Literature of the Italian Enlightenment

3 units

This course aims to explore the spectrum of intellectual and literary discourse of the Italian Enlightenment by examining a wide array of texts and genres. Readings will include selections from Enlightenment and popular periodicals, scientific tracts on human anatomy, women's fashion magazines, the reformed theater of Carlo Goldoni, as well as Arcadian poetry, and literary criticism. We will study the rise and characteristics of coffee culture during this age. We will pay special attention to the woman question, which stood at the center of eighteenth-century Italian intellectual discourse, and which was critical to the contemporary drive to define the enlightened nation-state. The class will be conducted as a workshop in which students and instructor collaborate in the realization of course goals. Readings in Italian or English; discussion in English. Prereq. Ital 323C or Ital 324C.