Corso di laurea in Lettere

The course aims at: –endowing the students with a solid knowledge of Latin language through the exercise of analysis and translation of Latin texts in prose and verse; –introducing them to the scientific study of Latin literature through the examination of different genres and styles; –providing basic elements of the philological and critical method, teaching how to read a critical apparatus and discuss textual and interpretative problems. The aim is to improve the students' skills in the comprehension, Italian rendering, and interpretation of texts, through the reading (and metrical reading), the (written and oral) translation, the morpho-syntactical analysis, the commentary and literary-critical framing of the proposed passages.

At the end of the course, the student must demonstrate:

-knowledge of the Latin language, metrics and literary tradition; basic philological knowledge and ability to read the apparatus of a critical edition; awareness of the critical debate on a work in its historical development; understanding of the dynamics of literary reception;

-ability to translate and critically analyse a text of Latin prose or poetry, with awareness of different methodological approaches and mastery of basic philological tools;

-ability to discuss the main philological and interpretative problems posed by a Latin text, with a conscious critical reflection and autonomy of judgement;

-ability to give an adherent and fluent Italian translation of Latin prose and poetry texts; clarity, property and expressive maturity in discussing topics related to the discipline;

-ability to elaborate the acquired knowledge, applying it to the study of other authors and texts of Latin literature.

A separate test on literary history will ascertain:

-the handbook knowledge of the main authors and works;

-the ability to locate literary phenomena within a historical context;

-the comprehension of the fundamental lines of development of Latin literary culture.

The course requires an active participation by the students, who are invited to practise the translation of the proposed passages, at home and in classroom, with the teacher's guidance.

Both module 1 and module 2 (held by Prof. Bessone) include a written and an oral test. The overall grade is determined by the average of the two modules.

The standard exam of prof. Manca consists of:

1) written test (translation in part without vocabulary, in part with vocabulary, of historical texts not taught in class, to be passed with at least a sufficient mark (18/30).

2) oral exam (correction of the written exam, translation and commentary of the texts in the program, competence on the 600 words of the basic lexicon of Latin and rapid translation from Italian of the entries of the words paradigm rosa, lupus, civis, cantus, dies, laudo , moneo, lego, audio, topics covered in class).

N.B. 1. The written test does not preclude taking the oral exam, but must in any case be taken before; Those who do not pass it can still access the oral exam, without prejudice to the obligation to recover it in subsequent appeals.

In particular, the oral exam includes the following parts.

A) Translation and morphosyntactic commentary of all the steps carried out during the course, including the assigned tasks.

B) All the insights into morphology, syntax and history of the language carried out in class.

C) Ability to quickly translate (twenty voices in 2 minutes) of declensions (rosa, lupus, civis, cantus, dies) and active and passive conjugations (including noun forms; laudo, moneo, lego, audio).

D) Knowledge of the 600 basic words of Latin.

(points C and D can possibly be quickly checked in writing immediately before the interview)

E) History of Latin literature. The exam program of the I module of 6 CFU in the SSD L-FIL-LET / 04 - whatever it is - includes the study of Latin literature from its origins to Tito Livio included; the reading of the anthological passages in the textbook at least in Italian is mandatory. The authors who will be the main (but not exclusive) topic of the exam are the following: Livio Andronicus, Nevio, Plautus, Ennio, Cato, Terentius, Lucilius, Lucretius, Catullus, Cicero, Cesare, Cornelio Nepote, Sallustio, Varrone, Virgilio, Horace, Tibullus, Propertius, Ovid, Titus Livius. Anyone who has already taken this program in previous Latin exams will replace the old literature, with the exception of Christian authors; the reading of the anthological passages in the textbook at least in Italian is mandatory. The authors who will be the main (but not exclusive) topic of the exam are the following: Seneca father, Phaedrus, Curzio Rufo, Seneca, Lucano, Persio, Petronius, Stazio, Martial, Quintilian, Pliny the elder, Juvenal, Pliny the young, Suetonius, Tacitus, Apuleius, Ausonius, Ammianus, Claudian, Macrobius. Anyone who has already taken both literary history programs will bring 50 pages chosen from among the essays that will be included in the didactic material.

Non-attending students: The version and points C) D) remain unchanged; point A) and B) are replaced with translation and autonomous grammatical commentary of the first book of book III of the Epigrams of Martial.

The preparation will be considered adequate, with a mark expressed out of thirty (minimum mark to pass the written test: 18/30) if the student demonstrates the following skills:

- translation into good Italian, written and oral, of Latin texts of medium difficulty;

- accurate and in-depth presentation of the contents learned, with lexical and technical mastery;

- articulated re-elaboration of the teaching contents;

- ability to apply the methodology learned to other texts.

N.B. Those who have already brought all the literary history contact the teacher for substitute readings.

Cuius uis fieri, libelle, munus? More on Martial and literature.

With this introductory verse to the third book of the Epigrams Martial poses the problem of the literary public: each book has its recipient and each public has its own book: when public and text meet, that is literature. This topic will be developed during the teaching.

also will be taught:

translation technique

lexical learning

basic structures of Latin

Martial's texts will be provided in class. Those who want a complete edition can purchase the one suggested in the bibliography or any current edition with Latin text (BUR, Oscar Mondadori, etc.). Please pay attention, because many editions are not complete.

Lectures take place in the classroom, in presence. Only in case of sanitary restrictions distance learning will be guaranteed.

All students interested in attending the course are invited to register online (at the bottom of this page: "Registrati al corso"), to be updated on the latest news. It is recommended that you often consult your institutional mailbox and the "Avvisi" on the teacher’s page and on the course page.

The course is also addressed to students who inserted 'Latin language and translation' in their study programme in previous academic years.