Reading and composition course based on works by Italians and foreigners about Italy and its culture and by Italians about their distinctive experiences of other cultures as tourists and emigrants. Works studied will be primarily chosen from among fiction and non fiction narratives, both originally in English and translated into it. R5A satisfies the first half of the Reading and Composition Requirement and R5B satisfies the second half.

Translating a poem is somewhat like solving a puzzle, but also somewhat like writing a poem. If the rhyme, meter, and rhythm of a poem are rooted in the sounds of the language in which it was composed, how do translators decide to render these poetic qualities in a new language? What effects do these choices have on us as readers? Is there a difference between a translation and an imitation? What happens when the translator in question is also a poet? In this class we will address these questions by approaching translation as a creative process that bears meaning from one language to another, but also as an act of interpretation by which the translator communicates their reading of a text. To help us navigate the puzzle of poetry in translation we will read foundational statements about poetic translation alongside influential 19th- and 20th-century translations of (mostly) Italian poetry into English. This is a writing-intensive course with an emphasis on critical thinking and the process of revision, and fulfills the first half of the Reading& Composition requirement. Students will be asked to complete short writing assignments as well as one midterm and one final essay. Revised writing will be submitted in a final portfolio in lieu of a final exam. Students will also work on their own creative translation-based projects throughout the semester as a counterpoint to the analytical writing skills developed in this course, and while an interest or ability in Italian (or any language other than English) is welcome, it is not required to enroll in this course. A course reader will be made available for purchase, with poetry and essays by: Dante Alighieri, Guido Cavalcanti, Lori Chamberlain, Amiri Baraka, Charles Baudelaire, Catullus, Ubax Cristina Ali Farrah, Corrado Govoni, Kenneth Koch, Giacomo Leopardi, Jhumpa Lahiri, Andre Levefere, Eugenio Montale, Edgar Lee Masters, Cesare Pavese, Li Po, Ezra Pound, Francesco Petrarca, Francesca Pivano, Amelia Rosselli, Percy Bysshe Shelley, and Gaspara Stampa.

Requisites

• Satisfaction of the Entry Level Writing Requirement.

Repeat Rules

Course is not repeatable for credit.

Requirements class fulfills