The New Sicilian School

3 units

The unification of Italy in the mid-19th century led to the creation of a new Sicilian School, the first since that of the court poets associated with Frederick II in the 13th century. These new Sicilian writers have given us many narrative masterpieces, focusing on common concerns such as the island's identity over two millenia and the impact of Italian nationalism; the rise of bourgeois culture and the decline of indigenous patriarchal structures; the rule of law and the role of the Mafia; and the politics of language. Authors studied include Verga, Pirandello, Vittorini, Brancati, Tomasi di Lampedusa and Sciascia. Course taught in Italian or English.