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, comprehensive 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.

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, presentations, and video skit productions. Usually offered every spring.

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 in order to reach intermediate proficiency. 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 implementing task-based instruction and interpretive, interpersonal, and presentational assessment. Typical themes include social conflicts, Italian family, the Italian educational system, and immigration. Usually offered every fall.

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 Interdisciplinary Major. Usually offered every semester.

ITAL 98a Independent Study

May be taken only with the written permission of the Undergraduate Advising Head.

Reading and reports under faculty supervision, which could include a senior essay or other approved project. Usually offered every year.

ITAL 98b Independent Study

Yields half-course credit. May be taken only with the written permission of the Undergraduate Advising Head.

Reading and reports under faculty supervision, which could include a senior essay or other approved project. Usually offered every year.

ITAL 105a Italian Conversation and Composition
[ fl hum oc ]

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.

This course is designed for students interested in continuing the study of the Italian language, culture, and literature beyond the intermediate level. The development of oral and written proficiency is emphasized through the expansion of vocabulary and activities aimed to improve analytical, interpretive, and presentational skills. The course uses the UN Sustainable Developments Goals to frame important aspects of contemporary Italy. Through a series of activities that practice listening, speaking, reading, and writing in Italian, students reflect on the social impact of our environmental behavior, the importance of art and music in translating experiences, changing opinions, and instilling values, the social impact of the internet in raising voices, creating awareness and calling for social change, how activism ensure inclusion and equality. Usually offered every spring.

ITAL 106a Storia e storie d'Italia: Advanced Italian through Narrative, Film, and Other Media
[ fl hum oc ]

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.

Aims to prepare students for upper-level courses and to advance language fluency through the practice of all language skills at different ranges of advanced proficiency, grammatical structures, and vocabulary. This course offers a close study and analysis of representative Italian literary texts and films to further improve proficiency in Italian through analytical, interpretive, and presentational activities. 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 other fall.

ITAL 110a Introduction to Italian Literature: Love, Intrigues and Politics from Dante to Goldoni
[ fl hum oc ]

Prerequisite: ITAL 105a or 106a or permission of the instructor.

Surveys the masterpieces of Italian literature from Dante to Goldoni's stage. Students will explore different themes such as love, conflict, and politics in Italian early masterpieces by analyzing and comparing genres, historical periods, and schools of thought. Since Oral communication skills are the core of methodology and pedagogy for Italian 110, students will work on primary texts through dynamic and guided discussions, interpretative textual analysis, and different styles of presentations. Usually offered every second year.
 

ITAL 120b Modern Italian Literature: From Page to the Screen
[ fl hum ]

Prerequisite: ITAL 105a or 106a or permission of the instructor.

Focuses on Italian masterpiece literature from the twentieth century to the present, including writers such as Lampedusa, as well as contemporary writers, such as Baricco, Ammaniti, and Ferrante with emphasis on the theme of historical, individual, and familial identity within the context of 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 second year.

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.

ITAL 134b Voci e storie della cultura ebraica italiana
[ 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 medieval times to the founding of the ghetto in Venice in 1516 and leading Jewish figures of the Renaissance. Works of modern 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.

CLAS 114a The Phoenician and Punic Mediterranean
[ hum ]

Investigates the archaeology and history of the Phoenician and Punic Mediterranean. We will begin by examining the representation of Phoenician and Punic identity in the social, political, and cultural movements of the 19th century onwards. We will dissect how these have impacted the scholarly tradition and the very definition of what we think of as Phoenician and Punic. We will pay particular attention to recent scholarship on the Phoenicians, which has aimed to challenge older positivist and overly simple conceptions of Phoenician and Punic empires. Following this, we will use a variety of archaeological, epigraphic, and historical sources to trace the origins of the Phoenicians in the Levant, their growth and expansion, and later colonization of parts of the eastern and western Mediterranean. An important area of study within this survey of the archaeological and historical development will be discussions of the nature of Phoenician colonization and cultural interaction in “colonial” contexts. The third part of the course explores the emergence of arguably the most famous Phoenician city, Carthage; we will investigate its beginnings as a small Phoenician settlement and its transformation into one of the most influential city-states in the Mediterranean by the 6th century BCE. Additionally, we will trace the formation of its unique brand of Punic identity and its mercantile empire. Topics investigated will include social, political, and religious identities in the Punic world, together with the maritime and economic success of Carthage. The final area of study will focus on the great conflict between Carthage and Rome, known as the Punic Wars, and the subsequent end of Punic hegemony in the Central and Western Mediterranean. Usually offered every year.

CLAS 115b Topics in Greek and Roman History
[ hum ]

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.

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.

CLAS 122a Exploring the Roman Army
[ hum ]

Provides a comprehensive examination of the Roman army, tracing its evolution from a citizen militia to a highly organized professional force responsible for safeguarding a vast empire. We will analyze archaeological and literary evidence to understand the army's equipment, tactics, and the lived experiences of soldiers in battle. As one of the first professional standing armies in history, the Roman army has been the object of much admiration and study. This course will cover the changing organization and role of the army and its fighting techniques from the mid-Republic to the later Imperial period, the lives of the soldiers who served in the various branches of the army, and its effectiveness as a fighting force. Particular attention will be paid to using archaeological and literary evidence in conjunction, and to local resources and evidence for studying the Roman army. Usually offered every second year.

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.

CLAS 136b Ancient Technology and Modern Approaches
[ hum ]

Examines the greatest technological discoveries from the classical world. How did these engineering and technological marvels turn the tides of war and alter the trajectory of civilizations? In hands-on modules, this course will introduce modern technology such as 3D Scanning & Printing, XRF, Virtual Reality, Drones and others, as a means of analyzing the ancient world. Usually offered every third year.

CLAS 140a Women, Gender, and Sexuality in Greek and Roman Art and Text
[ ca djw hum wi ]

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.

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.

CLAS 161a The Corrupting Sea: Cities and Communities of the Ancient Mediterranean
[ hum ]

Examines the relationship between people and the natural and built environment in the ancient Mediterranean. A primary aim is to study the ecological and environmental diversity and history of the Mediterranean region over the long durée, from prehistory to the early Medieval period. The course will be broken into thematic sections; firstly, it will consider the geographical and historical conceptualizations of the Mediterranean, particularly questioning an outdated paradigm that it can be understood as a unified region. The second part of the course will study the ancient environment and microecologies through a regional survey. We look at the effects these had on settlement patterns and the development of different types of urban communities. We will also consider connectivity on land, riverways, and on the sea itself. The role of the Mediterranean Sea, its archipelagos and islands will be considered. The third part of the course will focus on the subsistence strategies of Mediterranean communities and cities; this will comprise an analysis of change in agrarian practices and seafaring overtime and the impact of technological innovation, along with studying the history of food systems more generally. An essential part of this will examine the effect of environmental disasters on agrarian societies and the subsequent socio-political effects, including the rise and fall of some of the ancient Mediterranean’s cultures and civilizations. Usually offered every third year.

FA 45a Early Renaissance Art in Tuscany from the Age of Dante to the Medici
[ ca ]

Course to be taught at Brandeis program in Siena.

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. Usually offered every year.

FA 46b High and Late Renaissance in Italy
[ ca ]

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 second year.

FA 48a Baroque Art and Architecture in Italy
[ ca ]

This course counts towards minors in Architectural Studies, Italian Studies, and Medieval and Renaissance Studies.

Immerse yourself in the spectacle of Papal Rome during the long seventeenth-century (1580-1730) when it was the artistic capital of Europe. We will study Caravaggio and Bernini in depth as the prevailing artistic forces, while considering the major contributions of the Carracci, Borromini, Poussin, Gentileschi, and Cortona. Apart from the patronage strategies of successive Popes and how they reshaped Rome with grand churches, palaces, and urban spaces, we will consider architectural and artistic production in such diverse centers as Venice, Naples, Bologna, and Turin. Usually offered every third year.

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.

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.

HIST 131a Hitler's Europe in Film
[ dl 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.

HIST 140a A History of Fashion in Europe
[ dl 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.

HIST 142a Crime, Deviance, and Confinement in Modern Europe
[ ss ]

Examines the crisis of law and order in old regime states and explores the prison and asylum systems that emerged in modern Europe. Surveys psychiatry and forensic science from the Napoleonic period until World War II. Usually offered every third year.

HIST 170a Italian Films, Italian Histories
[ dl 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.

HIST 186a Europe in World War II
[ dl ss wi ]

Examines the military and diplomatic, social and economic history of the war. Topics include war origins; allied diplomacy; the neutrals; war propaganda; occupation, resistance, and collaboration; the mass murder of the Jews; "peace feelers"; the war economies; scientific warfare and the development of nuclear weapons; and the origins of the Cold War. Usually offered every third year.