Accusations against the Catholic Church of brazen interferences with the political workings of the Italian state(s) are frequent and often come at the expense of the Church’s role as spiritual guide. However just as writers lament intrusions of religious authority in the secular realm, the language and imagery of the Church permeate many articulations of Italian politics, specifically when guidance of the fold bleeds into control over the citizenry.

In this course, we will examine the slippage between these two authorities—religious and profane—at moments of conflict and apparent harmony as well as attempt to chart the evolution of laws within the struggle to divide, or rather, better delineate the identities and responsibilities of Church and State. Our primary goal, as we interpret works spanning different media and time periods, is to grasp the scope and nature of how these entities are defined, by whom and to what end, in order to gain insight into the dynamism characterizing their interactions with each other and with the subjects they govern.

Moreover, while class discussions will acknowledge the socio-historical realities within which the authors of our texts worked (e.g. the Counter Reformation, the Enlightenment, the Risorgimento etc.), efforts will also be made to explore the fantastical, literary and utopian aspects in each of these authors’ reactions to the status quo and to the powers-that-be. In particular, we will look at the ways in which authors apply the discourse of one authority to conceive—and more significantly critique—the role of the other, seemingly opposite, entity. The vision of reality that subsequently results will allow us to not only measure the success (or failure) of the rules governing society, but also to question the boundaries protecting the self from the outside world.

Course Requirements: Regular attendance and active participation; quizzes; two papers; and a final exam

Texts: Online course reader with selections from Catherine of Siena, Dante Alighieri, Cesare Beccaria, Giordano Bruno, Marchesa Colombi, Veronica Franco, Galileo Galilei, Alessandro Manzoni, Niccolò Machiavelli, Matilde Serao, Torquato Tasso, and others

Prerequisites: Italian 101A or B or consent of instructor.