ATS2164 Italian transformations: Reading and writing self-discovery

The unit will explore a selection of fiction and non-fiction texts that treat Italy as a site for transformations of the self. These self-discoveries are usually cast as positive but are on occasion of a more unsettling or disturbing kind. The unit will investigate why Italy has been a key site of renewal and 'undoing' in literature and will track the changes in the way such transformations of the self have been achieved. It will also account for the popularity of such narratives with readers past and present. In this unit there will be an emphasis on 'geo-located' reading experiences and writing exercises. For this reason there will be a particular focus on 'Tuscan transformations'; we will visit the actual sites and scenes of our texts and there will also be regular in situ writing excursions in Prato and surrounds.