BERGAMO
Overview
Date/time interval
Syllabus
Course Objectives
By the end of the course, students will have acquired a foundational knowledge of the history of Chinese literature, organized around key concepts, authors, and literary genres, from the Classical period beginning with the Zhou dynasty through the Qing dynasty, with particular attention to major historical developments and dynastic periodization.
Students will also have developed the ability to situate historical events, authors, and literary works within their appropriate historical and literary contexts, as well as to engage in critical discussion of the principal literary genres covered in the course. In addition, they will be able to trace the diachronic development of Chinese poetry, drama, and narrative prose.
With regard to the study of works in Chinese, by the end of the course students will be able to identify, contextualize, and analyze a selection of texts in the original language, accompanied by pinyin romanization.
Course Prerequisites
Having atetnded the Chinese culture course; Chinese A2 level.
Teaching Methods
Lectures and in-depth seminar sessions will be delivered with the support of PowerPoint presentations and audiovisual materials. Interactive activities and flipped classroom approaches are also planned. The teaching materials available on the e-learning platform are considered compulsory study material.
Assessment Methods
The final examination consists of an oral exam conducted in Italian, designed to assess whether the learning objectives of the course have been achieved.
The exam will consist of a maximum of three questions per module.
The oral examination aims to assess:
- knowledge of the distinctive features of the works, literary movements, and genres covered during the course;
- knowledge of the biographical background and historical-cultural context of the authors introduced during the course;
- knowledge of the historical and literary contexts of the different periods studied;
- the ability to place the primary literary works examined during the course within their historical and cultural contexts;
- the ability to adopt a diachronic perspective across the periods studied, providing a concise overview (through key points and concepts, and by referring to the most representative authors and works);
- the ability to analyze a text (presented in the original language with pinyin alongside it) from stylistic, formal, thematic, and historical-critical perspectives.
For third-year students, the assessment will also take into account the correct pronunciation of the names of authors and the titles of the works selected for the examination.
The oral exam grade will be assigned according to the following rubric, bearing in mind that there will be a maximum of two questions per module (for a total of up to six questions):
• Excellent (30 cum laude):
Excellent knowledge of the course content and outstanding ability to analyze texts and place them in their proper context (especially for Module C). Presentation is precise, accurate, effective, refined, and appropriate, with the use of Chinese terminology.
• Very Good (27–30):
Very good knowledge of the course content and very good ability to analyze and contextualize texts appropriately (especially for Module C). Presentation is precise, accurate, and appropriate, with Chinese titles and key terms correctly mentioned.
• Good (24–26):
Good knowledge of the course content, although discussion of the assigned texts is mainly descriptive, with an acceptable ability to analyze and synthesize. Presentation is clear and the language is generally accurate. Chinese concepts are pronounced correctly.
• Adequate / Pass (18–23):
Appropriate but incomplete knowledge of the course content. The ability to analyze and translate texts is limited but sufficient. Language is simple, with some errors and superficiality in Italian. The student does not remember the names of authors, literary genres, or the titles of key works that were presented primarily in Chinese during the course (e.g., Mengzi or Lunyu).
• Fail (below 18):
Knowledge of the course content is partial and superficial. Texts are analyzed and contextualized in a superficial and confused manner. Presentation is fragmented and unclear, with serious errors in Italian.
Contents
More specifically, this first part of the course will address the following key topics:
The ideological and literary significance of the Five Confucian Classics.
Classical poetry: the Shijing (Book of Songs) and the Chuci (Songs of Chu).
Classical historiography: the Shujing (Book of Documents), the Chunqiu (Spring and Autumn Annals), and the Zuo Commentary (Zuo Zhuan).
Philosophical texts: reading and analysis of selected passages from the Analects (Lunyu), the Zhuangzi, the Mencius (Mengzi), and the Han Feizi.
Han poetry: the fu rhapsodies of Sima Xiangru and the ballad of Zhuo Wenjun.
Han historiography: Sima Qian and the Records of the Grand Historian (Shiji); the Ban family and the Book of Han (Hanshu).
Writing for women? Ban Zhao and her Lessons for Women (Nüjie).
Medieval Chinese literature: literary criticism and poetry.
Module B covers knowledge of the history of Chinese literature from the Tang to the Qing dynasties.
More specifically, this second part of the course will address the following key topics:
Tang poetry.
The ci lyric tradition: from Li Yu (Later Tang/Southern Tang) to Li Qingzhao (Song).
Song fu: Su Shi.
Yuan drama: Guan Hanqing and Ma Zhiyuan.
The Chinese novel: from classical narrative traditions to the vernacular (baihua) fiction of the great novels.
More information
Attending/Non-attending students: Please note that the slides (PPT) available on Moodle are intended for attending students who, by participating in the lectures, have the opportunity to understand and critically engage with the content. The slides are used solely as an outline or guide for the lecture and must always be supplemented with the study of the assigned bibliography.