events and social dilemmas that have shaped contemporary Italian culture including economic changes, the new face of immigration in Italy, and the social fight against the Mafia and Camorra through literature and cinema. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Servino
ITAL
134b
Nella cultura ebraica italiana: cinema e letteratura
[
fl
hum
wi
]
Prerequisite: ITAL 105a or 106a or permission of the instructor. Conducted in Italian. Materials fee: $20.
Analyzes Italian Jewish representations in Italian culture from the founding of the ghetto in Venice in 1516 to modern times. Works of Italian Jewish writers and historians are examined as well as Italian movies that address Jewish themes within the mainstream of Italian culture. This course has an interdisciplinary approach while focusing on advanced Italian language skills. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Servino
Electives
CLAS
115b
Topics in Greek and Roman History
[
hum
wi
]
Topics vary from year to year and the course may be repeated for credit with permission of the instructor. Topics include the Age of Alexander the Great, the Age of Pericles, the Greekness of Alexander, and Imperialism in Antiquity. See the Schedule of Classes for the current topic. Usually offered every year.
Ms. Walker
CLAS
120a
Age of Caesar
[
hum
wi
]
The life and times of Gaius Julius Caesar (100-44 BCE) viewed through primary texts in a variety of genres: from Caesar himself to contemporaries Cicero and Catullus and biographers Plutarch and Suetonius. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Walker
CLAS
121b
Money, Markets and Society in the Ancient Mediterranean
[
hum
wi
]
Examines the complex interactions between economic and social systems in the ancient Mediterranean, especially Greece and Rome, through literature, documents, and artifacts. Readings in English. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Walker
CLAS
134b
The Art and Archaeology of Ancient Rome
[
ca
hum
]
Surveys the art and architecture of the ancient Romans from the eighth century BCE to the end of the empire in Sicily, mainland Italy (with focus on Rome, Ostia, Pompeii, and Herculaneum), and in the Roman provinces. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Koloski-Ostrow
CLAS
140a
Women, Gender, and Sexuality in Greek and Roman Art and Text
[
ca
hum
]
An exploration of women, gender, and sexuality in ancient Greece and Rome as the ideological bases of Western attitudes toward sex and gender. Includes, in some fashion, Greek and Roman myth, literature, art, architecture, and archaeological artifacts. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Koloski-Ostrow
CLAS
150b
Pompeii: Life in the Shadow of Vesuvius
[
ca
hum
]
Examines Pompeii and Herculaneum, buried by Vesuvius in 79 CE, using the ancient cities' art, architecture, and wall writings to understand the social, political, economic, and religious realities of Roman life on the Bay of Naples, especially in the first century CE. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Koloski-Ostrow
CLAS
151a
Greece, Rome, Myth, and the Movies
[
hum
]
Explores classical mythology through several key texts to demonstrate the strong connections between antiquity and our own society, especially as revealed in an array of modern cinematic experiments. Charts the transformation of these myths for our own cultural needs. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Koloski-Ostrow
CLAS
165a
Roman Sex, Violence, and Decadence in Translation
[
hum
wi
]
Famous Roman texts (200 BCE-200 CE) are read from social, historical, psychological, literary, and religious viewpoints. The concept of "Roman decadence" is challenged both by the Roman literary accomplishment itself and by its import on subsequent periods. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Koloski-Ostrow
CLAS
166a
Medieval Literature: A Millennium of God, Sex, and Death
[
hum
wi
]
A survey of medieval Latin literature in translation, beginning with the fourth-century church fathers and ending with the early Renaissance. Includes Augustine, Ambrose, Jerome, Egeria, Jordanes, Gregory of Tours, Isidore of Seville, Bede, Alcuin, Einhard, Hroswitha, Geoffrey of Monmouth, Hildegard, Anselm, and others. Usually offered every fourth year.
Ms. Walker
FA
45a
Early Renaissance Art in Tuscany from the Age of Dante to the Medici
[
ca
]
Examines the development of late Medieval and Renaissance Art and Architecture between 1200 and 1500, with an emphasis on the centers of Siena and Florence, and artists who worked in these cities. Offered as part of Brandeis in Siena Study Abroad program.
Mr. Unglaub
FA
45b
Art of the Early Renaissance in Italy
[
ca
]
May not be taken for credit by students who took FA 45a in prior years.
Examines major painters, sculptors, and architects in Florence, Rome, and Venice from Giotto to Bellini (1290-1500). Important themes include the revival of Antiquity, the visual arts and the culture of Humanism, the Rise of the Medici, art and the ideal of the Republic, the development of art theory and criticism, Naturalism and the Sacred image, and the relation of artists and patrons during times of crisis (black death, Pazzi Conspiracy, and Savonarola). Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Unglaub
FA
46b
High and Late Renaissance in Italy
[
ca
]
May not be taken for credit by students who took FA 58b in prior years.
Examines the major works of art produced in Italy in the sixteenth century. It focuses on the principal centers of Florence, Rome, and Venice. The foremost artists of the age, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, and Titian, receive in-depth coverage. The course also considers the social institutions, ecclesiastical, courtly and civic, that furnished the patronage opportunities and promoted the ideas that occasioned, even demanded, new artistic forms of grace and harmony, energy and torsion. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Unglaub
FA
48a
Baroque Art and Architecture in Italy
[
ca
]
Examines the artistic spectacle of Papal Rome, focusing on the works and legacy of Caravaggio and Bernini as the prevailing artistic forces, with major contributions by the Carracci, Poussin, Borromini, and Cortona. Apart from Rome and the patronage strategies of successive Popes, we will consider artistic and architectural production in such diverse centers as Venice, Naples, Bologna, and Turin. Usually offered every third year
Mr. Unglaub
FA
145a
St. Peter's and the Vatican
[
ca
]
The history, growth, and development of Christendom's most famous shrine, with particular concern for the relationship between the design and decoration of the Renaissance/baroque church and palace complex and their early Christian and medieval predecessors. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. McClendon
FYS
48a
JustBooks: Voicing the Outrage of Silence, Social Justice and the Mafia
[
hum
]
Taught in English.
Examines the Mafia and issues of social justice in contemporary Italy. We will take an in-depth look at both social reality and artistic representation in essays, novels, newspaper articles, and film. Readings will include Sciascia's The Day of the Owl and Saviano's Gomorrah. Offered as part of the JustBooks program.
Ms. Servino (Romance Studies)
HIST
103a
Roman History to 455 CE
[
hum
ss
]
Survey of Roman history from the early republic through the decline of the empire. Covers the political history of the Roman state and the major social, economic, and religious changes of the period. Usually offered every year.
Mr. Kapelle
HIST
123a
The Renaissance
[
ss
]
Culture, society, and economy in the Italian city-state (with particular attention to Florence) from feudalism to the rise of the modern state. Usually offered every second year.
Mr. Kapelle
HIST
131a
Hitler's Europe in Film
[
ss
wi
]
Takes a critical look as how Hitler's Europe has been represented and misrepresented since its time by documentary and entertainment films of different countries beginning with Germany itself. Movies, individual reports, discussions, and a littler reading. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Kelikian
HIST
139b
Fascism East and West
[
ss
]
Traces the origins of authoritarianism in Europe, Asia, and Latin America during the twentieth century. It first looks at Germany and Italy. Additionally, it examines right-wing regimes in Japan, China, and Indonesia and their non-western political traditions. Usually offered every third year.
Staff
HIST
140a
A History of Fashion in Europe
[
ss
wi
]
Looks at costume, trade in garments, and clothing consumption in Europe from 1600 to 1950. Topics include sumptuous fashion, class and gender distinctions in wardrobe, and the rise of department stores. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Kelikian
HIST
142b
History of Sexualities in Europe
[
ss
]
Formerly offered as HIST 55b.
Explores a social history of sexualities in Europe from early modern to contemporary times. Topical emphasis on changing patterns in kinship, child rearing, gender differentiation, immodesty, and marriage. Usually offered every third year.
Ms. Kelikian
HIST
170a
Italian Films, Italian Histories
[
ss
wi
]
Explores the relationship between Italian history and Italian film from unification to 1975. Topics include socialism, fascism, the deportation of Jews, the Resistance, the Mafia, and the emergence of an American-style star fixation in the 1960s. Usually offered every second year.
Ms. Kelikian