After modern.

NOT to be confused with postmodern, which is a bit different.

I took my modern exam yesterday, and I was really surprised with the exam.

First of all, they changed the format of the exam, something that I wasn't expecting them to do and something that they hadn't done for at least 7 years, from what I can tell from old exams.

In preparing for exams, I prepared myself to answer in the fashioned that I described below: 4 short answers comprising about 1 hour total, betwen 1/2 to 3/4 of a page each, followed up with 2 long answers, each being about 1 hour.

So, they pulled a fast one on me, getting me to read that whole entire huge list because I was really nervous for the short questions (the long questions too, but especially the short questions for some reason), and they got rid of the short questions!

I was left with answering 3 long questions, the first being a pair of two questions and choosing one, and then choosing two out of a group of four.

The choices were, basically (I won't write out the whole questions because I don't think that anyone actually reads this blog and even if they do, I don't want to completely bore you):

A. women or partisan's in Calvino's Sentiero dei nidi di ragno

B. Discuss the malessere of Zeno and his triumphs and/or defeats.

A. Pirandello's use of the play-within-a-play in Sei personaggi...

B. Discuss Ungaretti's L'allegria as "lirica nuova".

C. Discuss Visconti's Ossessione as an anticipation of neorealism.

D. Compare and contrast Croce's idealism to Gramsci's marxism.

The first choices surprised me because I thought that Calvino wouldn't come up on this exam since I'm writing my special topic exam on him (tomorrow--ugh) and we just completed a class on Calvino. And Zeno is such a huge milestone on the list, I thought that it would at least be one of his other works. Needless to say, I was happy to choose option B, because I love Svevo and his malessere for all it is!

The second four choices honestly surprised me even more, because I couldn't believe that Pirandello's Sei personaggi actually came up. I mean, I'm thrilled it did because, well, it's awesome, well-known, and there's plenty to say about it. And Ossessione? Really? Again, plenty to say about it. So those were the two questions I answered, but not just because I had plenty to say, but when you look at the other two options, HELLO! Ungaretti? Poetry? My biggest fear--skip! Croce and Gramsci? The other part of my worst nightmare? Theory? No brainer! Skip!

If my professors are reading this blog, I promise I'm working really hard on finishing up my preparations for Prelim #2 this week, and I'm really looking forward to starting my dissertation even more. I'm pretty sure they aren't reading it, since I'm pretty sure that no one is. But still.

But for now, Thank you. Thank you for throwing all of us a bone.

judgement day, part 1.

so this is it. the day i've been preparing for all summer, all winter, and all spring. not in that order, obviously. but still.

the exam is structured così:

6 ID questions, worth 1 hour. answer 4 of the 6 briefly but pertinently.

2 pairs of long-answer questions, 1 hour each. answer 1 of 2 for each pair.

1 hour of revising. which can at times also be used to fill in the gaps where they were before.

i should be done with this first exam in about 4 hours, tops. well, i have to be done in 4 hours. 

aaaaaaahhhhhhhhh!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DhrfhjLd9e4

this is my mantra.

4 Days to go!

Well, technically, I won't be completely done with the exam process for two weeks, assuming everything goes well. I'm in the process of typing up my notes and, to be perfectly honest, it's probably better I haven't been posting them to the blog since they would most likely make little to no sense to anyone, since they are not in one consistent language, complete sentences or even complete thoughts, some of the time.  However, I am GOING to weigh in on at least the personal highlights of the reading list for me, and I'm going to do it soon! Like, tonight, when I've typed up notes for at least 1/3 of the things on my list, but hopefully 1/2.

T minus 16 days.

So I'm 16 days from the first of two written exams, and I've got plenty more than 16 things to read, plus I'm taking two graphics classes and have other non-academic commitments. But it's okay. I'm going to get through this. With a little help from coffee (which I hadn't been drinking at all this summer).

I'm getting closer to the end of the list, but there are other lists and other things to read right around the corner.

and no one reads this, anyway, right?

SPECIAL TOPIC: Italo Calvino between the modern and the postmodern

In addition to taking an exam on 20th century literature in August, I also take something called a "Special Topic" reading list.  Formed in conjunction with my advisor, this list is supposed to theoretically help me prepare for writing a dissertation. Sometimes the exam list can go on to be a chapter or part of a chapter of the dissertation.  

When I was thinking about what would be the most beneficial way to approach the exam, I decided that the best thing to do would be to kill as many birds as possible with the fewest number of stones.  One of my courses this semester, which I love, is a seminar on Italo Calvino, one of the more internationally famous Italian writers.  So, of course, he seemed like a good choice for a special topic.  

Here is my reading list:

Primary books

Calvino, Italo. Sentiero dei nidi di ragno (1946) - Path to the spider's nest

Calvino, Italo. Ultimo viene il corvo (1949) - 

Calvino, Italo. Il visconte dimezzato (1951) - The cloven viscount

Calvino, Italo. La formica argentina (1952) - The argentine ant

Calvino, Italo. Il barone rampante (1957) - The baron in the trees

Calvino, Italo. La speculazione edilizia (1957) - A plunge into real estate

Calvino, Italo. La nuvola di smog (1958) - Smog

Calvino, Italo. Il cavaliere inesistente (1959) - The nonexistent knight

Calvino, Italo. La giornata di uno scrutatore (1963) - The watcher

Calvino, Italo. Castello dei destini incrociati (1973) - Castle of crossed destinies

Calvino, Italo. Se una notte d'inverno un viaggiatore (1979) - If on winter's night a traveler...

On its own, this list actually is really doable. I've read most of the books, and I feel like I could definitely use some of them in a dissertation.  But, wait for it. The secondary list is the theory, criticism and otherwise much more dense and difficult section.  

Secondary sources

Benjamin, Walter. Illuminations

Bové, Paul A. Early postmodernism: Foundational essays

Calinescu, Matei. Five faces of modernity: modernism, avant-garde, decadence, kitsch, postmodernism

Cannon, Joann. Postmodern italian fiction

Hutcheon, Linda. selection from Poetics of the Postmodern

Jameson, Frederic. Postmodernism, or the cultural logic of late capitalism

Luperini, Romano.  selections from Allegoria del Moderno

Markey, Constance. "Calvino and the existential dilemma"

Markey, Constance. Calvino: a journey toward the postmodern

McHale, Brian. Postmodernist fiction

Pacifici, Sergio. selection from From Verismo to Existentialism: essays on the modern italian novel

Robbe-Gillet, Alain. For a new novel--essays on fiction

Todorov, Tzvetan. The fantastic: a structural approach to literary genre

Vattimo, Gianni. The end of modernity: nihilism and hermenetics in postmodern culture

Wittgenstein, Ludwig. selection from Philosophical investigations

Honestly, I was relieved that the list was finally approved and has been filed away into my personal database of things that I need to learn between now and August. It felt really good to go in with a list that I felt would be useful and was also not too daunting and hear "You know, you have too much criticism. But I'm very pleased with this list." What a feeling!

Modern Reading List (20th century)

In the Italian department, they divide the reading lists into sections: Medieval (1200s-1300s), Renaissance (1400s-1600s), Early Moden (1700s-1800s), Modern (1900s-present) and Linguistics. You pick 3 exams. You take 2 exams in the first round and 2 exams in the second round (the 2nd exam in this round is your "Special Topic", which is designed with your Advisor). I'm currently studying for my second round, in which I'll take the Modern Exam and my Special Topic (I took Early Modern and Linguistics in the first round back in January). If you're interested in what I'm reading, it's probably from this list. If there is an English translation to the title, I included it afterwards.

1. Pascoli, Myricae
2. Pascoli, I canti di Castelvecchio
3. D’Annunzio, Il trionfo della morte (Triumph of Death)
4. D’Annunzio. Alcyone
5. D’Annunzio, Il piacere (Child of Pleasure)
6. D’Annnzio, La figlia di Iorio (The Daughter of Jorio)
7. D’Annunzio, Poema paradisiaco:Alla nutrice.
8. Croce,Breviario di estetica (Breviary of Aesthetics)
9. Croce, La poesia (Poetry)
10-14. Pirandello, from Novelle: La giara; Ciaula; Tragedia di un personaggio; La cariola; Ieri, oggi, domani. (Jar, Ciaula, Tragedy of a character, Carriola, Yesterday, Today Tomorrow)
15. Pirandello, Il fu Mattia Pascal (The Late Mattia Pascal)
16. Pirandello, Sei personaggi in cerca d'autore (Six Characters in Search of an Author)
17. Pirandello, Cosí è, se vi pare (So it is, if you think so)
18. Pirandello, Enrico IV (Henry IV)
19. Aleramo, Una donna (A Woman)
20. Deledda, Canne al vento (Cane in the Wind)
21. Svevo, Senilità (A Man Grows Older)
22. Svevo, La coscienza di Zeno (Zeno’s Conscience)
23. Gozzano, Le poesie (Poetry)
24. Corrazzini, Poesie edite e inedite (Poetry edited and unedited)
25. Marinetti, selections from Teoria e invenzione futurista (Futurist Theory and Invention)
26. Marinetti, Manifesti del futurismo (Futurist manifestos)
27. Campana, Canti orfici (orphic cantos)
28. Saba, Il Canzoniere (Collection of Poems)
29. Ungaretti, L'Allegria (Happiness)
30. Ungaretti, Sentimento del tempo (Snetiment of Time)
31. Ungaretti, La terra promessa (The promised land)
32. Montale, Ossi di seppia (Cuttlefish bones)
33. Montale, Le occasioni (Occasions)
34. Montale, La bufera e altro (The storm and others)
35. Montale, Satura (Satura)
36. Montale, Diario del 71 e del 72 (Diary of ’71 and ’72)
37. Montale, Auto da fe
38. Tozzi, Il podere
39. Gramsci, Letteratura e vita nazionale (Literature and National Life)
40. Bernari, Tre operai (Three Workers)
41. Buzzati, Il deserto dei Tartari
42. Banti, Artemisia
43. Betti, Corruzione al palazzo di giustizia (Corruption at the Palace of Justice)
44. Gadda, Quer pasticciaccio brutto in via Merulana (That Awful Mess on Via Merulana)
45. Gadda, La cognizione del dolore (Cognition of Pain)
46. Moravia, Gli indifferenti (The Indifferent Ones)
47. Moravia, Agostino
48. Moravia, La noia (Boredom)
49. Vitorini, Conversazione in Sicilia (Conversations in Sicily)
50. Vittorini, Uomini o no (Men and Not Men)
51. Pavese, La casa in collina (The House on the Hill)
52. Pavese, La luna e i falò (Moon and the bonfires)
53. Morante, La Storia (History)
54. Pratolini, Metello
55. Quasimodo, Tutte le poesie (All the poems)
56-67. Dalla scelta di Mengaldo, Poeti italiani del Novecento: Palazzeschi, Gatto, Luzi, Penna, Sereni, Pasolini, Fortini, Zanzotto, Pagliarani, Sanguineti, Porta, Rosselli.
68. Ginzburg, Le voci della sera (Voices of the night)
69. Ginzburg, Lessico famigliare (Family Sayings)
70. Ortese, Il mare non bagna Napoli
71. Bassani, Cinque storie ferraresi (5 Stories of Ferrara)
72. Bassani, Il giardino dei Finzi-Contini (Garden of the Finzi-Continis)
73. Lampedusa, Il gattopardo (The Leopard)
74. Pasolini, Ragazzi di vita (Boys of Life)
75. Sciascia, A ciascuno il suo (To each his own)
76. Calvino, Il sentiero dei nidi di ragno (The path to the Spider’s nest)
77. Calvino, Le cosmicomiche (Cosmicomics)
78. Calvino, Se una notte d'inverno un viaggiatore (If on winter’s night a traveler)
79. Fo, Selections from Le commedie (the Comedies)
80. Malerba, Il serpente (The Serpent)
81. Manganelli, Nuovo commento (New comment)
82. Manganelli, Centuria (100 Ourbouric tales)
83. Consolo, Il sorriso dell'ignoto marinaio (The smile of the unknown mariner)
84. Celati, Le avventure di Guizzardi (Adventures of the Guizzardi)
85. Volponi, Le mosche del capitale (Flies from the capital)
86. Eco, Il nome della rosa (The name of the rose)
87. Tabucchi, Notturno indiano (Indian nights)
88. Tondelli, Camere separate (Separate bedrooms)
89. Del Giudice, Atlante occidentale (Western Atlas)
90. Maraini, La lunga vita di Marianna Ucria (The silent duchess)
91. Vassalli, La chimera (The chimera)
92. Capriolo, Il doppio regno (The double-reign)
93-120 Selections from M. Cucchi, S. Giovanardi (a cura di), Poeti italiani del secondo Novecento, 1945-1995, Milano: Mondadori Editore, 1996.: A. Bertolucci, M. Luzi, G. Carponi, V. Sereni, P. Pasolini, F. Fortini, R. Roversi, L. Erba, R. Scotellaro, M.L.Spaziani, A. Merini, A. Zanzotto, E. Pagliarani, E. Sanguineti, A. Giuliani, N. Balestrini, A. Porta, A. Rosselli, G.Giudici, G. Raboni, C. Viviani, P. Cavalli, V. Zeichen, M. Cucchi, M. De Angelis, G. Conte, V. Magrelli, Patrizia Valduga

Cinema
Visconti: Ossessione (Obsession)
Rossellini: Roma città aperta (Rome open city)
Pasolini: Accattone
Fellini: 8 1/2
Antonioni: L'avventura
Bertolucci: Il conformista