From the incessant chewing of Dante’s Count Ugolino on his arch-nemesis’ head in Inferno to Dacia Maraini’s twentieth-century poem “Devour me too,” the most famous Italian authors have persistently turned to food in their writing. If a gastronomic theme seems like an obvious choice to attract readers, the truth is that representations of food often contain complex and profound messages that go far beyond taste. Departing from a variety of texts and films that span from the classical to the contemporary, we’ll work to understand how food is used in literature to express everything from religious faith to political strategy to social values. Our goal will be to interpret and interrogate the sources, in an effort to understand how Italian authors have used the universal familiarity and direct intimacy of food to communicate with their audiences, and to determine how we can use similar tactics to become stronger and more effective communicators ourselves.

Required Texts:

All texts and materials will be provided in digital format.

Course Objectives and Requirements:

This course fulfills the first half of the Reading and Composition requirement. Our primary goal is to develop and hone our skills as active, critical readers and analytical writers. To this end, students will be expected to thoroughly read all assigned texts, attend class regularly, participate in class discussion, and complete all written assignments and revisions. 

Due to the high demand for R&C courses we monitor attendance very carefully. Attendance is mandatory the first two weeks of classes, this includes all enrolled and wait listed students. If you do not attend all classes the first two weeks you may be dropped. If you are attempting to add into this class during weeks 1 and 2 and did not attend the first day, you will be expected to attend all class meetings thereafter and, if space permits, you may be enrolled from the wait list.