Spring 2023 Italian Course Descriptions
This is an unofficial list of courses that will be offered in Italian and Italian American Studies in Spring 2023. It is strictly for the use of expanded course descriptions. For the complete official course offerings, please consult the My.UIC portal.
For a list of all courses and general course descriptions, please see the UIC Academic Catalog.
Spring 2023 Courses in English Heading link
ITAL / MOVI 280: Italian and Italian American Cinema. Online asynchronous. Fabbian.
8-week Term A course.
This course examines the political, economic, and social evolution of contemporary Italy as represented in the visual culture of Italian cinema, introducing students to critical tools such as vocabulary of film analysis and theory. We will focus on the stylistic and iconographic developments of Italian cinema, with interdisciplinary connections to other modes of representation (the figurative arts and the oral traditions and literatures of both Italy and Europe). While learning to analyze film methodologies and classic genres of Italian cinema, from the commedia all’italiana to historical productions, and reflecting on film as a creative art form with important social and historical references (e.g. Fascism, gender roles, government corruption, globalization, nationalism and regionalism), students will develop essential life skills such as the ability to analyze and interpret data, as well as to communicate and collaborate with others in ways that take into account, and are respectful of multiple perspectives. All readings are in English. No pre-requisites.
Creative Arts, and Past course.
Spring 2023 Courses in Italian Heading link
Beginning and Intermediate Italian
All beginning and intermediate Italian language courses are blended courses (online and classroom) and require computer and internet access.
- ITAL 101 – Elementary Italian I — MWF 9:00-9:50, MWF 11:00-11:50, & MWF 1:00-1:50
- ITAL 102 – Elementary Italian II — MWF 9:00-9:50 & MWF 10:00-10:50
- ITAL 103 – Intermediate Italian I — MWF 12:00-12:50 & MWF 1:00-1:50
- ITAL 104 – Intermediate Italian II — MWF 11:00-11:50 & MWF 12:00-12:50
Advanced Italian
ITAL 200: Italian in Practice. MWF 10:00-10:50. Carney.
This course is designed for students interested in working with the specificity of oral Italian in order to advance their oral proficiency while also enhancing their listening comprehension, fluency, syntactic accuracy, and pronunciation. Students will be exposed to, and learn to analyze and discuss, a broad spectrum of Italian discourse styles, from a variety of sources: Opera, the arts, the business world, fairytales, advertising, newspapers, songs, films, and a novel. While the course emphasizes the continued development of language skills, exposure to a variety of discourses and genres aims at advancing students’ awareness of the sociocultural complexity of Italy, developing multiliteracies and intercultural reflexivity through a critically oriented pedagogy.
Prerequisite(s): Grade of C or better in ITAL 104; or appropriate score on the department placement test or consent of the instructor.
ITAL 300: L’Italia dal fascismo ad oggi: storia, letteratura, cinema, e musica. MWF 1:00-1:50. Fabbian.
This course focuses on the emotions in relations to Italian culture, politics, history, and society, showing their important role in the development of specific policies and in the construction of ideologies. We will investigate representations of emotions in Italian films, writings, music, and paintings as well as the ways in which emotions are deployed in the artistic world to support of challenge existing social structures, political beliefs, and ideologies. For example, we will examine the complex interplay of emotions inspired by Fascism and the Second World War in the collective memory; we will discuss emotions in relation to national, personal, and gender identity (reaction to the socio-economic changes wrought by Italy’s economic miracle, when the traditional hierarchical roles within society begin to be questioned) as well as economic boom. Finally, we will deconstruct rhetorical expedients and emotions inspired by the encounter with the “other” through close analysis of contemporary cultural productions.
While the course emphasizes the continued development of language skills, exposure to a variety of discourses and genres aims at advancing students’ socio-cultural awareness while promoting critical and intercultural reflection.
Prerequisite: ITAL 200, 201, or 202.