RUSSIAN LITERATURE 2

The course is entitled: 'The Golden Age of Russian Novel'.
Through the presentation of the main works and themes of Russian literature of the nineteenth century, as well as through the close reading of some extracts, the aim is to provide specific knowledge on the emblematic issues of politics, society and customs of the time, with particular attention to its central part, which goes from the revolt of the Decembrists (1825) to the end of the reign of Alexander II (1881); particular attention is paid to the historical background in which the phenomena of literary culture in the period studied are inscribed. The achievement of these objectives allows to have the basis for the study of other eras of Russian culture and for the possible subsequent in-depth study of its individual aspects and protagonists.

This course is one of the core educational activities of the Degree Course in Language, Civilisation and the Science of Language ("Literatures and Culture" curriculum) that enable students to deepen their knowledge of the literary and cultural heritage of the two chosen languages.

1. Knowledge and understanding:
- Knowledge of basic critical-literary terminology and understanding of texts using it;
- Knowledge of the main literary, artistic and cultural phenomena in Russia in the 19th century;
- Knowledge and understanding of the historical and cultural development process of Russia in the 19th century;
- knowledge of the main methodologies of analysing the literary object;
2. Ability to apply knowledge and understanding:
- ability to correctly use critical-literary terminology in all processes of application and communication of the acquired knowledge;
- ability to place a literary object relating to the period studied in its historical-cultural context;
- ability to apply the methodologies of analysis for understanding the society and culture that produced the studied object;
- ability to autonomously initiate a close examination of specific cases using a methodology of analysis of the literary object.
3. Judgement capacity:
Knowing how to formulate and argue simple interpretative hypotheses of literary texts, also developing a critical approach to the evaluation of alternative hypotheses.
4. Communication skills:
- To know how to communicate the specifics of critical-literary reflection, using appropriate terminology;
- know how to interact with the teacher in a critical and respectful manner, in presence and in written communication.
5. Learning skills:
- to know how to orientate oneself in the use of bibliographical tools and in the places where they are stored (libraries and databases);
- knowing how to critically consult reference texts and the bibliography they contain.

A basic knowledge of the historical and cultural evolution of the East Slavic peoples from the foundation of Kievan Rus' up to the first half of the 19th century, as outlined in Ca' Foscari course "Russian Literature 1", is expected; for those who need it, the main notions can be retrieved by reading: P. Bushkovitch, "Breve storia della Russia", Turin, Einaudi, 2013, pp. 3-215; ; S. De Vidovich, "Letteratura russa", Milan, Vallardi, 2011, pp. 47-163. the knowledge of the Russian language is not necessary.

The teaching is divided between a basic module and a monographic in-depth module of 30 hours each.

The basic module proposes a reflection on some central themes of Russian literature between 1825 and 1881, also with the help of extracts from verse and prose works of the 19th century and critical studies, with the aim of understanding the role of literature and the writer in the intellectual history and in Russian society of the so-called "great season of realism". In particular, the following will be examined: the contribution of literary works to the ideological debates taking place in Russian society during the reigns of Nicholas I and Alexander II (conservative thought; Westernizers vs. Slavophiles, Pan-Slavists; nihilism; Russian socialism, liberalism); the social and cultural issues that are at the center of the narrative (in particular: the problem of serfdom, the progressive decline of the noble class and the advent of the bourgeoisie); the place that the works occupy in the literary evolution of the time. Authors of the time such as Griboyedov, Pushkin, Gogol, Lermontov, Aksakov, Herzen, Goncharov, Chernyshevsky, Dobrolyubov, Turgenev, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Fet, Tyutchev, Leskov, Ostrovsky, Nekrasov, Saltykov-Shchedrin will be cited.

The monographic module will focus on the close reading (in Italian translation) of "The Brothers Karamazov" by Fyodor Dostoevsky. The work will be read and analysed in class, including reports by the students.

If you need a bibliography wholly in English, please contact the lecturer.

The oral examination is divided into two parts: 1) a detailed exposition of the plot and analysis of the themes and style of a portion of F. Dostoevsky's "Brothers Karamazov"; 2) questions on XIX century Russian literature.
Attendees may take part 1 of the exam during class time, according to the instructions received from the lecturer at the beginning of the course and made public on the Moodle space; those who cannot come to the classroom must contact the lecturer AT LEAST three months before the session in which they intend to take the exam in order to agree on the portion of "Brothers Karamazov" to prepare for.
For part 2 of the examination all students will prepare on ALL the texts of the BASIC MODULE (a, b, c, d) in their entirety. The teacher will start by proposing an extract from one of the primary texts, asking students to recognise and comment on it on the basis of the stylistic and thematic peculiarities they recognise; after that, other questions will be asked to test their knowledge of the other texts.
The two parts of the examination will each account for 50 % of the final grade, which will depend on the appropriateness of the content, the ability to argue and to make CONNECTIONS WITH THE CRITICAL ESSAYS, clarity of exposition and linguistic accuracy.
Each examination may last a maximum of 25 minutes (for those who have taken part 1 in the classroom) and 40 minutes (for those who must also take part 1).

oral

The lecturer has a duty to ensure that the rules regarding the authenticity and originality of exam tests and papers are respected. Therefore, if there is suspicion of irregular conduct, an additional assessment may be conducted, which could differ from the original exam description.

A. scores in the 18-22 range will be awarded in the presence of:
- minimal knowledge of the story of "The Brothers Karamazov" and minimal ability to use critical texts for the oral exposition;
- sufficient ability to orient oneself on the historical and cultural evolution of the Russians from 1825 to 1881, if helped by the teacher;
- limited communication skills.
B. scores in the 23-26 range will be awarded in the presence of:
- fair knowledge of the story of "The Brothers Karamazov" and fair ability to use critical texts for the oral exposition;
- fair ability to orient oneself on the historical and cultural evolution of the Russians from 1825 to 1881;
- fair communication skills, especially in relation to the use of a language specific to literary criticism without falling into "technical jargon".
C. scores in the 27-30 range will be awarded in the presence of:
- good or excellent knowledge of the story of "The Brothers Karamazov" and excellent ability to use critical texts as a basis for formulating independent judgments in the oral exposition;
- good or excellent knowledge of the program, ability to establish connections between the works and formulate independent judgments starting from one's own critical readings;
- good or excellent ability to orient oneself on the cultural evolution of the Russians from 1825 to 1881;
- fully appropriate communication skills, especially in relation to the use of a language specific to literary criticism without falling into "technical jargon".
D. honors (cum laude) will be awarded in the presence of knowledge and ability to understand applied in reference to the program, excellent judgment and communication skills.

Lectures (basic module).
For the monographic module on "The Brothers Karamazov" each student will have to produce a paper based on the instructions given by the teacher in class and communicated on moodle. In addition to lectures, there will be some lessons in which the students will discuss with the teacher the outline of the topics that they intend to cover and, subsequently, the progress of the papers.

Lecture attendance is strongly recommended in order to pass the exam in the best possible way. Students who cannot attend lectures and fall into the special categories indicated on the University website (https://www.unive.it/pag/42819/ ) will have access to ad hoc preparation material on the course moodle platform; in any case, those who cannot attend lectures are invited to have at least one meeting with the teacher (in person or online) no later than 3 months before the exam session in which they intend to take the exam in order to better understand how to prepare for the oral exam and write the paper on the "Brothers Karamazov".

This subject deals with topics related to the macro-area "Human capital, health, education" and contributes to the achievement of one or more goals of U. N. Agenda for Sustainable Development