The Course “Germanic Philology 1 LM” falls within the domain of the Complementary learning activities of the Degree Course in Modern Languages for International Communication, specifically the activities aiming at providing adequate tools for the analysis of texts in the light of their transmission and cultural context.
The course envisages either an introduction (Group B) or, building on the results achieved during the philology courses of the First Cycle (Group A), further study of the content, methodological and analytical domains of the subject, reinforcing the competence previously acquired, and obtaining a solid preparation in the field of the history of medieval languages and literatures also with regard to their transition towards the early modern period.
Expected Learning Outcomes: The student will acquire advanced understanding of the principles and methods of the subject and will acquire solid competence in the history of medieval languages and literatures.
The course envisages either an introduction (Group B) or, building on the results achieved during the philology courses of the First Cycle (Group A), further study of the content, methodological and analytical domains of the subject, reinforcing the competence previously acquired, and obtaining a solid preparation in the field of the history of medieval languages and literatures also with regard to their transition towards the early modern period.
Expected Learning Outcomes: The student will acquire advanced understanding of the principles and methods of the subject and will acquire solid competence in the history of medieval languages and literatures.
teacher profile teaching materials
Motifs related to the representation of landscape and the natural environment in the Middle Ages will be identified through the reading of passages from Old and Middle English poetic works. How forests, gardens and trees, pleasant or wild places mark the narration and interact with the characters will be specifically dealt with in texts such as: Beowulf, Chaucer's The Merchant's Tale, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Pearl. References will also be made to other works from the Germanic world, both from the Continental and Norse traditions.
The philological-literary analysis of the texts will be accompanied by the study of the main lexical, morphological and syntactical changes that have occurred in the English language over the centuries.
Students (who will be guided in their choice of topics and bibliographic material) will be required to submit a paper, individually or in groups, on literary-historical, linguistic and textual topics related to works of the Germanic Middle Ages.
- G. Brunetti (ed.), Beowulf, Roma: Carocci, (selection of passages).
- The Complete Corpus of Anglo-Saxon Poetry (http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/ascp/)
- L. D. Benson, ed., The Riverside Chaucer, Boston, Houghton Mifflin 1987 (selection of passages) .
- The Canterbury Tales and Other Works of Chaucer (Middle English): https://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/eng/mect/index.htm
- M. Andrew and R. Waldron, edd., The Poems of the Pearl Manuscript. Pearl, Cleanness, Patience, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Exeter: Exeter University Press 2007 (selections of passages).
- Sir Gawain and the Green Knight: https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=cme;idno=Gawain (trad.: http://sites.fas.harvard.edu/~chaucer/ready.htm)
Texts and critical essays:
- Ernst R. Curtius, Letteratura europea e medioevo latino, Scandicci (Firenze): La Nuova Italia,1992 , cap. X. Il paesaggio ideale, pp. 207-226.
- Paul Zumthor, La misura del mondo. La rappresentazione dello spazio nel Medio Evo, Bologna, Il mulino, 1995.
- Nicholas Howe,, “The Landscape of Anglo-Saxon England: Inherited, Invented, Imagined.” In Inventing Medieval Landscapes: Senses of Place in Western Europe, edited by John Howe and Michael Wolfe, 91-112. Gainsville: University Press of Florida, 2002.
- Margaret Gelling, The landscape of Beowulf, in AngloSaxon England, 32 (2001), pp. 7-11.
- William F. Woods, 2002. 'Nature and the Inner Man in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight .' Chaucer Review 36, 3 (2002), pp. 209-27.
- Paul A. Olson, 'Chaucer's Merchant and January's “Hevene in Erthe Heere”, in ELH 28, n. 3 (1961), pp. 203-214.
- Elizabeth Petroff, “Landscape in ‘Pearl’: The Transformation of Nature.” The Chaucer Review 16, no. 2 (1981), pp. 181–93.
History of medieval English literature:
- D. Wallace, The Cambridge History of Medieval English Literature, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 2002 (Chapters 1,2,6,21,26)
- P. Boitani, La letteratura del Medioevo inglese, Roma, Carocci 2001.
History of the English language:
- C. Barber, The English Language: a Historical Introduction, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 2009.
Textual criticism:
- Anna Maria Luiselli Fadda, Tradizioni manoscritte e critica del testo nel Medioevo germanico, Roma-Bari: Laterza 2004 (Parts II e III).
Additional bibliographical material (critical editions, glossaries, critical essays etc.) will be provided during the course.
Programme
Interpreting the landscape in medieval English literatureMotifs related to the representation of landscape and the natural environment in the Middle Ages will be identified through the reading of passages from Old and Middle English poetic works. How forests, gardens and trees, pleasant or wild places mark the narration and interact with the characters will be specifically dealt with in texts such as: Beowulf, Chaucer's The Merchant's Tale, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Pearl. References will also be made to other works from the Germanic world, both from the Continental and Norse traditions.
The philological-literary analysis of the texts will be accompanied by the study of the main lexical, morphological and syntactical changes that have occurred in the English language over the centuries.
Students (who will be guided in their choice of topics and bibliographic material) will be required to submit a paper, individually or in groups, on literary-historical, linguistic and textual topics related to works of the Germanic Middle Ages.
Core Documentation
Texts:- G. Brunetti (ed.), Beowulf, Roma: Carocci, (selection of passages).
- The Complete Corpus of Anglo-Saxon Poetry (http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/ascp/)
- L. D. Benson, ed., The Riverside Chaucer, Boston, Houghton Mifflin 1987 (selection of passages) .
- The Canterbury Tales and Other Works of Chaucer (Middle English): https://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/eng/mect/index.htm
- M. Andrew and R. Waldron, edd., The Poems of the Pearl Manuscript. Pearl, Cleanness, Patience, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Exeter: Exeter University Press 2007 (selections of passages).
- Sir Gawain and the Green Knight: https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=cme;idno=Gawain (trad.: http://sites.fas.harvard.edu/~chaucer/ready.htm)
Texts and critical essays:
- Ernst R. Curtius, Letteratura europea e medioevo latino, Scandicci (Firenze): La Nuova Italia,1992 , cap. X. Il paesaggio ideale, pp. 207-226.
- Paul Zumthor, La misura del mondo. La rappresentazione dello spazio nel Medio Evo, Bologna, Il mulino, 1995.
- Nicholas Howe,, “The Landscape of Anglo-Saxon England: Inherited, Invented, Imagined.” In Inventing Medieval Landscapes: Senses of Place in Western Europe, edited by John Howe and Michael Wolfe, 91-112. Gainsville: University Press of Florida, 2002.
- Margaret Gelling, The landscape of Beowulf, in AngloSaxon England, 32 (2001), pp. 7-11.
- William F. Woods, 2002. 'Nature and the Inner Man in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight .' Chaucer Review 36, 3 (2002), pp. 209-27.
- Paul A. Olson, 'Chaucer's Merchant and January's “Hevene in Erthe Heere”, in ELH 28, n. 3 (1961), pp. 203-214.
- Elizabeth Petroff, “Landscape in ‘Pearl’: The Transformation of Nature.” The Chaucer Review 16, no. 2 (1981), pp. 181–93.
History of medieval English literature:
- D. Wallace, The Cambridge History of Medieval English Literature, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 2002 (Chapters 1,2,6,21,26)
- P. Boitani, La letteratura del Medioevo inglese, Roma, Carocci 2001.
History of the English language:
- C. Barber, The English Language: a Historical Introduction, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 2009.
Textual criticism:
- Anna Maria Luiselli Fadda, Tradizioni manoscritte e critica del testo nel Medioevo germanico, Roma-Bari: Laterza 2004 (Parts II e III).
Additional bibliographical material (critical editions, glossaries, critical essays etc.) will be provided during the course.
Type of delivery of the course
Lectures, seminars, tutorials for students' presentations of individual research works.Attendance
Although not compulsory, attendance is strongly recommended.Type of evaluation
The oral examination aims to test: (a) the knowledge of the content of the texts given in the syllabus and of the problems discussed during the semester; (b) the ability to critically rework the acquired knowledge and place the texts in their historical, cultural and linguistic context; (c) the expressive skills and the acquisition of the use of a specialized vocabulary; (d) the acquisition of the discipline's own methods of inquiry; (e) the results of individual investigations. Marks: from 18 to 30 cum laude.